When Hall of Fame trainer H. Allen Jerkens glanced at the tote board at Aqueduct Racetrack prior to Saturday’s 34th running of the Grade 3, $150,000 Bold Ruler, he was somewhat perplexed that his Kelso winner, Le Grand Cru, was being sent off as the longest shot in the five-horse field.

“I thought he was a shorter price than he was on the board,” said Jerkens, who trains Le Grand Cru for Judson Streicher.

But Jerkens was not at all surprised when the 4-year-old son of Dynaformer dug in through the stretch to edge Past the Point and favored Sing Baby Sing for his second stakes victory in as many starts.

“I was disappointed in Florida when he couldn’t win the first [few] times that he ran this winter, especially after winning his first start,” said Jerkens of Le Grand Cru, who after finishing second in his first three starts this year scored his first stakes victory in the Kelso at Belmont Park on October 4. “We couldn’t figure it out. That race the last time gave him confidence.”

Under jockey Jose Lezcano, Le Grand Cru raced up close as Sing Baby Sing and then Lucky Island set early fractions of 22.47 and 44.92. Coming wide around the turn, he took over at the top of the stretch and held on to hit the wire a half-length clear of Past the Point, with Sing Baby Sing another three-quarters of a length back.

His time for the seven furlongs was 1:22.19 over a fast track.

“He’s really in the game now,” said Lezcano, who has been aboard Le Grand Cru for five of his 13 starts, including his last three. “When I rode him before, sometimes he didn’t want to do certain things, but now he’s really getting good.”

Sent off at 7.90-1, Le Grand Cru returned $17.80 for a $2 win bet as he extended his lifetime record to 4-3-1. The winner’s purse of $90,000 boosted his earnings to $337,078.

Cherokee Country was fourth and Lucky Island fifth. Gold Trippi was scratched.

Jerkens, who has now won the Bold Ruler four times – twice with Kelly Kip (1998-99) and once with Rizzi (1995) – was noncommittal about Le Grand Cru’s next race but did not rule out a start in the Grade 1, $300,000 Hill ‘n’ Dale Cigar Mile here on Saturday, November 28.

“We’ll have to see,” said Jerkens.