Midshipman's Minecraft Maniac defended his title in the Governor Terry E. Branstad Stakes at Prairie Meadows on September 26th.
Off as the 4/5 favorite, Minecraft Maniac settled in third for the mile-and-a-sixteenth trip behind Kauai and leader, Tin Badge, who set a demanding pace through the backstretch. Into the top of the stretch, Kauai swung four wide to take the lead while Minecraft Maniac hugged the rail for his bid. This duo battled down the stretch, with Net Gain closing late, but it was Kauai who got a head in front.
A well-fought second for Minecraft Maniac, until the ‘inquiry’ light hit the tote board. After deliberating the claim of foul from Net Gain jockey, Walter de la Cruz, the stewards decided to disqualify Kauai behind that third-place finisher, placing Minecraft Maniac in the winners’ circle. This third stakes win for the five-year-old son of Midshipman brings his total to eight wins from 19 starts and career earnings to $297,205.
The second Black Type winner from his family, Minecraft Maniac is a homebred for owner Warren Bush. Out of the Officer mare Our Sweet Mary B, who is a half-sister to G3 winner and G1 placed Wild Snitch, Minecraft Maniac is half-brother to Hot Shot Kid, a multiple Black Type winner.
Midshipman continues his late summer success with eight Black Type winners since July 1st, including multiple stakes winner Relentless Dancer, Is Too, Firstmate, Shippy, Weekend Ride and Wink. Midshipman is a consistent source of Black Type, his 17% career Black Type horses from starters is better than all stallions standing for under $50K and puts him among the top 12 stallions in Kentucky.
