Three Mott sprinters nearing stakes level go in allowances

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The job he has done with older horses helped Bill Mott win his fourth Eclipse Award in 2023 as North America’s outstanding trainer. While horses like American Monarch, Nova Rags, and Authorize are unlikely to reach the heights attained by that of champions Cody’s Wish and Elite Power, they are certainly improving as they get older.

Friday, American Monarch and Nova Rags look to take the next step toward stakes company, while Authorize looks to build off his best race to date in separate allowance races on Aqueduct’s eight-race card.

In race 2, American Monarch and Nova Rags are two of six horses entered in an $88,000 multi-conditioned allowance at six furlongs.

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American Monarch, a 6-year-old ridgling by American Pharoah, has missed substantial time on two occasions, limiting him to 11 starts. He is coming off one of his best races, winning a second-level allowance by a half-length on Dec. 31, his second start off a 19-month layoff. Seven weeks earlier, he finished fourth, beaten two lengths.

“He’s been doing really well. I can’t fault him. He obviously needed the first race,” Leana Willaford, Mott’s Belmont Park-based assistant said. “Since then, he looks great, he’s eating good, and he’s acting real good. At the end of the day, Bill feels like he’s going to be better on the grass.”

In April 2022, prior to going to the sidelines, American Monarch finished third, beaten 1 1/2 lengths in the Elusive Quality Stakes on turf. He also broke his maiden on turf and started in a pair of turf graded stakes.

Nova Rags, a 6-year-old son of Union Rags, won a race similar to this on Dec. 15 beating the Mott-trained Baby Yoda. He then came back four weeks later and finished a non-threatening fifth as the favorite.

“We might have wheeled him back a little quick. He usually has more time between starts,” Willaford said.

Jose Lezcano rides American Monarch from post 2 while Manny Franco is on Nova Rags from post 3.

This field features Joey Freshwater, last year’s Grade 3 Bay Shore winner, who returned from a four-month layoff to clear his second-level allowance condition on Jan. 6.

Spun and Won and He’smyhoneybadger are a coupled entry from owner/trainer David Jacobson. Veeson is a Parx shipper who may scratch since he would not be permitted to return to Parx due to the quarantine situation at Belmont.

In race 7, Mott sends out Authorize, a 5-year-old son of Curlin in a first-level allowance at six furlongs. In his first try at six furlongs and first with blinkers, Authorize ran the best race of his career rallying from next to last to win by 3 1/2 lengths.

Authorize was away from the races for nearly two years after getting injured in his second career start.

“As a 2-year-old, everybody was pretty high on him,” Willaford said. “He’s had a couple of hiccups, but when he came back he was working some kind of good. We started him off going longer, but ultimately shortening him back up was the answer. A lot of people think Curlins don’t want to sprint. Elite Power would say different.”

Authorize would seem to benefit from a lot of speed in this race.

Other contenders in race 7 include Capone, Factually Correct, and Kunshan Bridge.

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