Mindframe pressed a slow early pace then proved best in the lane to defeat a star-studded field in the $940,000 Stephen Foster Stakes going 1 1/8 miles at Churchill Downs June 28. The Grade 1 Stephen Foster featured a stellar field and lived up to its billing with Mindframe emerging a one-length winner over Sierra Leone.

The triumph marked Mindframe's second consecutive Grade 1 win for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher and owners Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable after the 4-year-old's last-out win in the Churchill Downs Stakes on May 3. That seven-furlong win may have contributed to his victory around two turns Saturday as jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. said it helped him move into contention and get a perfect stalking trip behind First Mission.

"He put me right there on top of the leaders," said Ortiz Jr. "After that, I go with the flow."

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Tracking behind fractions of :23.94, :47.94, and 1:11.46, Ortiz gave Mindframe a breather down the backstretch until he felt the presence of Sierra Leone, last year's Longines Breeders' Cup Classic champion, on his outside at the 3/8th pole.

"I said, 'Alright, let's start the race right here,'" Ortiz Jr. said. "He was there for me. I showed the stick, and I got close (to First Mission). After that I said, 'Alright let's go,' and he go on. That was nice."

Sierra Leone made a late move in the lane but settled for second as the clock stopped in 1:47.48. First Mission edged Mystik Dan by a neck for third.

Mindframe, who paid $5.76 to win as the favorite, is now a perfect 3-for-3 this season. He has placed in the exacta in all seven career starts. His lone defeats came when second in the 2024 Belmont Stakes and the and the 2024 NYRA Bets Haskell Stakes in his third and fourth lifetime starts, both times behind Dornoch. Mindframe also improved to 3-for-3 at Churchill Downs.

"He's such a good horse and he clearly likes Churchill Downs so I think that was a big factor in coming here," said Pletcher's assistant Sophie Green. "Last year he started a bit later than some of the others and we didn't get him going until later in the year, so to come up against these is pretty good and to win against them is even better."

The Stephen Foster was a Breeders' Cup Challenge Series "Win and You're In" race, and with the win, Mindframe now holds an automatic, fees paid berth into the $7 million Longines Breeders' Cup Classic Nov. 1 at Del Mar.

"He's so versatile, he can do whatever he wants," said Jacob West, the stallion seasons and bloodstock manager for Claiborne Farm where Mindframe will stand stud after his racing career.

"This opens up so many doors for so many things," West said. "There's nothing you can take away from him: physical, pedigree. He's truly unbelievable."

Mindframe’a next race is yet to be determined. He will be shipped back to Pletcher's base at Saratoga Race Course on June 29.