Thundering down the center of the Turfway Park stretch, Tami Bobo and Lugamo Racing Stable’s Congruent pulled clear for a decisive come-from-behind victory March 4 in the $147,500 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes.

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Sonny Leon, who rode Rich Strike to an 80.80-1 upset in the 2022 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve, was aboard the victorious Florida invader, who defeated Turfway Prevue Stakes winner Scoobie Quando by 3 ½ lengths and raced 1 1/16 miles on Tapeta in 1:43.02. Congruent, a gray son of Tapit trained by Antonio Sano, won for the third time in nine starts as a 16.50-1 longshot in the 12-horse field.

Bred by Tapit Syndicate and Glencrest Farm in Kentucky, Congruent is out of the Stormy Atlantic mare Part the Seas. The colt won the Laurel Futurity Stakes last October, which was moved off turf and held on a sloppy track at Laurel Park, and then ran in four other stakes leading into the Battaglia Memorial, with a  third-place finish in the Pulpit Stakes on Gulfstream Park’s turf course his best result in that span.

The Battaglia distributed Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve qualifying points on a 20-8-4-2-1 basis to the race’s eligible top-five finishers, provided they are nominated to the Triple Crown or become nominated before the series.

Following Scoobie Quando in the order of finish were Bromley, Moon Landing, and Miranda Rights. Bromley is not currently a Triple Crown nominee.