Brown brings live import into Canadian Turf
A strong second-place finish behind high-class Colonel Liam in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf has Never Surprised listed as the 4-5 morning-line favorite Saturday in the Grade 3, $150,000 Canadian Turf at Gulfstream.
But American racing fans and bettors are never surprised when trainer Chad Brown leads over a live French import in a turf stakes, and Mouillage could be just such a horse.
Five others were entered in the Canadian Turf, contested at 1 1/16 miles, but Never Surprised, trained by Todd Pletcher, and Mouillage should take the bulk of the action.
Four-year-old Never Surprised, Luis Saez set to ride for the fourth time in the colt’s career, never was short on talent. At age 2, he won his career debut with a robust 89 Beyer Speed Figure and captured the Central Park Stakes in his second start. Never Surprised’s impediment to full development during his 3-year-old campaign was internally motivated. With a career mark of 8-4-4-0, there’s no question Never Surprised possesses competitive fire. At times, it has burned too hot. The colt, who wants nothing more than to lead, has compromised his own effectiveness by pulling too hard and failing to settle during his races.
That started changing last fall. In the Gio Ponti Stakes on Nov. 26 at Aqueduct, Never Surprised raced in hand on the lead and won by more than six lengths. He did the same thing airing in the Tropical Park Derby a month later, and even after being asked for some speed breaking from post 12 in the Pegasus, he came back to Saez and set a measured pace, holding clear all closers save his stablemate Colonel Liam.
Maybe Clear Vision, who upset the Tropical Park Turf on Jan. 8 at Gulfstream, has the pace to keep Never Surprised honest. And that’s what Mouillage would need to get up in his North American debut.
Four-year-old Mouillage never was worse than third in 11 French starts, but he faced very modest competition in many of those races and never started above the listed-stakes level. Nonetheless, Brown likes what he’s seeing from the colt, a son of Toronado.
“He might have been a little hot when we first started working with him, but he’s really settled down. His last couple works, he’s been really settled and calm. The horse has trained very well,” Brown said.
Mouillage has worked at least once in company with the 4-year-old French import Adhamo, a strong closing second in the Feb. 19 Fair Grounds Stakes.
“This horse trains a little more on the bit than Adhamo,” Brown said. “He might have a little quicker turn of foot under him.”
Mira Mission rises in class but was a visually impressive winner of his last two turf starts and has an outside win chance.
Honey Fox
The second-, fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-place finishers from the Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf return for the Grade 3, $150,000 Honey Fox Stakes, but they might be running into a buzzsaw named In Italian.
In Italian has only a maiden and first-level allowance win from a three-start career, but she has speed, a flashy turn of foot, and all the upside in the one-mile Honey Fox.
In Italian was scratched last month from the Endeavour Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, which her owner and trainer, Peter Brant and Chad Brown, won anyway with the filly Bleecker Street.
“In Italian drew toward the outside and it was a little too quick back from her last start,” Brown said of the decision to scratch at Tampa. “Now that she’s had more time between races, I feel more comfortable.”
In Italian, a Dubawi filly purchased at auction overseas, lost her career debut in March 2021 because of a tough trip, and last May was an easy Belmont maiden winner. She didn’t start again until Jan. 12, when she made short work of Tampa Bay allowance foes.
“She’s always acted like a very talented filly from the start, though she hasn’t run nearly as much as we’d hoped,” Brown said. “She always trained in the top of her group.”
In Italian has led her last two races because she has natural positional pace, but with Jouster and Katama Moonlight in the Honey Fox, In Italian should be off the pace Saturday.
“I don’t see why she can’t do that. She hasn’t given any indication that she’s a need-the-lead type,” said Brown.
Jouster has won both her Gulfstream grass starts and would be dangerous at a fair price should she somehow shake loose on a clear lead.
As for the Pegasus Filly and Mare Turf bunch, none ran especially well in a race dominated by the Brown-trained Regal Glory. Alms raced on the lead a good portion of her trip but was spent at the sixteenth pole and barely held second. Gift List, who was fourth, and fifth-place Bipartisanship each had their chance to close in the stretch, neither finishing off with great energy. Sixth-place Wakanaka had no apparent excuse while racing inside, but was making her North American debut and could improve second out for trainer Bill Mott.
More grass route stakes
Sometimes talent trumps experience, as may be the case in a pair of 3-year-old grass stakes at a mile Saturday.
Debut maiden winner Spenderalla could be good enough for the Grade 3, $125,000 Herecomesthebride, which is restricted to fillies, while Main Event looks like a live contender in the $125,000 Palm Beach, a listed stakes.
Main Event, a Bernardini colt trained by George Weaver, showed little last November debuting in a seven-furlong Aqueduct dirt maiden race. With blinkers added and stretched to a one-turn mile in December, Main Event improved, though he still was a well-beaten fourth. A move to turf Jan. 30 at Gulfstream brought forth serious improvement. Main Event and Jose Ortiz, who rides him back Saturday, led on a moderate tempo, the colt quickening nicely when Ortiz asked his mount for run in upper stretch. He held clear the well-bet Chad Brown-trained first-time starter Egyptian God, whom he also beat during a strong, extended gallop-out.
Royal Spirit finished second and Coinage third in the Feb. 5 Kitten’s Joy. Both horses are all right, but Royal Spirit really should have won the race. Grand Sonata was blocked with no room until very deep stretch and still managed to quicken and catch Royal Spirit, who lacks push-button acceleration. Red Danger finished fifth in the slow-paced Kitten’s Joy, tasked with too much to do while racing from well off the lead. He was passed just before the wire by an even deeper closer and likely wants less distance than this.
Spenderalla got an even sweeter trip than Main Event in her recent Gulfstream turf maiden win and lands in a deeper spot than the Palm Beach in the Herecomesthebride. Nonetheless, the Graham Motion-trained Karakontie filly won off by nearly three lengths in her unveiling, and second-start improvement could easily be enough for a stakes win.
The race drew 12 entrants, with Lia Marina, a stakes winner with contending form, marooned in post 12. Mischievous Kiss won the Chelsey Flower last Nov. 6, and in the Tepin Stakes on Nov. 30 was done in by a very wide trip.