Ultra Brat's Gallorette score part of big weekend for Motion

BALTIMORE – Graham Motion is based at the picturesque Fair Hill Training Center, about an hour from historic Pimlico Race Course. Each year, he circles Maryland's spotlight weekend of racing on his calendar, plotting out which of his stable stars might make the van ride to contest some of the stakes on Preakness Stakes weekend.

That planning continued to pay off on Saturday, as Motion trainee Ultra Brat powered to a 10 1/4-length victory in the Grade 3, $150,000 Gallorette Stakes for fillies and mares on the Pimlico turf. It was the second graded stakes victory of the weekend for the Motion barn, which sent out Irish War Cry to win the Grade 3 Pimlico Special on Friday.

"We're proud. We point for this weekend," said Motion, who also won a maiden special weight on Friday's card, finished second and third, respectively, in Friday's Hilltop with Secret Message and Peach of a Gal, and sent out Maryland-bred horse of the year Just Howard to run third in the Dixie earlier Saturday. "You can run on Derby weekend or you can run on Preakness weekend – it's the same kind of races. So it's very gratifying."

The Gallorette was the only race on Preakness Day that remained on the turf. Motion, who had adjusted his plans with individual horses accordingly all weekend – he scratched morning-line favorite Thewayiam from the Hilltop – kept Ultra Brat in because he felt the filly's fitness level was high enough to handle a demanding soft course. Ultra Brat returned from an 11-month layoff to finish fourth in the Autumn Days Stakes at Aqueduct last November, then won the Grade 3 Marshua's River Stakes in January at Gulfstream. She finished third to Elysea's World in the Grade 3 Suwanee River Stakes in February at Gulfstream. Two months later, she finished 10th in the Grade 1 Jenny Wiley Stakes at Keeneland, an outing Motion felt would move her forward.

"I think fitness becomes an advantage when it's this soft," Motion said. "I hoped she would handle it."

Ultra Brat, under jockey Jose Ortiz, tracked Stallion Heiress through soft opening splits of 25.12 seconds and 51.56 seconds before edging up on that foe around the far turn and forging her way to a half-length lead through six furlongs in 1:18.60. Despite the easy tempo, Motion said it hadn't necessarily been the plan for Ultra Brat to be near or on the lead at that point, especially with the conditions.

"She ran maybe a little closer than I thought she'd be," Motion said. "I was a little nervous, to be honest, halfway through the race, because [the soft course is] so tiring. But Jose knew what he was doing."

Ultra Brat disposed of the tiring Stallion Heiress and opened a 4 1/2 length lead as the field moved into the upper stretch. She continued to draw away as she pleased to her final margin. She finished the 1 1/16 miles in 1:53.72.

"She relaxed well, and that was the most important thing, because she can be a little high strung, like in the post parade," Ortiz said. "From the three-eighths pole, I tested her to see if she was going to go. I showed her the whip a little bit and she jumped in the bit beautifully. I let her go on. I knew nobody would gain a lot of ground, so I wanted to make the first move."

Blessed Silence, making just her second start in the U.S., made a mild rally around the turn and into the lane to reach second, then held that spot by three-quarters of a length over Brooks House. That one was another three-quarters ahead of Elysea's World, who was the beaten favorite in the Gallorette for the second straight year.

It was nine lengths back to the fading Stallion Heiress in fifth. Lake Ponchatrain was never involved and was eased to the wire.