HOT SPRINGS, AR – Dirty Rich rode a strong start to a strong finish in winning the $150,000 Advent Stakes for 2-year-old sprinters Friday at Oaklawn.

Providing jockey Ramon Vazquez with his fourth victory on the card, Dirty Rich finished 1 3/4 lengths ahead of 6-5 favorite Boca Beach Club, with Spun D M C another 1 ¼ lengths farther back in third. Strong Potential, Ganaas, Chad Allan and Walter the Mason completed the order of finish.

Dirty Rich ($14.80) won the race at the start, rocketing to the front from post 2. After shaking off slow-starting Spun D M C turning for home, Dirty Rich opened a 2 ½-length lead in midstretch and wasn’t threatened approaching the wire. Racing over a fast track, Dirty Rich covered 5 ½ furlongs in 1:04.11. The splits were :21.89 for the opening quarter-mile and :45.70 for a half-mile.

Vazquez rode Dirty Rich for Southern California-based trainer Peter Miller, who again has a string of horses at Oaklawn, and owner Michael McMillan. Dirty Rich, removing blinkers, was exiting a seventh-place finish in the Speakeasy Stakes at five furlongs on the turf Oct. 4 at Santa Anita. Dirty Rich broke his maiden at 5 ½ furlongs on the dirt July 31 at Del Mar.

Dirty Rich, a son of Thousand Words, raised his career earnings to $120,712 following his second victory from five starts.

Vazquez and Miller also teamed to win the 2024 Advent with Kale’s Angel. It was the third consecutive Advent victory for Vazquez, who won the 2023 running aboard Valentine Candy.

Estimated attendance Friday, the first day of Oaklawn’s 64-day split season, was 15,000. Total mutuel handle was $6,903,276.40.

Racing resumes Saturday at 12:30 p.m. CDT. The 10-race card is highlighted by the $150,000 Ring the Bell Stakes.

ADVENT QUOTES

WINNING JOCKEY RAMON VAZQUEZ (DIRTY RICH): “I got a good break out of the gate. He (trainer Peter Miller) told me if the horse breaks good out of the gate, just let him run. When I asked him the final quarter, he responded very well.”

WINNING TRAINER PETER MILLER (DIRTY RICH): “The start certainly really helped because there was a lot of pace in there. Our plan was to go to the lead, so it really worked out well. He broke sharp and Ramon took nothing away from him.”