Funtastic leads all the way to win United Nations at 23-1

OCEANPORT, N.J. – Funtastic came into the $300,000 United Nations at Monmouth Park on Saturday off a second-level optional-claiming victory and as the least regarded of Chad Brown’s four horses in 1 3/8-mile turf race. Accordingly, he was sent off at 23-1 as the longest chance in the nine-horse field.

He vanned back to Belmont Park a Grade 1 winner.

Antonio Gallardo sent Funtastic right to the lead from post 1 and then slowed the tempo as best he could. One Go All Go raced in second position early, with jockey Chris Landeros keeping him about a length behind.

Following a half-mile in 48.89 and six furlongs in 1:13.52, One Go All Go dropped back and Funtastic increased his lead on the far turn. He came into the final furlong with a sizeable advantage and then held his 2-1 favored stablemate Money Multiplier safe by a half-length.

Funtastic paid $48 and was timed in 2:12.36. He covered his final quarter-mile in a good 23.21 seconds.

Brown’s other two starters in the race, 5-1 Silverwave and 5-2 Kurilov, finished fifth and eighth. The win was Brown’s second on the card. He won the Grade 3 Eatontown with Dream Awhile.

Funtastic is Brown's third U.N. winner in six years. He won the race in 2013 and 2015 with Big Blue Kitten.

Bigger Picture, last year’s U.N. winner for trainer Mike Maker, rallied from last position to get up for third, a half-length ahead of fellow late-runner Vittori Kin. It was a head farther back to Silverwave, who raced three wide early and then made an early move to second position nearing the far turn.

The United Nations is the first Grade 1 win of Gallardo’s career, and his third winner on the card. Brown gave him the United Nations trophy to keep.

“I have Grade 2 and Grade 3’s but I have something in my heart that I never have won a Grade 1,” Gallardo said. “I told my mom before the race, ‘Mom, I have something in my head that I never win a Grade 1, and my ma said, ‘Don’t worry you will do it today.’ ”

Prior to the race, Brown told Gallardo to make the lead if he could.

“I wanted to go to the lead,” Gallardo said. “I think it’s the best choice from me from post 1. I followed Chad’s instructions.”

Owned by Three Chimneys Farm, Funtastic came into the race with a 3-for-8 record. In his only prior stakes start, he finished second by a neck in the $150,000 Gio Ponti at Aqueduct last November.

Brown said that Goncalo Torrealba, the chairman of Three Chimneys Farm, had great confidence in Funtastic.

“Mr. Torrealba really deserves most of the credit here,” Brown said. “He was sure this horse could stay a distance of ground, a mile and three-eighths, a mile and a half.

“We were thinking about running him in the Manhattan, and I said, ‘Let me run him in one of those long allowance races first, and if it’s good, maybe the U.N. is a race for this horse.’”

Funtastic led throughout to win a 1 1/2-mile turf optional-claiming race under Joel Rosario at Belmont Park a month ago.

“I knew this was a tough race for him,” Brown said. “But Rosario came back after the allowance race and said he had a lot left. He was not bottomed out by any means.”

Brown pointed out that Funtastic is a half-brother to 2005 Horse of the Year Saint Liam.

“This horse is bred in the purple and has a right to be a Grade 1 horse,” he said.

Brown said he would consult with Torrealba and his racing manager Doug Cauthen, but that based on Saturday’s performance “it wouldn’t be out of line to look at the Arlington Million or the Sword Dancer next.”

Money Multiplier was in tight quarters early in the race and was throwing his head as jockey Joe Bravo steadied him several times while trying to get him to settle. He finished well.

“He got jammed up early,” Brown said. “Other than that it seemed like he had a pretty good trip.”

Silverwave’s journey also was not ideal. But the disappointment of the Brown contingent was Kurilov, who raced in a contending position, then tired

“It seemed like he was lined up pretty good and for whatever reason didn’t kick on,” Brown said. “I’ll have to evaluate him.”

One Go All Go tired to finish last.

Lady’s Secret: Divine Miss Grey wins stretch battle

Divine Miss Grey successfully stretched her speed to 1 1/16 miles while navigating two turns in the $75,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes.

Jockey Kendrick Carmouche put Divine Miss Grey right on the lead in the Lady’s Secret. Moonlit Garden was put under a vigorous hand ride to press her from the outside nearing the far turn and the pair came into the stretch as a team.

Moonlit Garden, with jockey Joe Bravo aboard, and Divine Miss Grey made contact in upper stretch. Divine Miss Grey looked in trouble at that point but battled back in the final sixteenth to win by three-quarters of a length.

“She’s got a lot of heart,” Carmouche said. “She fought back gamely. I had enough and she had enough and we fought back together.”

Divine Miss Grey, who is trained by Danny Gargan, paid $2.80 in the eight-horse field. She was timed in 1:44.72.

It was 9 1/2 lengths back from Moonlit Garden to third-place finisher Total Control.

The Lady’s Secret ended a two-race losing streak for Divine Miss Grey. Over the winter at Aqueduct she scored back-to-back wins in the one-mile Heavenly Prize and seven-furlong Interborough.