Metropolitan Handicap 2015: Met Mile Results, Order of Finish and Payouts
The Met Mile is one of the most underappreciated races in North American racing. The field attracts a cast of runners with more stars than the most recent Avengers movie, and this year's race was no exception.
A proverbial who's who of major graded stakes-winning thoroughbreds, this year's Met Mile was one for the ages.
Honor Code, trained by Claude McGaughey III and ridden by Javier Castellano, took home top honors in this year's running of the Met Mile. For their efforts, they'll receive the lion's share of a whopping $1.25 million purse, as well as a spot in this year's Breeders' Cup Classic. The Met Mile is a win-and-you're-in race for the BCC.
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Behind him, Tonalist and Private Zone helped round out the win, place and show finishers.
How did we get there, though? Well, that's what I'm here to break down for you.
But first, take a look at our final order of finish, as well as a breakdown of race payouts.
Final Order of Finish
| 1 | Honor Code | Claude McGaughey III | Javier Castellano |
| 2 | Tonalist | Christophe Clement | John Velazquez |
| 3 | Private Zone | Jorge Navarro | Martin Pedroza |
| 4 | Tamarkuz | Kiaran McLaughlin | Irad Ortiz Jr. |
| 5 | Wicked Strong | James A. Jerkins | Joel Rosario |
| 6 | Kobe's Back | Peter Eurton | Gary Stevens |
| 7 | Pants on Fire | Kelly Breen | Paco Lopez |
| 8 | Noble Moon | Leah Gyarmati | Jose Ortiz |
| 9 | Bay of Plenty | Kiaran McLaughlin | Mike Smith |
| 10 | Bayern | Bob Baffert | Martin Garcia |
Payouts
| Honor Code | $16.20 | $6.40 | $4.30 |
| Tonalist | -- | $3.50 | $2.70 |
| Private Zone | -- | -- | $4.30 |
Recap
Predictably, Private Zone and Bayern broke quickly from the gate, and the two jumped out to the first- and second-place positions. The duo set a torrid pace in the first quarter, logging a time of 22.42 seconds.
From there, the duo continued to lead through a half that went in a ridiculous 44.92 seconds. At this point in the race, the eventual winner, Honor Code, sat in dead last, with a whopping seven lengths between him and the leader, Private Zone.
Bayern dropped back hard as the field worked through the final turn, and it's tough to make an excuse for him in this race. The horse and his rider, Martin Garcia, gambled early and fought Private Zone in a losing effort for the lead.
Without an easy lead in hand, he faltered big time.
That torrid pace we talked about, well, it killed any chances of Private Zone wiring the field, as he would eventually give way to Tonalist en route to a third-place finish.
Tonalist, the winner of last year's Belmont Stakes, did everything right in this race, but he just didn't quite have the horse to beat Honor Code.
Honor Code worked up a storm in preparation for the Met Mile, logging a bullet at Monmouth Park back on May 24, as well as a 12/46 ranking in his last work at Belmont on May 31, per the Daily Racing Form. Those workouts served him well here, as he and Castellano showed great composure in allowing the leading group to work out so far in front of them before making a huge, six-wide move in the turn for home.
As they entered the stretch run, Honor Code gobbled up ground like Pac-Man gobbles up dots. After a brilliant stretch run, the A.P. Indy colt wound up logging a three-length victory in a time of just 1:33.18—a time that nearly matched the fastest Met Mile time since 1978, per Equibase.com.
Honor Code looked great entering the winner's circle and figures to draw a lot of attention as we move toward the Breeders' Cup.
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