'I'm a bit confused as to how we won it' - change of fortune for Charlie Fellowes as Luther awarded Grade 2 at Saratoga

Luther (yellow silks) finished a length and a half behind Zulu Kingdom but the result was reversedCredit: Coglianese Photo/NYRA

Charlie Fellowes was on the right side of a decision by the stewards when Luther was awarded the Hall of Fame Stakes at Saratoga on Friday despite finishing a length and a half behind first-past-the post Zulu Kingdom.

Luther, making his second US appearance after finishing third under Kieran Shoemark in last month’s Belmont Derby, looked to have run another solid race in defeat when passing the winning line in second.

However, his rider Joel Rosario objected to the result on the grounds that he felt his mount was nearly brought down at the first bend. The three stewards deemed Zulu Kingdom to have caused the incident and bumped into the initial fourth-placed Tiz Dashing, which resulted in Luther on his inner hitting the rail.

Zulu Kingdom was demoted to fourth with Luther inheriting the first prize of £176,000 in the Grade 2.

Fellowes said: "I'm a bit confused as to how we won it, if I'm completely honest. I don't know what just happened, but I'm shocked. I was watching here from home and it was difficult to see exactly what happened, but I could see that it was a really messy race and my fella got carved up a little early on, then rushed up into position.

"He really ran an unbelievable race to finish second, considering all of that. Had he had a smooth trip, jumped out well, and maintained a position behind the lead, he would have legitimately won it on his own."

Charlie Fellowes: trainer's Luther was awarded a race in the USCredit: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)

The Newmarket trainer, more than most, can sympathise with connections of Zulu Kingdom as he experienced his own heartbreak in the stewards’ room when his filly Shes Perfect was demoted to second behind Zarigana in the French 1,000 Guineas. A subsequent appeal against the decision was unsuccessful.

He said: “I lost a big race, the biggest of my career, earlier this year so I know first-hand it's not the way you want to win a race.

"I feel really bad for the connections of the winner, as it's a bad way to win and a very tough loss for them. But I'm unbelievably proud of my horse and how well he ran."

Michael Dubb, one of the owners of Zulu Kingdom, accepted the stewards' decision. He said: “I'm not going to question the judgement of the stewards. When we sign up to play the game, we agree to live by the decisions of the stewards. I'm not going to beat anybody up and I won't beat myself up over it."

However, Flavien Prat, who rode the Chad Brown-trained odds-on favourite, said: "Two horses were battling for the same spot and I got blamed for it.”

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