Sale Buy-Back Multiplier Now a Belmont Contender

"It's all about the clock" is a common axiom at 2-year-olds in training sales, in reference to the emphasis—sometimes too much so—buyers place on pre-sale workout times.

Relying too much on workout times—which vary only by fifths of a second—over other traits for sale horses can lead to future stars being overlooked when they go through the ring.

Such was likely the case with Belmont Stakes (G1) contender Multiplier, a colt from the first crop of The Factor   who went unsold on a final bid of $120,000 at last year's Ocala Breeders' Sales' April sale. During the under tack show, the colt breezed an eighth of a mile in :10 2/5, which is generally considered a solid time for the distance.

However, there were dozens of other juveniles who shared Multiplier's breeze time over the OBS artificial surface and 348 others worked faster times ranging from :09 4/5 to :10 1/5.

"He was always a real pretty horse, a nice strong, fleshy horse, but the thing with him is that at the sale he was so laid back it was almost to a fault," said David Scanlon, who consigned Multiplier to OBS. "I don't know when it happened but :10 2/5 is not a fast work anymore. People wanted to see a :10 1/5 or :10 flat work for that kind of money."

Produced from the Trippi mare Trippi Street, Multiplier was bred in Kentucky by Mark Stansell. After breaking his maiden in his third start, the bay colt won the Illinois Derby (G3) for trainer Brendan Walsh and was subsequently purchased privately by his current owners—Adam Wachtel's Wachtel Stable, George Kerr, and Gary Barber. He comes into the Belmont with a ledger of 2-1-1 from five starts and $187,310 in earnings.

Multiplier was initially bought in the name of Walter Bloodstock for $62,000 as a weanling offered by Burleson Farms at the 2014 Keeneland November breeding stock sale. Pinhooked into the 2015 Keeneland September yearling sale, the colt was a $220,000 buy-back.

After Multiplier was bought back at OBS, a majority interest was purchased by Joe Senkovich and the colt was sent back to Scanlon to be readied for racing under Walsh.

"He was a horse who was great to train," Scanlon said. "He went out and did his job. He always had the pieces. But he especially had a big, nice walk. Brendan was high on him even before he ran his first race. He noticed how smooth he was when he rode him. Before the Illinois Derby he said 'this is a serious horse.'"

Unraced at 2, Multiplier began his career at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, finishing third, second, and then finally first in his three starts. Ridden by James Graham for the first time in the April 22 Illinois Derby at Hawthorne Racecourse, the colt was a ground-saving fifth early before finally kicking in to catch 9-5 favorite Hedge Fund in the final strides for a head victory.

The performance caught the attention of many professional horsemen, including Wachtel, who uses a number of tools, including the Ragozin Sheets that assign a number to each horse's race.

"I was really impressed by the Illinois Derby effort ... he had a tremendous Ragozin number," Wachtel said. "Initially when we looked at his pedigree, we were assuming he wasn't a distance horse. After he won the Illinois Derby, I was trying to figure out if that was a fluke. The sire was more of a middle-distance horse or best at a mile. When we looked more carefully, you can see where he gets his ability to stretch out."

The new owners decided to give Multiplier a shot in the Preakness Stakes (G1) and the colt was well back early before closing on the rail to finish sixth, 5 3/4 lengths behind winner Cloud Computing.

That effort bolstered his connections' belief that the longer Belmont might be better suited to his running style.

"We felt like he had a chance in the Preakness," Wachtel said. "We didn't think he could win, but maybe hit the board and we only missed third by a length or a length and half. It is unfortunate when you are that close to hitting the board in a race like that. He got stuck farther back than we hoped but he did come running and he came out of it great."

Wachtel said when he and his partners were pursuing the purchase of Multiplier, Walsh indicated that the 1 1/2-mile Belmont was his ultimate goal. Not unlike others pointing toward the race, Wachtel agrees that last year's juvenile champion Classic Empire, who was a gutsy second in the Preakness, is the horse to beat in the Belmont.

The Belmont will be the Mark Casse trainee's fourth start since April 15 when he won the Arkansas Derby (G1), a stretch that included a troubled fourth in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) previous to the Preakness. Still, Wachtel believes his horse can be a factor in the Belmont.

"He seemed to be running fairly well at the end of the Preakness so hopefully he will get the added distance," the part-owner said. "Our hope is he is the type of horse that will get a mile-and-a-half.

"It's going to be a fairly large field and other than Casse's horse, who looks like a standout, there are no superstars," Wachtel continued. "(Classic Empire) was the 2-year-old champ and has done nothing wrong this year. He won the Arkansas Derby and ran in the Kentucky Derby three weeks later and came back in two weeks in the Preakness. He has the talent and is obviously the horse to beat in the race. Maybe he has had too many races in a short period of time and if he is not at his very best maybe somebody has a chance to get him. He had a troubled trip in the Derby and he ran a hell of a race in the Preakness. Our plan is to give (Multiplier) a shot and maybe hit the board this time."