When his mood is right, Rashaan can be a brilliant racehorse. Working with the veteran Irish-bred gelding to coax such performances can be a test for the people around him. Trainer Leslie Young said Rashaan can “overthink” racing. Jockey Thomas Garner, who doubles as Rashaan’s exercise rider, said there are mornings Rashaan does not want to participate in any activity. When Rashaan is at his best, he is capable of eye-catching performances. On Aug. 20, Rashaan won his first major stakes in the United States in the Grade 1 New York Turf Writers Cup steeplechase at Saratoga. The win ensured Rashaan’s position as one of three finalists for the Eclipse Award as the nation’s outstanding steeplechase horse of 2020. The win at Saratoga was Rashaan’s first victory in the United States in his fourth start in this country, but a continuation of a successful career in Ireland and Northern Ireland from 2015 to early 2019. Rashaan, by Manduro and out of Rayyana, won 13 times overseas and was sold to race in the United States in late summer of 2019, months after he won the Group 2 Strawberry Hurdle at Fairyhouse Racecourse in Ireland. In the United States, Rashaan raced for the powerful Bruton Street-US stable of Mike Hankin, Charlie Fenwick, and Charlie Noell. :: Full list of 2020 Eclipse Awards finalists, including profile stories Rashaan’s American career did not start as expected. The gelding was pulled up in the Grand National at Far Hills, N.J., in October 2019. A week later, Rashaan finished fifth of eight in the Grade 2 David Ferguson Memorial Hurdle at Great Meadow Racecourse in Virginia in his final start of the year. Racing as an 8-year-old in 2020, Rashaan had his seasonal debut in the Grade 3 Temple Gwathmey Hurdle at 2 1/2 miles at Middleburg, Va., on June 13, finishing 13 lengths behind Moscato. Garner rode Rashaan for the first time in that race. In the New York Turf Writers Cup at 2 3/8 miles, Garner was back aboard and this time kept his mount closer to the front. Rashaan took the lead over the final obstacle and won by two lengths over Redicean, who also is trained by Young. “The plan was to be handy with him,” Garner said of Rashaan, who was bred by The Aga Khan. “He’s a horse that’s not easy at all. He has all the ability in the world, but it’s only on his terms. Training him at home, if he doesn’t want to train in the morning he won’t go anywhere. He’s a real tricky one. “He’s got so much ability and when he wants to do it, there’s not a lot that will get by him.” The win justified the steady work that Young and her Pennsylvania-based team contributed to Rashaan’s day-to-day care. “Rashaan has all of the ability,” Young said after the Saratoga win. “He was [working] very easily. I thought if he could just do this in a race without overthinking it.”