Linda Rice, winning trainer of Kid Cruz (No. 4): "This is terrific. He needed it, we needed it, and we want to keep him going in the right direction. When they put up the first quarter in :22 3/5, and the half in 45 and change, I thought it was our race to lose. He made an inside-outside move. In the past, he's been making a big, sweeping move and losing ground on the turn, but [jockey] Irad [Ortiz] saved ground on the inside, made the inside-outside move, and then when I saw the half, it was our race to lose."

"We'll probably point to the Dwyer (G2, July 5) and keep trying to let him learn his craft."

Irad Ortiz, Jr., winning jockey of Kid Cruz (No. 4): "[Trainer Linda Rice] told me to sit back, and that's what I did. I had horse, and, when I asked him, he took off. I just had to find a spot and get out."