Brown finds Technical Analysis a soft spot after layoff in Perfect Sting

ELMONT, N.Y. – The multiple graded stakes winner Technical Analysis seems to have found a soft landing spot to make her 5-year-old debut Sunday when she faces four rivals – two from her own barn – in the $150,000 Perfect Sting at Belmont Park.

The Perfect Sting, scheduled for one mile over the Widener Turf course, is carded as race 3 on a nine-race card that begins at 1:05 p.m.

A graded winner at 3 and 4, Technical Analysis hasn’t run since a fourth-place finish behind stablemate In Italian in the Grade 1 First Lady on Oct. 8 at Keeneland. Prior to that, she won the Grade 2 Ballston Spa and finished second to In Italian in the Grade 1 Diana, both at Saratoga.

It was not by design that Technical Analysis hasn’t run in nearly nine months.

“She had a few issues, we had a couple of stoppages,” trainer Chad Brown said.

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But with a steady work tab over the Belmont turf in June, Brown believes Technical Analysis is ready to go.

“I wouldn’t have entered her unless she was doing her best,” Brown said. “She seems to be doing really well.”

Jose Ortiz rides Technical Analysis from post 2.

Brown also entered Haughty and Customer List in the Perfect Sting. Haughty, who won the Grade 2 Lake Placid last August, came off a lengthy layoff in the Grade 2 Distaff Turf Mile on May 6 at Churchill Downs where she finished last of six.

Brown said he had a few horses who didn’t run well at Churchill come back and run better elsewhere, most recently Liguria, who finished fifth in the Grade 2 Edgewood and who came back to win the Wild Applause Stakes here last week. Haughty has been breezing with Liguria.

“A lot of those horses that have come out of Churchill dirt and turf have come back to run really well,” Brown said. “For whatever reason, some of them just didn’t handle it, in particular the turf. She’s been training super, she’s been breezing with Liguria, another one that turned their form around.”

Flavien Prat rides Haughty from post 3.

Brown also entered Customer List, who came off a lengthy layoff to win a first-level allowance on June 3 at Monmouth. Brown said he’s always liked Customer List and felt with only five horses, this was a good chance to take a shot in a stakes race.

Irad Ortiz Jr. rides Customer List from the rail.

Evvie Jets, trained by Mertkan Kantarmaci, won the Plenty of Grace Stakes at Aqueduct in April when able to get loose on the lead under Eric Cancel. She felt more pressure in Grade 3 Beaugay, where she faded to sixth.

Javier Castellano rides Evvie Jets from post 5.

Tic Tic Tic Boom, a supplemental nominee to this race, is only 2 for 20. Trevor McCarthy rides from Parx Racing-based Alan Bedard.

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