By Alan Carasso
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Illinois–It can't be easy to saddle the first three home in Grade I races, but trainer Chad Brown sure makes it look that way.
Having accounted for four runnings of the GI Beverly D. S. and three straight–including the 1-2 finishers in 2015 (the promoted Watsdachances {Ire} and Stephanie's Kitten) and again last year (Dacita {Chi} and Grand Jete {GB})–the superstar conditioner outdid himself, with Peter Brant's Sistercharlie (Ire) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) leading home a 1-2-3 for the stable in the 'D,' a 'Win and You're In' test for the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf.
Whereas the Secretariat was contested at a genuine tempo, the pace of the Beverly D. was much slower to develop-that is to say, really never did materialize. Thais (Fr) (Rio de la Plata), the least-accomplished and least-fancied of the Team Brown runners, fell out onto the lead and took them along at a crawl, just in advance of stablemate Inflexibility (Scat Daddy) as Sistercharlie settled in the latter third of the field. The pace slackened further still through the middle stages, and John Velazquez made what would be the winning move, allowing Sistercharlie to creep steadily into a midfield position, and the favorite closed the gap while sacrificing some ground loss four and five deep off the home corner. She quickly descended on Thais with three-sixteenths of a mile to travel, then kicked on gamely and was always holding the fast-finishing Fourstar Crook (Freud) to the wire. Daddys Lil Darling (Scat Daddy) ran into a bit of traffic while railing through in the lane and denied Brown a top-four sweep. Inflexibility was fifth.
Runner-up in last year's G1 Prix de Diane, Sistercharlie was the narrow runner-up to stablemate New Money Honey (Medaglia d'Oro) and ahead of barn companion Uni (GB) (More Than Ready) in the GI Belmont Oaks, but took ill and missed the better part of 10 months. She defeated Fourstar Crook and Brown's Off Limits (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) in the GI Jenny Wiley S. Apr. 14, just missed to Fourstar Crook in the GII New York S. and was exiting a second Grade I success in Saratoga's GI Diana S. July 21.
Pedigree Notes:
Remarkably, Sistercharlie is the second Beverly D. winner (Euro Charline {GB}, 2014) and one of four Group 1/Grade I winners for Myboycharlie, a number which also includes Jameka (Aus) and Peggy Jean (Aus) in Australia. Sistercharlie is out of a placed daughter of 2000 GI Del Mar Oaks third placegetter Premiere Creation, the dam of GSW & MGI/G1SP Anabaa's Creation (Ire) (Anabaa) and second dam of SW Create A Dream (Oasis Dream {GB}) and also responsible for GSW Leo's Starlet (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). The winner is kin to the 2-year-old Sottsass (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}), a €340,000 purchase by Oceanic Bloodstock at last year's Arqana August Yearling Sale, a yearling colt by Charm Spirit (Ire) and a colt foal by Fastnet Rock (Aus).
Saturday, Arlington Park
BEVERLY D. S.-GI, $600,000, Arlington, 8-11, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 3/16mT, 1:56.77, fm.
1–SISTERCHARLIE (IRE), 123, f, 4, by Myboycharlie (Ire)
1st Dam: Starlet's Sister (Ire), by Galileo (Ire)
2nd Dam: Premiere Creation (Fr), by Green Tune
3rd Dam: Allwaki, by Miswaki
(€12,000 Ylg '15 AR15). O-Peter M. Brant; B-Ecurie Des Monceaux (IRE); T-Chad C. Brown; J-John R. Velazquez. $349,200. Lifetime Record: GSW & G1SP-Fr, 10-6-3-0, $1,475,603. Click for eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Werk Nick Rating: A.[bullet ad=”itm-g1″][bullet ad=”mersant-international”]2–Fourstar Crook, 123, m, 6, by Freud
1st Dam: Avril a Portugal, by D'Accord
2nd Dam: Emiress, by Damascus
3rd Dam: Court Circuit, by Royal Vale
($55,000 Ylg '13 SARAUG; $70,000 RNA 2yo '14 FTFMAR; $110,000 2yo '14 EASMAY). O-Michael Dubb, Bethlehem Stables LLC and Gary Aisquith; B-Kathleen M. Feron (NY); T-Chad C. Brown. $116,400. [bullet ad=”young-gary-2yo-in-training-sales-recommendation”]3–Thais (Fr), 123, f, 4, by Rio de La Plata
1st Dam: Tianshan (Fr), by Lahint
2nd Dam: Tangshan, by Zilzal
3rd Dam: Manzanares, by Sir Ivor
(€140,000 RNA Ylg '15 AR15). O-Allen Stable, Inc. and Brant, Peter M.; B-G. & Mrs. G. Sandor (FR); T-Chad C. Brown. $58,200.
Margins: HF, 1 1/4, NK. Odds: 1.60, 4.90, 47.40.[bullet ad=”colombo-bloodstock-private-sale”][bullet ad=”mersant-international”]Also Ran: Daddys Lil Darling, Inflexibility, Nyaleti (Ire), Athena (Ire), Oh So Terrible, Dona Bruja (Arg).
Click for the Equineline.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
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