Burnham Square qualified for the Kentucky Derby in dramatic fashion Tuesday with a riveting stretch drive to claim the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky.

The winner of the Holy Bull Stakes at Florida’s Gulfstream Park two months ago was last among the field of seven heading into the final turn. However, jockey Brian Fernandez guided the 3-year-old gelding toward the middle of the track. They also had to veer even more to their right entering the final stretch to avoid River Thames as they chased down the field and beat East Avenue, who had dictated the pace throughout the 1 1/8-mile race, by a head in a photo finish. The final time was 1:51.33.

Trained by Ian Wilkes, Burnham Square went off at 4-1, paying $10.48 to win, $5.18 to place and $3.34 to show. East Avenue paid $6.42 and $4.26, with River Thames paying $3.24 for finishing third.

Burnham Square needed to finish first or second in order to ensure he qualified for the May 4 Run for the Roses. With the 100 points earned for the win, the horse now vaults to the top of the standings at 130.

East Avenue, trained by Brendan Walsh, now has 60 points thanks to the 50 awarded to the second-place finisher. He’s tied with Publisher in points, but East Avenue owns the tiebreaker and ranks 13th because he has more non-restricted stakes earnings. River Thames received 25 points and has 50 overall, along with three others. The Todd Pletcher-trained colt currently is 16th overall due to having the highest earnings, putting him and Flood Zone as the last two U.S. eligibles in the field.

The top 17 U.S. points earners are guaranteed a spot in the field along with two horses from Europe and a horse from Japan. Horses with fewer points become alternates in case of scratches.

The Blue Grass, pushed back from Saturday due to inclement weather, was the final major Kentucky Derby prep race. The last race offering points is this Saturday’s Lexington Stakes at Keeneland, with 20 points going to the winner.

–Field Level Media