It took until his 30th career start before a trainer opted to start Dress Code in a race on the turf, but when Vann Belvoir tried it at Hollywood Park on Nov. 26, the gelding made the most of the opportunity. With Victor Espinoza aboard, the 5-year-old by Doneraile Court proved he should have been there before, battling nose-to-nose for the last half-mile and holding on gamely to score by a nose in 1:41.89 for the mile and one-sixteenth. Ironically, the course record of 1:38.45 is held by Leroidesanimaux.

Dress Code, a Kentucky-bred, came out of the race with a record of 4-10-6 in his 30 starts and earnings of $106,317. He collected $18,000 for owner/trainer Belvoir, who had claimed the gelding out of his previous race on Nov. 4.