Somelikeithotbrown leads them all the way in Mint Million

FRANKLIN, Ky. – What a difference a week makes.

Somelikeithotbrown wasn’t even in the entries for the Mint Million when the Grade 3 race was originally slated to be run Sept. 3 at Kentucky Downs – but when the one-mile race had to be postponed because of a rainout, the 6-year-old horse not only was part of the field when the race was redrawn, but he wound up a dominant winner Saturday.

“It’s a good thing it rained last Saturday,” said a gleeful Jimmy Shircliff, one of the co-owners of Somelikeithotbrown.

Given a masterful front-running ride by Jose Ortiz, Somelikeithotbrown led from the start of the Mint Million, the first of six Saturday stakes, before turning back a couple of challenges when prevailing by 1 1/4 lengths over Atone, his Mike Maker stablemate. The winner paid $6.60 as a lukewarm favorite in a field of eight older horses after finishing in 1:33.88 over a firm turf.

“I was very happy the way he was going down the hill,” Ortiz said of how his mount was traveling down the backstretch of the undulating Kentucky Downs course. “The last eighth of a mile, the other horse [Atone] looked him in the eye, and [Somelikeithotbrown] came back. The horse was ready on short rest.”

:: DRF Bets members get FREE DRF Past Performances - Formulator or Classic. Join now!

Somelikeithotbrown was a six-length winner of the off-the-turf West Point on Aug. 26 at Saratoga, making it impractical for him to wheel back in eight days when the Mint Million was supposed to be run. But with the race delayed by a week, Maker, the all-time leading trainer in track history, put him in when entries were redrawn Monday.

Somelikeithotbrown, as a New York-bred, was ineligible for any of the $450,000 in Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund bonuses being offered, but still earned $330,770 of the $707,545 total purse, bringing his career bankroll to $1,647,018 from 28 starts. The Mint Million would have maxed out with a $1 million purse if all bonuses were paid.

Somelikeithotbrown is owned by Skychai Racing and David Koenig, a longtime partnership that gave him his clever name, being by Big Brown out of Marilyn Monroan.

Last year in the Mint Million, Somelikeithotbrown and Ortiz were part of a fast pace, forcing fractions of 21.83 seconds and 44.95 before settling for second behind Pixelate.

“Last year, we were going very fast, and the fractions were easier today,” Ortiz said.

Indeed, the Mint Million unfolded much differently this time, going in splits of 46.93 and 1:10.58, with Somelikeithotbrown unhurried out front and all the others giving futile chase throughout. Mr Dumas was third, while a third Maker starter, Field Pass, was fourth. Pixelate, the 3-1 second choice, was never a serious threat for a repeat when finishing sixth.

The $2 exacta (4-7) paid $23.76, the $1 trifecta (4-7-1) returned $46.76, and the 10-cent superfecta (4-7-1-3) was worth $25.83.