Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-02-26
FIoridu-Bred
closes Fast;
GoIfAce Next
BY FRANCIS STANN
Star stan Correspondent

10y u 1DIAANN40 ~ 4AhANAN
Star stan Correspondent
MIAMI, Feb. 25.--A smallish.
dark brown colt named Needles,
phlegmatic until the gates
opened. today became the first
Florida bred ever to win the rich
and usually significant Flamingo
Stakes. He turned in a convince
ing, come-from behind effort
that established him as the s.
year-old to beat for Triple Crown .
honorS.
Like his daddy. Ponder, In the
1919 Kentucky Derby. Needles
had 1t in the stretch as he flashed
down the middle Of Hialeah's
fast track to win by two and
three quarters lengths over the
longshot Golf Ace, coupled in
the mutuel field. Golf Ace, In
turn, was another length and
three-quarters ahead of Calu-
NETS Fabius.
Conceived in Kentucky but
foaled at Ocala, in North Florida.
Needles went to the post as the
FIST Florida-bred' to win over
500 900, but more advantageous.
perhaps, was the fact that he
carried only lit pounds as
against 122 for the rest of the
field Of Is starters.
Rule May Be Dropped
The weight discrepancy was
due to the fact that Needles is
a Florida bred, and he may DO
the last to run under such con-
ditions. A State Racing Com
mission regulation, which re-
portedly may be dropped next
year. gave him the 5-pound adj
vantage. The rule was adopted
originally to help the compare
lively infant breeding industry
in Florida.
Thirty-two-year-old Dave Erb,
riding Needles for only the Sec
ond time. stayed far back early
in the race and didn't move
into the lead until the field
Strengthened out in the stretch.
Going past the stands the first
time in the mile-and-an-eighth
race. Erb and Needles were 18th.
After three quarters Of o mile.
Needles had moved to seventh.
but Golf Ace, Fabius and Nail
looked to have sizeable leads.
Then. just above the eighth pole.
Needles stuck his head in front
and quickly built up command
ling margin.
The time of 1892 was slightly
more than a second over the
Flamingo record of 1:48.l. held
jointly by Brevity u946) and OIL
Capitol 1850. Needles paid
S7.20 to win as second choice
to the Maine Chance Farm entry
of Gun Shot and Busher's Idol,
whom the crowd of 33,287
backed down to 2 to /. The
crowd, incidentally. was about
&. 900 under that Of the Widener
turnout a week ago, when
Nashua successfully returned to
the races.
Bought for $4,000
Needles is one of the four
ifoals of Ponder's first crop and
out Of the dam Noodle Soup. He
ran in the orange and blue silks
Iof the "D8sH Stable" which il
owned by Jackson Dudley Of
Saltwater, Okla, and Bonnie
Heath of Fort Lauderdale, Fla,
a pair of young men who struck
Cd oil and CD Needles. They
bought the colt for $4,000 at
Hialeah last January and turned
him over to Hugh Fontaine, q
World War I aviator, polo player
and horse trainer.
Last year Needles won
s129,805. taking six of 10 races,
and generally was rated with
Mrs. Arson Bigelow's Nail as the
top 2-year-old of 1855. Today he
established himself, at least in
the minds of those who witnessed
his performance, as far more of
a slayer than Nail. OF the $148,-
800 gross purse for today's race,
Needles picked up Sill. 500.
While the Flamingo lacked the
allure of the recent Widener and
the crowd fell short of a record,
the bettors were enthusiastic
when it came to wagering on the
3-year-old classic. A total Of
$410,140, a new mark. was bet
on the big eighth race. Another
record was set when $249.565
was bet in the daily double.
Nail Early Leader
The boy horses were separated
from the men horses this bright,
balmy afternoon. Nail, who
came out of the box sharply and
led for half mile. faded to
ninth. None of the other top
rated contenders showed great
deal of stamina, but Winding
See FLAMINGO, Page C-6