They told him to bring the heat, and so he did.Rolling late on the far outside, Bring the Smoke (Preservationist) collared the dueling leaders to win the GIII Maryland Sprint Stakes at Laurel Park.An 18 1/4-length maiden graduate two back Feb. 21 at this track, he earned a 92 Beyer in what ended up being his last start for trainer Lacey Gaudet. He was moved to Whit Beckman's barn and made his first jump for that program last out Apr. 12 at Keeneland. Running second there against first-level allowance company, he shed blinkers for this black type debut against a tough field.Unrushed after the jump with a ground saving trip on the rail, he watched Faster Gator (Vekoma) set an opening fraction in :22.08 but was losing lengths from that spot as the field fanned out coming off the bend. Switched to the far outside in the final sixteenth, Bring the Smoke relentlessly closed the gap to nail new leader Faust (Volatile) in the final strides. Haileysfirstnotion (Great Notion) fought on gamely but had to settle in third.Sales history: $37,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP. O-Awestrike Racing, Berry Family Racing, LLC, Legion Racing, GLAM Racing and Ohrstrom, Clarke; B-Brereton C. Jone (KY); T-Whit Beckman. #1 BRING THE SMOKE ($16.60) ran down Faust & Hailysfirstnotion in the $150,000 Maryland Sprint Stakes (G3) at @LaurelPark. @Tyler_gaff was aboard the Preservationist gelding for @DWhitBeckman.Gaffalione & Beckman team up later today with Ocelli in the Preakness Stakes. pic.twitter.com/8W0Vo11N1G— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) May 16, 2026Saturday, LaurelMARYLAND SPRINT S.-GIII, $150,000, Laurel, 5-16, 3yo/up, 6f, 1:10.73, ft.1–BRING THE SMOKE, 120, g, 4, by Preservationist 1st Dam: Covey Trace (GSW, $329,303), by Stevie Wonderboy 2nd Dam: Anniversary, by Yankee Victor 3rd Dam: Ghazo, by Ghazi1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. ($37,000 Ylg'23 KEESEP). O-Awestrike Racing, Berry Family Racing, LLC,Legion Racing, GLAM Racing and Clarke Ohrstrom; B-BreretonJones (KY); T-D. Whitworth Beckman; J-Tyler Gaffalione.$90,000. Lifetime Record: 4-2-1-1, $146,900. Werk NickRating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.2–Faust, 126, c, 4, Volatile–Whistling Straits, by Scat Daddy.1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($59,000 Wlg '22KEENOV; $240,000 RNA 2yo '24 OBSMAR). O-CorinneHeiligbrodt and L. William Heiligbrodt; B-Torie Gladwell & TerriBurns (KY); T-Steven M. Asmussen. $30,000.3–Haileysfirstnotion, 120, g, 5, Great Notion–Hailey's Flip,by Archarcharch. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. O/B-Daniel C.Crowley & Non Stop Stable (MD); T-Gary Capuano. $15,000.Margins: NK, NK, 3 1/4. Odds: 7.30, 4.40, 3.20.Also Ran: Celtic Contender, S S Sinatra, Slam Notion, Faster Gator. Scratched: Floodlites, Hymn. Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV. The post Bring the Smoke Does Just That to Win Maryland Sprint Thriller appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.