Independence Hall Gets First Stakes Winner In Dramatic Rendition Of Pulpit

[Wandering Eyes]

In dramatic fashion, Glorious Boy awarded his freshman sire Independence Hall (by Constitution) his first stakes winner in Friday's Pulpit Stakes.

He didn't have much luck earlier in the summer on the main track at Saratoga, though he was meant for the turf initially on debut before getting rained onto the dirt upstate. But, once switched to the grass at Aqueduct Sept. 28, he found a nice improvement to his form, breaking his maiden in an optional claimer and running second most recently in the six-furlong Awad Stakes Nov. 9.

Shipping into Gulfstream for the first time, the 8-1 shot faced both a weather-necessitated surface switch to Tapeta and a stretch in distance out to the one mile and 70 yards Friday. Bumped at the break, he found himself off the pace in fifth just behind Bronze Bullet while able to save ground from his outside draw just off the rail on the short run into the clubhouse turn. That pair stayed in tight quarters for much of the backstretch run with Glorious Boy swinging out wide for running room outside of his rival. In a joint move with just over a quarter mile to run, the two came for home together with Bronze Bullet hitting the front. As they raced down to the wire, they came together several times late in a head-bobbing dead-heat finish.

The stewards immediately hung the inquiry sign as Rajiv Maragh aboard Glorious Boy also lodged an objection against Emisael Jaramillo on Bronze Bullet. After review, Bronze Bullet was disqualified from the dead heat win and placed second with Glorious Boy elevated to solo first.

“I objected because there was some contact that I felt impeded my horse,” said Maragh. “In the moment, it was so close I wasn't sure if I won, so I made sure I claimed foul.”

Winning trainer Carlos Martin added: “I wasn't sure about the DQ because it seemed like there was some incidental contact both ways. But Stacy Prior, trainer Joe Orseno's assistant who helped us with the horse–Joe and her have been great the whole time we've been here, about 10 days–she said to watch it again because the second time our horse's [behind] kind of went out from underneath him, maybe just enough. A tie is great, but it's better to have the win.”

Of Bronze Bullet's DQ, trainer Jose D'Angelo said:  “It was a tough call. I think he was tired. They are babies going two turns for the first time.”

Freshman sire Independence Hall has 16 winners from his first crop. First dam Love Co, herself a stakes winner in New York, has eight winners from 10 to race including now three stakes performers. Glorious Boy is her last reported foal.

 

#5 GLORIOUS BOY ($19.40) was declared the winner of the $100,000 Pulpit Stakes at @GulfstreamPark after a DQ of #2 Bronze Bullet who originally was involved in a dead heat for the win. @RajivMaragh was up for trainer Carlos Martin and owned by Centurion Thoroughbred Club. pic.twitter.com/P8xRDRFSKM

— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) November 28, 2025

PULPIT S., $100,000, Gulfstream, 11-28, 2yo, 1m 70y (AWT) (off turf), 1:40.74, ft.
1–GLORIOUS BOY, 119, g, 2, by Independence Hall
            1st Dam: Love Co (SW, $121,881), by Not For Love
            2nd Dam: Cozzekiki, by Cozzene
            3rd Dam: Raffinierte (Ire), by Surumu (Ger)
($19,000 Wlg '23 KEENOV; $90,000 Ylg '24 FTKOCT).
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. O-Centurion Thoroughbred Club;
B-Vossfeld Bloodstock LLC (KY); T-Carlos F. Martin; J-Rajiv
Maragh. $60,760. Lifetime Record: 5-2-1-0, $136,260. *1/2 to
Portofino (Speightster), SP, $230,793 and Veaisha (Wando),
SW, $290,078.
2–Bronze Bullet, 118, c, 2, Leinster–Renovation, by Alternation.
($7,000 Ylg '24 OBSWIN; $37,000 Ylg '24 OBSOCT; $180,000
2yo '25 OBSAPR). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-Three Diamonds Farm;
B-Charles Weston & Robert Vickers (FL); T-Jose Francisco
D'Angelo. $19,600.
3–A Million Dreams, 118, c, 2, By My Standards–So Beautiful,
by Arch. ($27,000 Ylg '24 FTKFEB). O-Bella Mia Stables, LLC;
B-University of Kentucky (KY); T-Kevin Rice. $9,800.
Margins: 3HF, 3HF, HF. Odds: 8.70, 2.10, 7.90.
Also Ran: Shipmate, Behold the King, Sunrise, Chalky White. Scratched: Skipping Stars, Uncle Aldo. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

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