Belmont Park: Brown has talented pair for Miss Grillo Stakes

[bc_video_id:306369:]ELMONT, N.Y. – Trainer Chad Brown has won two of the past five runnings of the Grade 3 Miss Grillo Stakes at Belmont Park, with those horses going on to do well in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Brown will be hoping that trend continues Sunday, when he sends out the uncoupled entry of Granny Mc’s Kitten and Testa Rossi in the $200,000 Miss Grillo, which offers a fees-paid berth to the $1 million Juvenile Fillies Turf on Nov. 1 at Santa Anita as a Win and You’re In Breeders’ Cup Challenge race.

Brown won the Miss Grillo in 2008 with Maram, who would win the inaugural Juvenile Fillies Turf at Santa Anita. Last year, Brown won the Miss Grillo with Watsdachances, who finished second to the European import Flotilla in the Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Watsdachances won the Miss Grillo after winning the P.G. Johnson Stakes at Saratoga. Granny Mc’s Kitten enters the Miss Grillo off a 1 3/4-length victory in the P.G. Johnson, which she won as a maiden in her second start.

“I like the fact she laid up close the second time, right in the pocket there,” said Brown, who has Javier Castellano back to ride Granny Mc’s Kitten from post 10. “She’s got positional speed, and that’s key, especially if she can graduate on to the Breeders’ Cup.”

Testa Rossi is a French-bred filly who won three consecutive sprints in France before being purchased privately by Thomas Coleman and James Cavello and shipped to Brown in August.

“She has enough size and scope to her [that] she doesn’t look like a sprinter to me; she should appreciate the added distance,” said Brown, who has Jose Lezcano to ride Testa Rossi from post 8.

Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin sends out the coupled entry of Sky Painter and Dancing House for Sheikh Mohammed al Maktoum. Sky Painter, a daughter of Street Cry who will run under Sheikh Mohammed’s Darley banner, is stretching out to 1 1/16 miles off a 5 1/2-furlong maiden win at Saratoga.

“She’s bred to go farther and ran very well first time out,” McLaughlin said. “We’re hoping she fits with these.”

Dancing House, who will run under Sheikh Mohammed’s Godolphin banner, won her debut on dirt before finishing third in the Grade 1 Spinaway. She is by Tapit and is out of Tout Charmant, a Grade 1 winner on turf. Dancing House worked a bullet half-mile in 47.20 seconds over Saratoga’s Oklahoma turf course on Sept. 27.

“We want to find out sooner than later if she’s [going to be good on] turf,” McLaughlin said.

Morethanawarning rallied off a slow pace to win her maiden here Sept. 13 at the Miss Grillo’s distance of 1 1/16 miles. She finished fifth in a 5 1/2 furlong sprint at Saratoga in her debut.

“She ran well sprinting, but the family all stretched out, and we knew she’d like that,” trainer Tom Bush said. “She ran really well that day. It wasn’t a terribly fast pace. He wrangled her back and had a good finish to her.”

Duff One and Miss Frost, second and third, respectively, in the P.G. Johnson, and Bikini Beauty, who overcame a slow start to win her debut here Sept. 7, are other contenders in the field.