Championofthenile Heads NY Futurity

Championofthenile, the beaten favorite in the Sept. 27 Bertram F. Bongard Stakes at Belmont Park, heads a six-horse cast for the New York Breeders' Futurity Stakes at Finger Lakes Gaming and Racetrack. The six-furlong race Oct. 17 will carry a purse of $206,963.

Championofthenile made headlines earlier this year when he topped the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale of 2-year-olds, selling for $840,000 to trainer Linda Rice. The dark bay or brown colt, bred by All Gold Racing, races for Lady Sheila Stable, Iris Smith Stable, and Rice. Lady Sheila Stable is the nom du course for Shelia Rosenblum, owner of graded winners La Verdad and Hot City Girl.

By Pioneerof the Nile  , Championofthenile is out of Lantern Glow, by Mineshaft  , and is a half brother to two stakes winners, including last year's Remsen Stakes (gr. II) winner Leave the Light On (by Horse Greeley  ).

Championofthenile broke his maiden second time out at Saratoga Race Course, winning a 6 1/2-furlong maiden special weight for state-breds by six lengths. He was the 6-5 favorite in the Bongard but finished third, beaten 1 1/2 lengths by Sudden Surprise.

Four of his five rivals come out of Finger Lake's Aspirant Stakes run Sept. 18 at the Futurity distance. The winner was Happy Face Racing Stable's Love That Jazz, a bay colt by Not For Love  . Love That Jazz broke his maiden in the Aspirant and, in the race prior, was second at Saratoga to Get Jets, the Bongard runner-up.

Dr. Shane, the Aspirant runner-up, has the rail in the Futurity, while fourth-place runner Sky Devil has the outside post. Saratoga Giro, a son of Girolamo  , will break from post 5. Girolamo, who now stands in Kentucky, is the second leading first-crop sire of 2015 by winners with 12.