Sistercharlie needs short break due to cut leg, targets Flower Bowl

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – Chad Brown has trained far more than his fair share of elite female turf horses, and Sistercharlie continues rising through those ranks.

Just three weeks after winning the Grade 1 Diana Stakes at Saratoga by a nose, Sistercharlie shipped halfway across the country and won the Grade 1 Beverly D. Stakes by a half-length on Saturday. Fourstar Crook, another Brown charge, finished second in the Beverly D. and is the only horse to beat Sistercharlie this year, handing her a narrow defeat in the New York Stakes on June 8 at Belmont, a race that unfolded in irregular fashion with a horse dashing off to a huge early lead at a breakneck tempo.

Sistercharlie won the Grade 1 Jenny Wiley over one mile at Keeneland in her first start of the year, so the Beverly D. was her third Grade 1 victory of 2018.

“She’s in that top, very selective group of the best turf mares I’ve had,” Brown said.

Brown’s four Beverly D. starters finished 1-2-3-5 in the race. Thais set a slow pace and held third, while Inflexibility was fifth behind Daddys Lil Darling. Sistercharlie got a 102 Beyer Speed Figure for running 1 3/16 miles in 1:56.77.

Sistercharlie prevailed despite being cut on her hind leg during the race, perhaps while bumping with Athena going past the finish line for the first time. The wound required stitches that will delay Sistercharlie’s return to regular training.

Brown said he plans to run Sistercharlie in the Grade 1 Flower Bowl over 1 1/4 miles on Oct. 7 at Belmont Park, then come back in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf. The 4-year-old Sistercharlie, owned by Peter Brant, was bred in Ireland but raced in France before being exported to the U.S. last summer. She finished second in the Belmont Oaks Invitation in her only North American start at age 3.

Fourstar Crook, who never runs a bad race, is likely to get another crack at Sistercharlie in the Flower Bowl. Sistercharlie got first run on Fourstar Crook, who never threatened the winner but was clearly second-best Saturday.

– additional reporting by David Grening