Bernardini's son Capezzano pulled away in the stretch to win the G3 Firebreak Stakes in record-breaking fashion as he stopped the clock in a new stakes record time of 1:36.23. The Firebreak was Capezzano's first start since losing to Thunder Snow as the favorite in the Dubai World Cup last March 30th. Capezzano had gotten the better of that rival in his 2019 World Cup prep, the G1 Al Maktoum Challenge Rd 1, when winning by nine lengths.
The well-rested gelding stopped a frustrating trend of poor performances off of layoffs with his trainer, Bin Ghadayer, commenting, “Always his first time out, he doesn’t perform (well), but we saved him this year since we heard about the Saudi race ([The Saudi Cup on February 28th]) and for (Dubai) World Cup,” Bin Ghadayer added.
In the Firebreak, Capezzano sprinted to an early lead and was never headed, leaving his rivals vying for the runner-up spot by a widening six lengths.
Capezzano was bred in Kentucky by Darley, and is out of Cableknit, by Unbridled’s Song. Cableknit is out of Canadian Champion Two-Year-Old Filly, Silken Cat, and is a half-sister to multiple Graded Stakes winner and Champion Sprinter, Speightstown.