Sistercharlie Scores Sixth Straight Grade 1 Win
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Photo: Coglianese Photos/Joe Labozzetta
Sistercharlie wins the Flower Bowl at Belmont Park
Some 6 1/2 hours after one of Europe's best female turf runner finished second in the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1), America's newest "Queen of the Turf" remained on her throne as she added to a brilliant legacy.
Peter Brant's Sistercharlie moved into the rarest of company Oct. 6 as she captured the $501,000 Flower Bowl Stakes (G1T) at Belmont Park by three-quarters of a length under jockey John Velazquez to notch her sixth consecutive grade 1 victory and earn a free trip to California, where she will bid to become the first back-to-back winner of the Maker's Mark Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1T).
"She's a rare horse," trainer Chad Brown said. "We're lucky to have her. She did everything she needed to do today."
So rare that the daughter of Myboycharlie came into Sunday grouped with a galaxy of the sport's greatest stars, all of whom had five straight wins, all in grade 1 company. Gun Runner , American Pharoah , Wise Dan, Rachel Alexandra, Skip Away, Cigar, Paseana, Easy Goer, Spectacular Bid, Affirmed, and Seattle Slew all reached five, but now Sistercharlie stands above them, leaving Zenyatta ahead of her with nine.
"We're talking about a future Hall of Famer," Brown said of the 2018 champion turf female.
The victory was the 10th in 14 starts for Sistercharlie and lifted her earnings to $3,482,003. It also removed one of the few blemishes on her impeccable record. This was her first victory in three starts at the Elmont N.Y., track, and it was part of a spectacular day for her owner. Prior to the Flower Bowl, Brant's half brother to Sistercharlie, Sottsass, finished third in the Arc behind Waldgeist and the two-time Arc-winning mare Enable, and after it, his Alabama Stakes (G1) winner Dunbar Road was third in the Juddmonte Spinster Stakes (G1) at Keeneland.
"A case can be made that this is not her favorite course, but she nevertheless ran great today," Brown said about the mare who was bred in Ireland by Ecurie Des Monceaux and purchased privately by Brant in 2017.
Up next will be a return trip to the $2 million Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Santa Anita Park, where she will be a heavy favorite. By virtue of her victory in Sunday's "Win and You're In" stakes, she gets a free spot in the 1 1/4-mile Nov. 2 race, which will be only the fourth start of 2019 for the 5-year-old mare.
"We're pretty confident going into the Breeders' Cup, as long as she stays healthy. She's remarkably consistent in the mornings and afternoons," Brown said. "I don't think we've gotten to the bottom of her yet. Some of the setbacks we've had along the way, though at the time they were very disappointing and inconvenient, it's kept her fresh. It goes both ways sometimes."
The Flower Bowl followed a familiar script as Brant's Thais once again played the role of the rabbit in the field of seven. She led by 12 lengths after a half-mile in :49.17 and was still ahead by three lengths at the quarter pole of the 1 1/4-mile stakes. Behind her, however, Sistercharlie was rolling three wide, and the 1-5 favorite ($2.40) flew past her leaving the eighth pole.
The lone threat came from 5-1 second choice Mrs. Sippy, who was exiting a win in the Glens Falls Stakes (G2T) in her U.S. debut. The game 4-year-old daughter of Blame did not let Sistercharlie pull away in the final yards.
"I thought the runner-up was impressive," Brown said. "She tracked all the way and made Sistercharlie run in the stretch."
The final time was 2:02.21.
After Andrew Stone's filly finished a little less than a length behind Sistercharlie at the wire, trainer Graham Motion said she would probably join the winner at the World Championships.
"For a split second, I thought we might get to her, but I was proud of how she ran. She got beat a length by the Breeders' Cup favorite," Motion said. "If she comes out OK, we have to take a shot at the Breeders' Cup, where there will be a different, bigger field."
Thais hung on for third, 2 1/2 lengths behind Mrs. Sippy. Thais might also move on to the Breeders' Cup if she gets enough qualifying points.
It was Brown's fifth Flower Bowl win in six years and sixth overall, this time with a superb mare who always seems to make it look easy, even if it isn't.
"It's never a given, and all the way until inside the sixteenth pole, it looked like it would be tight near the wire," Brown said. "You can never take anything for granted, no matter how good your horse is. It's horse racing. You have to run the race from start to finish, no matter how good your horse is. Anything can happen in a race."