CHC Inc. and WinStar Farm’s Patch Adams persevered down the lane to post a nose score over a game Captain Cook in Saturday’s H. Allen Jerkens Memorial (G1) at Saratoga Race Course.

Trained by Brad Cox, the Into Mischief bay tracked from fourth position under Luis Saez as Captain Cook pressed pacesetting Midland Money to the half-mile in 44.52 seconds over the fast main track. Saez waited patiently for an opening and found daylight on the turn for home, launching a sustained rally to duel and pass Captain Cook for the narrow win in a final time of 1:21.62 for seven furlongs.

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The victory, which earned a career-best 103 Beyer Speed Figure, continues a three-race win streak that includes an optional-claiming sprint in May at Churchill Downs over sloppy and sealed going and a 2 1/4-length score in the seven-furlong Woody Stephens (G1) on June 7 at Saratoga during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.

When asked how he felt about his horse at the top of the lane, Cox said, “I thought that he’d keep coming. We felt like we had him fairly tight and ready to roll. I really liked how he was training leading up to this race and what he was showing us in how he presented in day-to-day training. I felt we were going to get a big effort out of the horse, and we did. It was a huge effort and I’m very proud of the horse.”

Patch Adams graduated by 10 1/2 lengths at second asking sprinting seven furlongs in November at Churchill Downs. He tried his luck on the Kentucky Derby trail with fourth-place efforts in the Grade 3 Southwest at Oaklawn in January and the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Derby one month later before returning to one-turn events.

“He’s one we had a lot of high hopes for — when he broke his maiden, it was very impressive,” Cox said. “He didn’t quite get us where we wanted to go in the spring and we struggled a little bit with him with the Southwest and the Tampa Bay Derby, but once we cut him back, he’s undefeated around the one turn.”

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Cox said he will work with the ownership to determine next steps as they build toward a Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup start at Del Mar that could come in either the two-turn Dirt Mile or the six-furlong Sprint.

“I think the horse could go a little further based on how he trains and the way he puts himself into a race,” Cox said. “I don’t think he’s a mile and an eighth or a mile and a quarter horse, but given the right opportunity he could perform around two turns. I think the Dirt Mile will be in play and the Sprint as well. We’ll talk it over the WinStar team and hopefully get him to the Breeders’ Cup in one of those races.”

Cox said Patch Adams was in good order Sunday morning and will spend a few more days at the Spa before shipping back to Kentucky.

“He looked good this morning. He’s tired and rightfully so,” Cox said.

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Bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm, Patch Adams is out of the stakes-winning Distorted Humor mare Well Humored – a half-sister to Grade 1 winner American Patriot and Parchment Party, who captured the Grade 3 Belmont Gold Cup and Listed Birdstone at Saratoga this year.

Resolute Racing and Cha Cha Chestnuts’ stakes winner Verifire failed to fire his best shot when last of 8 in the Jerkens after bobbling at the start and bumping with Smoken Wicken before settling under Flavien Prat.

“He didn’t get a position early that I thought he needed,” Cox said. “When Flavien knew between the three-eighths and the quarter-pole that he had no shot at getting a placing, it was probably a wise idea to let him ease on in. He actually looked really good this morning. Hopefully we can rebound with him and get him going soon.”

This story was originally reported by Paulick Report on Aug 24, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Paulick Report as a Preferred Source by clicking here.