Skeet wins Hot Springs Stakes

— -- HOT SPRINGS, Ark. -- Skeet got off to a slow start but crossed the finish line first in the $50,000 Hot Springs Stakes race at Oaklawn Park on Sunday. Carrying 119 pounds, Skeet ran the six-furlong race in 1:09.22 to lead the five-horse field, ahead 2\ lengths of second-place finisher That Tat. Winner of the King Cotton on Jan. 31, Skeet paid $7.40 and $7.40 on Sunday, while tickets on That Tat were worth $14.00. Saint Waki and Cowboy Stuff finished even, in third. "(Skeet) broke a little slow....I moved him to the ouside so we wouldn't run into any trouble," jockey John McKee said. "When we caught the leaders at the quarter pole, I knew I still had a lot of horse left and just showed him the whip in the final stages." Trainer Robert Holthus said he won't change anything about Skeet, including the way he breaks, and will run him in the Count Fleet. A crowd of 10,508 wagered $798,443 on the 11-race program. Betting at simulcast locations brought the total handle to $2,965,508.