By Steve Sherack
Gold Square's Napoleon Solo (c, 2, Liam's Map–Atomic Blonde, by Scat Daddy), a very sharp debut winner of an auction-restricted maiden special weight sprinting at Saratoga Aug. 8, put on a dominating display in Saturday's 'Win and You're In' GI Champagne S. going a one-turn mile at the Belmont at the Big A meeting.
Sent to the front by Joel Rosario over a surface playing very kindly to speed, the 6-1 chance cleared from his outside draw and led through fractions of :22.53 and :44.24 with imposing 2-5 favorite It's Our Time (Not This Time) in hot pursuit. With It's Our Time already all in, Napoleon Solo began to give them the slip on the far turn and showed no mercy from there, continuing on with authority to score by 6 1/2 lengths.
Saratoga upset debut winners Talkin (Good Magic) and Universe (Global Campaign) were second and third, respectively.
“You don't have a lot of horses that go :44 and change and keep going,” winning trainer Chad Summers said. “He did it, it wasn't really the plan, but Joel (Rosario) said he just broke so easy and he had so much horse in hand, he goes, 'with the way the track is playing, let's just go ahead.'”
Summers continued, “He's a 2-year-old, he's a nice horse, he's developing, Al (Gold) is such a great owner, we work together to make that plan and think what is best for the horse now and for the long-term.”
The Champagne was a 'Win and You're In' for the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile. See you at Del Mar Oct. 31?
“I don't know,” Summers said. “Look, (with) a race like this, you want to go. But that was a fast time with a young horse who has only run two races, we will look at all the numbers, see how the numbers come back, get together with Al. Once again the Breeders' Cup is in California, I wish it was on the East Coast once or twice. Get on a plane and get over there, there's a lot of things to take under consideration.”
It's Our Time, a no-brainer 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard' after airing by 17 3/4 lengths with a 94 Beyer Speed Figure on debut at the Spa Aug. 16, tired to finish a disappointing fourth.
“We will rebound from this, and we are still very much in the picture during the 3-year-old year and that is the goal,” trainer Tom Amoss said.
Pedigree Notes:
Napoleon Solo, a $40,000 Keeneland September steal for Al Gold's Gold Square of MGISW Cyberknife (Gun Runner) fame, becomes the seventh Grade I winner for Liam's Map. He is bred on the same Liam's Map x Scat Daddy cross as GI Blue Grass S. winner Burnham Square and also the dam of GISW and 'Rising Star' Brant (Gun Runner). Atomic Blonde, a stakes-winning homebred for the Gunthers, had a colt by Authentic this year and was bred back to Stage Raider. Napoleon Solo is named for a fictional character from the TV spy series The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
NAPOLEON SOLO dominates in the Grade 1 Champagne Stakes under @JRosarioJockey for trainer @horsesummers, punching his ticket to the @BreedersCup Juvenile! pic.twitter.com/afe73Kw7Yn
— NYRA (🌳) (@TheNYRA) October 4, 2025
Saturday, Belmont Big A
CHAMPAGNE S.-GI, $500,000, Belmont The Big A, 10-4, 2yo, 1m, 1:34.57, ft.
1–NAPOLEON SOLO, 122, c, 2, by Liam's Map
1st Dam: Atomic Blonde (SW, $188,710), by Scat Daddy
2nd Dam: Volver (Ire), by Danehill Dancer (Ire)
3rd Dam: Chanteleau, by A.P. Indy
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE I WIN. ($40,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP). O-Gold Square LLC; B-John D. Gunther & Eurowest Bloodstock (KY); T-Chad Summers; J-Joel Rosario. $275,000. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0, $319,000. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Talkin, 122, c, 2, Good Magic–Rote, by Tiznow. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($600,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP). O-Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Pine Racing Stables, Legendary Thoroughbreds, Belmar Racing and Breeding, LLC and R. A. Hill Stable; B-Fifth Avenue Bloodstock (KY); T-Danny Gargan. $100,000.
3–Universe, 122, c, 2, Global Campaign–Equalityforall, by Quality Road. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($75,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP). O-Four G Racing LLC, Day, Gregg and Crain, Steven; B-Becky Pietras (KY); T-Kenneth G. McPeek. $60,000.
Margins: 6HF, 3/4, 1. Odds: 6.97, 7.07, 18.89.
Also Ran: It's Our Time, Stradale, Curtain Call, Aye Eye, Stickupwithoutagun, Just Asap.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
