Pocket Square Gives Brown Belmont Milestone in Athenia
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Photo: Coglianese Photos/Chelsea Durand
Pocket Square wins the Athenia Stakes at Belmont Park
Juddmonte homebred Pocket Square rallied to a strong victory over stablemate Miss Teheran in the $194,000 Athenia Stakes (G3T) Sept. 25. The win provided four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Chad Brown with his 100th graded stakes score at Belmont Park, according to records provided by Equibase.
"What an achievement for my team, my owners, and my horses throughout the years that have run so hard," Brown said. "A big thank you to (the New York Racing Association) for providing me and my horses such great facilities to train and race on through the years. They have been instrumental in developing my business."
A 4-year-old Night of Thunder filly, Pocket Square entered from a 4 1/4-length allowance optional claiming win traveling nine furlongs, the same distance as the Athenia, Aug. 25 on the inner turf at Saratoga Race Course.
Pocket Square, with Irad Ortiz Jr. back in the irons Saturday, rated comfortably outside rivals in fourth as Stand for the Flag set splits of :25.30, 51.41, and 1:16.71 on the good turf.
Lake Lucerne pressed the pacesetter through the final turn with Made In Italy advancing up the rail and Pocket Square angling outside for the stretch run. But Pocket Square took over the lead from Lake Lucerne at the stretch call and secured a 2 1/2-length win in a final time of 1:51.19. She returned $2.90 for a $2 win wager as the favorite.
"She did everything right," Ortiz said. "She broke and relaxed. She waited on me to call on her to run and when I asked her, she took off. She looked like much the best.
"I only used the stick a couple of times and that was it. She was moving comfortably so I didn't need to do much."
Miss Teheran rallied outside rivals to secure the exacta by one length over Lake Lucerne. Made In Italy and Stand for the Flag completed the order of finish. Main-track only entrant Spice Is Nice was scratched and will target the Oct. 10 Beldame Stakes (G2) at Belmont.
Pocket Square, a group 3 winner in France two years ago, was bred in Great Britain out of the stakes-placed Dansili mare Shared Account . The mare has also produced Yesyes , this year's Stella Artois Chester Stakes winner in England, and group 2-placed Sand Share . Shared Account's other foals are the 2-year-old filly Spirited Account, a yearling colt by Oasis Dream , and a weanling full sister to Pocket Square.
From nine career starts, Pocket Square has a 5-0-1 record and has banked $294,005.