Belmont Park: Irsaal gets his act together

ELMONT, N.Y. - It took a dramatic change, but Irsaal has seemed to finally put it together for Shadwell Stable and trainer Kiaran McLaughlin.

On Wednesday, Irsaal won a first-level allowance race for 3-year-olds by two lengths, running 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.15 and earning a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 88. He was coming off a second-place finish in a similar spot on April 5 at Gulfstream. Prior to that, he had lost four consecutive races by 10 lengths or more.

McLaughlin said that the last two races have been since Irsaal was gelded and given Lasix.

“We weren’t going in the right direction,” McLaughlin said when asked about Irsaal, a son of More Than Ready. “We thought it would help him. It worked out well. He trained like a stakes horse before, so we thought we’d try something different.”

McLaughlin said he was not sure where Irsaal would run next. He is out of the dam Quiet Now, who is a half-sister to the 2005 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner and Horse of the Year Saint Liam.