Diverse Wins Thursday's Kentucky Derby Museum Purse

Nov 13, 2008 Gary Yunt

(November 13, 2008) – W.S. Farish and Joseph Shields Jr.’s Diverse prevailed best by a nose after a deep stretch duel with Kiss the Queen to win Thursday’s featured $44,100 Kentucky Derby Museum Purse at Churchill Downs.

            Trained by Neil Howard and ridden by Robby Albarado, Diverse rated off the pace of dueling leaders Geri Road and Diamond Song in the run down the backstretch of the one-mile race. Kent Desormeaux moved first on Kiss the Queen with Diverse in immediate pursuit leaving the far turn and that duo collared Diamond Song at the eighth pole.

The two raced as a team to the wire with Diverse getting the nod for her second victory in 13 career starts and earned $27,606 for the victory to increase her career earnings to $118,239. Diverse, a 4-year-old Kentucky-bred daughter of Kingmambo out of the Darn That Alarm mare Foil, covered the mile over a Matt Winn Turf Course rated as “good” in 1:38.75.

Diverse returned mutuels of $5.20, $3.40 and $2.40 as the favorite in the field of 10. Kiss the Queen paid $6.80 and $4.40 with Park At Dark, who finished 4 ¼ lengths back in third under John McKee, returning $2.80 to show.

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