The Wesley Ward-owned and -trained SUSPICIONS (c, 2, Corniche–Manoag, by Nyquist) loaded the gate as the 13-10 favorite for the opening race of the Keeneland Spring meet Friday afternoon and reported home a relatively easy winner to get his freshman sire (by Quality Road) off the mark with his very first runner.Drawn one from the outside, Suspicions was beaten out of the gate by the well-backed Joe Joe Dude (Practical Joke) down on the inside, but the Ward runner quickly made up for lost time and was right alongside after a quarter in :23.01 over the sloppy surface.Suspicions overhauled the front-runner while hanging on his right lead until just before the eighth pole, then held safe to the wire by two lengths as 8-5 second choice Bourbon Town (Echo Town) made belated inroads. The final time was :52.74.Ward was to have two runners in the race, including the filly Waggley (Life Is Good), but she was a program scratch and will make her debut in a 4 1/2-furlong dash against her own sex on Apr. 8.Corniche is represented by 107 foals from his first crop and stands at Coolmore's Ashford Stud, a handful of furlongs down Route 60 from the racetrack.Suspicions is the first foal out of an unraced Nyquist first dam who is herself a half-sister to French group-placed Ribaltagaia (Blame).She produced a colt by Essential Quality last year who brought $65,000 as a Keeneland November weanling and is due this spring to Gainesway stalwart Tapit. SUSPICIONS ($4.60) gets home first in the opener on the spring meet at @keenelandracing. The colt becomes the first winner for freshman sire Corniche (@coolmoreamerica). Wesley Ward conditions, Pietro Moran was up!Pick 4, right now: https://t.co/CPMab3CMlx pic.twitter.com/jPaWg0dGwe— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) April 3, 20261st-Keeneland, $90,000, Msw, 4-3, 2yo, 4 1/2f, :52.74, sy, 2 lengths.SUSPICIONS (c, 2, Corniche–Manaoag, by Nyquist) Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0. O/T-Wesley Ward; B-Wilbert Tan (KY). Sales History: $80,000 RNA Wlg '24 KEENOV; $200,000 Ylg '25 FTKJUL. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $55,103. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.O/T-Wesley A. Ward; B-Mr. Wilbert Tan (KY).The post Suspicions First Starter, First Winner For Corniche In Keeneland Opener appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.