Growth Equity takes Peter Pan Stakes, Belmont entry possible
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OZONE PARK, N.Y. - It wasn’t that long ago, when trainer Chad Brown was mapping out plans for some of his 3-year-olds, that he had Tariff Mindset and Ottinho penciled in as horses he thought fit the Peter Pan Stakes at Aqueduct.
Tariff Mindset developed an issue that will sideline him until late summer. Ottinho had a minor foot issue and then had a pedestrian workout on May 1 at Churchill Downs. So, Brown went deeper down his shedrow and tabbed Growth Equity as his Peter Pan horse.
Now, Brown will ponder whether he has a new shooter for the Belmont Stakes in four weeks.
Facing just four rivals whose accomplishments were modest, Growth Equity rallied from fourth under Flavien Prat and edged away from the pacesetting Talk to Me Jimmy in the final sixteenth to win the Grade 3, $200,000 Peter Pan by two lengths. It was 3 1/4 lengths back to Trendsetter in third. Gulfy and Azam completed the order of finish. Bull by the Horns scratched to run in next Saturday’s Preakness.
Brown is pointing Louisiana Derby winner Emerging Market, 10th in the Kentucky Derby, and potentially Blue Grass Stakes runner-up Ottinho to the Belmont. Brown was in no hurry to confirm or deny Growth Equity a spot in the Belmont Stakes starting gate on June 6 at Saratoga.
“He didn’t scream to me that he wanted more ground after this, so I’m not sure I’m in a hurry to get him out to a mile and a quarter in the Belmont,” Brown said. “But he handled this well and there are lot of mile-and-an-eighth races that are just fine to run in going forward and maybe he does want a little more ground, we’ll see. Not sure yet.”
The positives for Growth Equity were that he was facing winners and trying 1 1/8 miles and two turns for the first time and handled both with aplomb. Brown said the way Growth Equity trained and the fact he’s by a Kentucky Derby winner, Nyquist, gave him the confidence to enter Grown Equity in the Peter Pan.
“I was hopeful just with his athleticism and with his sire on top he’d be able to do it,” Brown said.
Growth Equity raced an up-close fourth and was within two lengths of Talk to Me Jimmy, who ran a half-mile in 48.35 seconds and six furlongs in 1:12.70. Prat advanced Growth Equity three-wide on the turn and tackled Talk to Me Jimmy, winner of the Withers Stakes in February, in midstretch and gradually ran away from him.
“I had a good setup, he’s a very, very handy horse, he gave me a good run when I asked him,” Prat said.
Growth Equity, owned by Seth Klarman’s Klaravich Stables, covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:50.25 (93 Beyer Speed Figure) over a harrowed track rated good and returned $4.04 as the even-money favorite.
The top three finishers of the Peter Pan get their entry and starter fees - totaling $30,000 - waived for the Belmont Stakes. So, it could be a free roll of the dice should Brown want to pursue it.
“You can’t say no, but you’re not going to buy your Belmont box right now,” Brown said. “You’re sort of like ‘hey, nice win, where does he fit and how far does he want to go? He answered this. I don’t think he let you know for sure the next step.”
Dustin Pusateri, co-owner of Talk to Me Jimmy, said his New York-bred would most likely cut back in distance to the $200,000 Mike Lee Stakes, a seven-furlong statebred race at Saratoga on June 3.
Trendsetter, who bobbled at the start and didn’t get the exact pace he preferred, was beaten 5 1/4 lengths. He is not Triple Crown nominated. It would cost his connections $50,000 to supplement to the Belmont Stakes, seemingly an unlikely scenario.
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