Bruce Smart Jr.’s Orchestra Leader is money in the bank at the Foxfield racecourse in Charlottesville, Va., and he made another deposit Sunday when he led throughout to win Foxfield Fall’s featured $25,000 optional allowance hurdle.
Winner of the 2015 Daniel Van Clief Memorial at the Foxfield Spring races, Orchestra Leader and jockey Keri Brion were shadowed by Randy Rouse’s Hishi Soar, winner of this year’s Van Clief Memorial, in which Orchestra Leader finished second.
Hishi Soar faded after the last fence as Noble Stables’ Kingofalldiamonds came on to finish second, 5 1/4 lengths behind Orchestra Leader. The Elkstone Group’s Bodie Island finished third, and owner-trainer Jonathan Sheppard’s As You Like It took fourth money. Hishi Soar finished fifth.
Orchestra Leader, who notched his first jumps victory of the season for trainer Jimmy Day, ran the optional allowance hurdle’s 2 1/8 miles in 3:58.20 on firm turf.