Irish War Cry's Dam Seeks Rare Triple at Monmouth

Many broodmares don't produce three different winners in their careers. It's a rarity for one to have three of her progeny win races in a single year. Could one possibly have three winners in one afternoon, all in stakes, all at the same racetrack?

It won't be easy to pull off, but a New Jersey-based dam named Irish Sovereign (Polish Numbers) has a chance of having three of her offspring visit the winner's circle at Monmouth Park Sunday. The star of her family is, of course, 3-year-old Irish War Cry (Curlin), who is the morning-line favorite in the GI betfair.com Haskell Invitational S. Then there is the 4-year-old filly Irish Defence (First Defence), who will take on males in the John J. Reilly H. for New Jersey-breds, and 5-year-old Irish Strait (English Channel), a starter in the GII Monmouth S.

All three are owned and bred by Isabelle de Tomaso, the daughter of Monmouth Park founder Amory L. Haskell. Graham Motion trains the trio of Jersey-breds.

“It really is a unique situation,” Motion said. “It's not something I set out to do. It just worked out with the timing. Irish Defence is in a little bit of an unusual position as she has to run against the boys, but there are only limited opportunities for Jersey-bred fillies, so this is a good spot to run her in. To win with all three would be tremendous. At the same time, I'd be happy to win with any of them. They're all in fairly tough spots. I know how hard it is to win these races.”

Irish Sovereign was far from a star during her days on the racetrack. She was co-trained by the husband and wife team of Rory and Sharon Huston. Rory Huston still trains for De Tomaso and manages Overbrook Farm in Colts Neck, New Jersey, where Irish Sovereign's babies were born.

Also owned by De Tomaso, Irish Sovereign broke her maiden at first asking, in a $16,000 maiden claimer at Aqueduct in 2003. Her best efforts would come the following year when she won a pair of New Jersey-bred allowance races at Monmouth. Huston always thought she had talent, but realized her career was sure to be hampered by physical problems.

“I trained her along with my wife, Sharon, and she was a real project,” Huston said. “If you look at her she had a very poor hind end on her. My vet at the time told me, 'If you get this mare to the races you deserve a medal.'”

Despite her modest racing credentials, Irish Sovereign has been a standout broodmare. All six of her foals of racing age have been winners. The list includes Irish Score (Even the Score), a now retired 6-year-old mare who won an allowance race at Gulfstream in 2014.

But her credentials don't begin to compare to those of the “Big Three.”

“The boys (Irish Strait and Irish War Cry) are very similar,” Motion said. “Irish Strait really grew up a lot this year, really matured. He's a similar type to Irish War Cry. Irish Defence is a little more refined. She appears to be more of a sprinting type. She's fairly tightly wound, whereas the boys are actually fairly sensible. Irish War Cry tends to lay close to the pace, but he's also a kind horse to be around considering he's a colt. All three of them shows traits of having speed and wanting to lay fairly close to the pace.”

Irish Strait, a gelding, became a graded stakes winner in his last start wen he won the GIII Red Bank S. at Monmouth. Irish Defence is arguably the least talented of the three, but she has won three of five lifetime starts and will be making her stakes debut in the Reilly.

Irish War Cry is nothing less than one of the best horses ever produced by the New Jersey breeding industry. The “TDN Rising Star” has earned $979,460, is the winner of the GII Holy Bull S. and the GII Wood Memorial S. and was runner-up in the GI Belmont S.

“I am very proud to have to been involved with Irish War Cry,” said Huston, who remembers Irish War Cry being a foal that immediately stood out among his peers. “Especially since it's been so long since a Jersey-bred has been to the Triple Crown races and here he was the favorite in the Belmont. It's been a proud moment for us, for the farm, for everybody involved. It's once in a lifetime that you get an animal like that. That is if you're lucky.”

Actually, there could be more heroics from the family. Irish Sovereign has a yearling filly named Lucky Irish, who is by Lookin at Lucky, and a weanling filly by Graydar. She was bred to Exaggerator this year. For this broodmare, there could be many big days ahead, but perhaps none quite as special as this Sunday.