New York-breds acquit themselves well at Belmont Stakes Racing Festival

With the eyes of the racing world on Belmont Park for a three-day run of 18 stakes races, capped by Justify’s successful bid for the Triple Crown, both New York’s breeding program and its perennial leading sire showcased themselves well.

New York-bred Fourstar Crook won the Grade 2 New York Stakes on Friday, and the following afternoon, fellow statebred Disco Partner scored a repeat victory in the Grade 2 Jaipur Stakes. Last year in the Jaipur, Disco Partner set a North American record for six furlongs on turf.

Disco Partner, bred and owned by Frank and Patricia Generazio, is a son of the late sire Disco Rico. The Generazios bred and also campaign 2016 Jaipur winner Pure Sensation, who finished third in Saturday’s renewal.

“You have to give credit to the Generazios for their breeding program,” said trainer Christophe Clement, who trains both runners. “The two horses ran great.”

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Fourstar Crook is by Sequel Stallions’s Freud, who had another stakes winner on the Friday program in Our Braintrust, now unbeaten in two starts with his Tremont Stakes score.

Freud, now 20, led both New York’s general sires list and turf sires list in 2017. He led the turf list for the 10th straight year. The Storm Cat horse has finished first or second on the list of general sires with state-sired runners for a decade straight as well.

New York’s two-time reigning horse of the year Mind Your Biscuits finished second by a nose in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap on Saturday, his first start since a repeat victory in the Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen in March. The effort may have earned him a chance to stretch out in major events this summer in his home state, according to trainer Chad Summers.

“I think in the immediate here and now, you nominate to the Belmont Sprint Championship because it’s logically the next one up, but also to look at stretching him out, possibly going in to the Whitney or the Woodward, but that all depends,” Summers said. “I think he can stretch out. I don’t see any reason why a mile has to be his max. He was closing on [winner Bee Jersey]. Maybe this is as far as he wants, but he’s as honest as they come. I’m hoping as the year continues out he can leave no doubt that he’s the best New York-bred of all time. It was a big weekend for New York-breds.”