Next pulls away at will in dominating Birdstone performance

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Winning a race for the first time at Saratoga is a landmark moment every trainer covets. But few have achieved that milestone as impressively as Doug Cowans did on Thursday when sending out the long-winded Next to a popular and dominant 11 3/4-length triumph going a mile and three-quarters in the $150,000 Birdstone Stakes.

Next, who Cowans haltered for $62,500 out of a ninth-place finish in April of 2022 at Keeneland, has proven nearly unbeatable since stretching out around three turns for the first time to win the 12-furlong Cape Henlopen Stakes by 18 1/4 lengths last fall at Delaware Park. He has since added a pair of Grade 2 victories to his résumé, including the mile and one-half Brooklyn by 2 1/4 lengths last month at Belmont Park.

Cowans’ lone concern going into the Birdstone was all the other speed signed on for the race considering that Next has won most of his races on the lead. But he said as long as his horse fell into a good rhythm he was not worried about where his horse was positioned during the early stages of the race.

And fall into a good rhythm is exactly what he did.

With regular rider Luan Machado aboard, Next broke alertly and settled into a perfect position just off the early pace of Sea Foam. Machado was content to play follow the leader for nearly a mile and three-eighths before Next moved readily to command midway on the third turn. From that point, the 5-year-old son of Not This Time steadily increased his advantage over his six overmatched rivals before being geared down a couple of hundred yards from the wire with the issue no longer in doubt.

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Time for Trouble raced at the rear of the field for the opening mile and one-quarter, began to work his way forward on the final turn, came widest into the stretch and was easily second best, finishing four lengths in front of Dash Attack while never threatening the winner.

Lone Rock, who won the 2021 Birdstone, finished a well beaten sixth.

Next, who is owned by Michael Foster, paid $3.20. No official time for the race was made available due to a timing issue.

“Everything went just like planned,” said Cowans. “Our biggest concern was that the race had more speed than it usually does in it. We never felt he had to be on the lead, we wanted him to get into a rhythm, and once that happened, that was it.”

Cowans described his first winner at Saratoga in one word.

“Awesome.”

“I came up here with one other horse and got beat a neck and it feels great to come up here. It’s prestigious,” Cowans said.

Cowans sent out Next Shares to finish second at Saratoga in the 2015 With Anticipation Stakes.

Cowans said his plans moving forward for Next are to go to Parx for the Grade 3 Greenwood Cup on Sept. 23 before heading to Santa Anita to defend his title in the Grade 2 Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Stakes during Breeders’ Cup weekend.

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