Trainer Chad Brown said he was pleased on Sunday morning with the efforts of his Belmont Stakes Day card horses, with highlights being a one-two finish in the Grade 1, $1 million Resorts World Casino Manhattan Stakes; a victory in the Grade 1, $500,000 Acorn Stakes; and successfully debuting a promising 3-year-old earlier in the day in maiden company, all at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. All three winners were owned by longtime client Klaravich Stables.
Domestic Spending continued his lavish ascent in the Grade 1 Manhattan Stakes, closing to win his sixth race from seven starts and stay perfect on the year, following a dead-heat win in the Grade 1 Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic on May 1. The gelding is the latest in a line of top-class sons of Kingman — also the sire of Europe's top miler Palace Pier — to scorch the turf recently and is destined for a similar path to 2019 Horse of the Year Bricks and Mortar, who won the G1 Turf Classic and G1 Manhattan before taking the 10-furlong Arlington Million and 12-furlong Breeders' Cup Turf — both Grade 1s.
“If you had asked me this time of year about Bricks and Mortar [pointing to the G1 Breeders' Cup Turf], I would have said 'no' and that's why I was considering the [G1 Breeders' Cup] Mile for that horse for a while, thinking he's not going to be a three-turn horse,” Brown explained. “These horses, as they get older and get some seasoning under them, you're starting to see them have more range. Anything is possible, let's see, but his next start—all going well—is at Arlington.”
Left in Domestic Spending's deficit was pace-setting Brown pupil Tribhuvan, who backed up his victory in the Grade 2 Fort Marcy on May 1 with an admirable runner-up effort.
“He surprised me in the Fort Marcy, but he didn't surprise me yesterday,” Brown explained. “That horse has been a different horse since we gelded him and the more I looked at his Fort Marcy, the more I started to believe it. That's why we chose as a team – me and [owners Wonder Stables, Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb and Michael Caruso] – to give it a shot in the Manhattan instead of running at Monmouth yesterday. Fortunately we did because I thought he ran great.
“They both ran their hearts out and gave two great performances.”
Search Results won her fourth race from five starts in Saturday's G1 Acorn, stalking and pouncing with aplomb under Hall of Famer Javier Castellano, who was substituting for injured Irad Ortiz, Jr. The daughter of Flatter landed her first Grade 1 after coming up a neck short in last month's Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks to divisional leader Malathaat.
“I really wanted to try to do that and give myself a little breathing room with her between now and Saratoga,” said Brown. “We have a decision to make there on whether or not we're going to bring her back in the Coaching Club, which was my original plan, or if I think she needs more time for any reason, we can always train her up to a race like the [Grade 1, $500,000 Longines] Test (on August 7). I couldn't see myself running her past a mile and an eighth.”
Earlier in the day, Brown unveiled Klaravich Stables' Soft Power, a sophomore son of Kingman's sire Invincible Spirit, who overcame a bit of traffic to get up in the final jump over seven grassy furlongs. The bay colt was a $256,604 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale 2019 purchase and is out of a half-sister to Grade 1 Dubai Duty Free winner Cityscape and world-class sprinter Bated Breath.
“He ran super and we really liked that horse last year, but unfortunately he got hurt during the summer, so we had to rest him,” Brown said. “He trained well and ran a big race, so I'm really excited about his future. I'd love to get him into a mile '1-X' allowance and then go up to a stakes in a perfect world. I'm going to have to look around. If I don't get that, I might have to put him in a stakes.”
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