At the age of eight, Ivery Sisters Racing's Monte Man is the gift that keeps on giving. Claimed for $25,000 way back in October of 2017, the son of Custom for Carlos scored the ninth stakes win of his career on Saturday, repeating the $100,000 Louisiana Champions Day Sprint.
Fourth behind hot and contested early fractions of :21.58 and :44.53 set by his stablemate Bertie's Galaxy with pressure from Takes Two To Tango, Swot Analysis, and the 1.4-1 favorite No Parole, the table was set, and Monte Man feasted in the stretch.
“Before the race, Ron (trainer Faucheux) and I could almost see it playing into his favor,” Beschizza said. “All the credit to the horse. He's just an iron horse, really. A couple of years ago, they (the connections) could have just retired him and given him a nice second life, but he just seems to be so spontaneous in the mornings. Ron just tells me that, year after year. True to that word, he's bounced back here and Ron had him in great shape. The team has been a huge supporter of mine and I can't thank them enough.”
Bertie's Galaxy (3.50-1) dug in gamely in the stretch, but he could not hold off Monte Man, who prevailed by ¾ of a length, stopping the timer in 1:09.91. It was 4 ½ lengths back to Sir Wellington (4.40-1 in third. No Parole, the former Grade I winner, pressed the pace briefly while four-wide, but he failed to make the course.
“He (No Parole) is fine, but since his layoff, he hasn't shown that he wants to compete in the afternoons despite working well in the mornings,” trainer Tom Amoss said of No Parole. He is completely sound and Maggi (owner Moss) has decided to retire him.”
In his first start off the claim for trainer Ron Faucheux, Monte Man won a local optional claimer in December 2017, which was the start of a seven-race winning streak. After running third in the Sprint in 2018 and fourth in the 2019 renewal, Monte Man won the race last year, and he was up to the task once again.
“I think he's just getting better, we're just getting started with him, you know, we got a long way to go,” Faucheux said in jest. “He's every trainer's dream. He's just so consistent. He gives it his all every race. To have an 8-year-old turning nine, stay sound throughout the whole process, and just continue to progress, it's unbelievable. It's real privilege to train him for Ivery Sister Racing. They let us place him appropriately, take our time between races, and that makes all the difference with this horse. We 100% will go for the three-peat as a 9-year-old.”
Monte Man boosted his career record to 50-18-8-9 with earnings of $794,223.
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