Trainer Chad Brown notched a record-extending seventh consecutive training title at the Belmont spring/summer meeting while Irad Ortiz Jr. secured the leading rider title and Michael Dubb led the owner standings.
The Belmont spring/summer meet was conducted for 44 days from April 28 through July 10.
Brown won the title with 47 victories, the record for most wins earned by a trainer at a Belmont spring/summer meet.
Ortiz had 48 wins to lead all riders for his 19th title on the NYRA circuit, and Michael Dubb paced all other owners with 16 wins.
The previous training record of 44 victories, set by David Jacobson at the 56-day 2013 spring/summer meet, was broken when 3-year-old filly Demandsrespect graduated at fourth asking in a July 4 maiden special weight over the main track.
“My team should be very proud of themselves and proud of what they did,” Brown said of setting the meet record. “Obviously, it's never been done and they deserve every bit of it.”
In total, Brown closed out the meet with a record of 47-30-22 from 153 starts and earnings of $5,776,633. He posted a win percentage of 30.72 and finished in-the-money at a 64.71% clip.
“This was a historic meet for me, my team, my clients and, most importantly, the horses, who do all the work,” said Brown. “I'm a very fortunate person to be around the horses, staff and owners. I'm so happy for all of them.”
Christophe Clement finished second with 33 wins and Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher finished third with 25.
The battle for leading jockey came down to the final day of the meet as Ortiz entered the card one win behind Dylan Davis.
Ortiz evened the score with a victory aboard Lady Yellen in Race 1 before coming away with a one-win advantage aboard First to Act in Race 5. With the top two riders slated to ride in two more races, Ortiz clinched the title—his 19th on the NYRA circuit—with a thrilling finish in Race 7 aboard Queen Bourbon to post his 48th win of the meet.
“It feels great,” said Ortiz. “Honestly, we've been working so hard since the year started. Hard work, a lot of dedication. We've been out there every day that they ask for me. It feels good when you win a title. We love to win the meet; it's not easy, but thank God we got it done today. Thanks to my agent Steve Rushing for doing an amazing job. It was great. Dylan had a great meet also.”
Ortiz closed out with meet with a record of 48-32-20 from 174 mounts and total purse earnings of $5,149,496. He boasts a 27.59 win percentage and finished on-the-board in 57.47% of his starts.
Dylan Davis won the final race of the Belmont spring/summer meet aboard Dream of a Day to finish with 47.
Dubb finished the meet with 16 victories, two ahead of Klaravich Stables, to secure the leading owner title. Dubb enjoyed graded stakes success in the Grade 3 Victory Ride on Saturday with Hot Peppers, who also won the Jersey Girl earlier in the meet.
Dubb completed the meeting with a 16-10-7 record from 61 starts, posting a 26.23 win percentage and in-the-money rate of 54.10%. He collected $1,424,821 in total purses.
Live racing resumes on opening day Thursday of the summer meet at Saratoga Race Course with a 10-race card, featuring the $135,000 Wilton in Race 7 and the $175,000 Schuylerville (G3) in Race 9. First post is 1:05 p.m. (ET).
The post Brown Takes Belmont Spring/Summer Training Title With Record Number Of Wins, Irad Ortiz Jr. Secures Riding Title appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
