Patternrecognition delivers Cigar Mile victory

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Life changed in a hurry Saturday for jockey Jose Ortiz and the horse Patternrecognition.

Ortiz found himself at the hospital Saturday morning with his wife Taylor, who, at 6:56 a.m., gave birth to the couple’s second child and first son, Derek.

Approximately nine hours later, Jose Ortiz was in the Aqueduct winner’s circle after guiding Patternrecognition to a front-running, three-quarter-length victory over True Timber in the Grade 1, $750,000 Cigar Mile.

Ortiz said the baby’s delivery came less than two hours after he and Taylor arrived at the hospital.

“My head is spinning around,” Ortiz, who will be riding at Del Mar on Sunday, said after the Cigar Mile.

For Patternrecognition, the wait for Grade 1 glory was long. The now 5-year-old son of Adios Charlie was purchased for $420,000 as a 2-year-old-in-training in April 2015. He didn’t make it to the races until April 2017, when he won at first asking over Aqueduct’s main track.

Over the next 20 months, Patternrecognition ran nine times, winning three, including the Grade 2 Kelso Handicap in September, and finishing second five times.

“He’s always had it, he’s always had the ability, the brilliance, it was just a matter of keeping him on the racetrack and off the farm,” said Chad Brown, who trains Patternrecognition for owners Seth Klarman and William Lawrence.

Patternrecognition had enjoyed his most success on the lead. To both Brown and Ortiz, there appeared to be other speed in the Cigar Mile field.

Yet, when the gates opened, Patternrecognition was in front, running an opening quarter in 22.88 seconds and a half-mile in 45.68 seconds while maintaining a one-length lead over Pat On the Back. For Saturday, those fractions were fast, although the main track noticeably changed after race 7.

“The way he broke out of the gate, I didn’t want to give the lead away so I decided to go,” Ortiz said. “I know I was going pretty fast, but he was going pretty easy, too. He was doing it the right way.”

Patternrecognition kept on going, running six furlongs in 1:09.68. He was able to hold off a late rally from True Timber to get the win.
Patternrecognition covered the mile in 1:34.98 and returned $12.80 as the third choice.

“He’s better on the lead, but that’s awful fast on this track,” Brown said. “Man, this horse impressed me the way he kicked home off those fractions. He earned it today.”

True Timber was second by a length over Sunny Ridge, who bested Mendelssohn by 1 1/2 lengths for third. Pat On the Back, Stan the Man, Timeline, and Copper Town – the second choice who was bumped hard by a stumbling Stan the Man – completed the order of finish.

Patternrecognition, who gave Brown his 17th Grade 1 victory this year, improved his record to 5-5-0 from 11 starts and increased his earnings to $812,325.

Brown said neither he nor the owners looked past this race and said he would consult with Klarman and Lawrence before deciding the colt’s future.

Mendelssohn, the 8-5 favorite shipping in from Ireland, did not make the lead as he had in his earlier races in the U.S. He raced an up-close third, but was basically one-paced throughout.

“He hasn’t run a bad race, he’s had a tough year a lot of flying back and forth, unfortunately he hasn’t been able to get it done,” jockey Ryan Moore said. “I kind of think nothing has gone his way all year.”

Mendelssohn was expected to run once more, in the Grade 1, $9 million Pegasus at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 26. It remains to be seen if that is still the plan.