Tribhuvan, Adhamo give Brown strong combination in United Nations Stakes

OCEANPORT, N.J. – The 2021 United Nations Stakes was over before the field hit the last of three turns. Tribhuvan, favored off a strong second-place finish in the Manhattan Stakes, had jogged on a clear, easy lead. He waltzed to a two-length win.

Tribhuvan returns for a second go at the Grade 1, $600,000 United Nations on Saturday at Monmouth Park. This year, he won the Manhattan in a rout, opening a seven-length homestretch lead and coasting to a 3 1/2-length victory. Race shape also boosted that performance. Tribhuvan took an easy lead under Manny Franco, who rides him again Saturday, but this time, Tribhuvan might not get things all his way.

“I don’t think he’ll be loose,” said trainer Christophe Clement, who sends out Gufo to oppose Tribhuvan. “There are a couple other horses with speed.”

Carpenters Call has a TimeformUS early pace number of 108, Epic Bromance a 100, while Tribhuvan’s figure is 97. Yet even if Tribhuvan gets softened up, his trainer,Chad Brown, still can win his fifth U.N. Adhamo was a luckless second in the Manhattan and could be set to post a mild upset.

Kentucky Ghost enters in peak form, but Brown’s horses and Gufo are the principal players in the 1 3/8-mile U.N., which drew 10 entrants.

Gufo and Joel Rosario are stuck out in post 10, and Gufo in the Manhattan once again delivered a mildly disappointing performance. Gufo didn’t run poorly – Clement pointed out he came wide into the homestretch and that Tribhuvan’s slow pace worked against him – but Gufo, the 2-1 favorite, failed to gain any position in the race’s middle stages, and even after scorching his final half-mile in 45.35 seconds, he was beaten more than four lengths. Gufo might benefit from moving back to three-turn racing, though he failed to fire finishing 10th in the Breeders’ Cup Turf last fall, his most recent three-turn race. He won his other three-turn starts, the Pan American at Gulfstream and the Sword Dancer at Saratoga.

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Gufo’s chances hinge on whether a pace rival emerges to run with Tribhuvan. Epic Bromance was checked early in the 2021 U.N., taking him out of his preferred position, and he led until the homestretch last out in the nine-furlong Monmouth Stakes. Trainer Gerald Bennett said he hasn’t tried to bring out Carpenters Call’s speed in recent training and wants his horse to relax Saturday, but Carpenters Call, who’s never gone beyond 1 1/16 miles, has natural pace likely to carry him forward.

Tribhuvan’s 2021 Manhattan showed he can set a strong pace and still finish. Tearing off to the lead, Tribhuvan ran his first half-mile in a testing 46.95 seconds and still held second, beating Gufo by 1 1/2 lengths. Before coming to America, French import Tribhuvan lost his first 11 races despite competing in lower-level company, and it wasn’t until connections gelded him before his 2021 campaign that Tribhuvan found himself. A turf course strongly biased against front-runners gave him no chance in his 2022 debut, the Old Forester Turf Classic on May 7 at Churchill. Tribhuvan looked as tough as ever last month in the Manhattan.

Brown said Tribhuvan has trained right along since the Manhattan, but on Saturday, Adhamo could have his turn. Another French import, Adhamo was a luckless second in the paceless Fair Grounds Stakes making his American debut, and he clearly loathed the Churchill course in the Old Forester Turf Classic. Adhamo got into compromising traffic before finishing with verve for second in the Manhattan, and Brown believes the three-turn U.N. will suit the horse.

“When we first started with him, I wasn’t so sure he could be a three-turn horse, but the more I’m around him, the more I think he can do that,” Brown said.

Tribhuvan going early, Adhamo coming late – Brown is set up to win another United Nations.