Glorious Empire Cuts Down Competition in Sword Dancer

With a gate-to-wire effort that could put a much younger horse to shame, Matthew Schera's Glorious Empire cut down his competition Aug. 25 and emerged the undeniable victor in the $1 million Sword Dancer Stakes (G1T) over 1 1/2 miles at Saratoga Race Course. 

Forced to share his first graded title with Channel Maker following a dead-heat in the July 28 Bowling Green Stakes (G2T), Glorious Empire entered the winner's circle Saturday the way any victor of a grade 1 race deserves: alone. 

With seemingly boundless energy, Glorious Empire broke on top to establish the early lead, putting the 10-horse field through their paces with fractions of :23.16 and :48.18 through the first half-mile.

Channel Maker tracked the pace on the outside a length behind and gained ground on the leader as they hit the quarter pole. Ready for his final cue from jockey Julien Leparoux, Glorious Empire kicked away with renewed vigor as they entered the final furlong, opening his lead with a determined drive. 

Ahead by a clear margin of 1 3/4 lengths at the wire, Glorious Empire defeated his challengers in a final time of 2:24.41.

"He traveled very good for me, and he's got that kick, and at the end he just exploded," said Leparoux. "It was a rough race, like the last time. He obviously loves the track. We won two here this year and one last year. The first quarter was fast, but today he settled very nicely and picked the pace up pretty quickly."

Channel Maker finished second, followed by Spring Quality in third. Hi Happy, Highland Sky, Sadler's Joy, Funtastic, Bigger Picture, Seahenge, and Revved Up completed the order of finish. Sent off at odds of 15-1, Glorious Empire returned $33.40, $14.40, and $9.80.  

"I'm trying to get my voice back," said trainer James "Chuck" Lawrence II. "We knew this horse had this kind of talent. It was just a matter of getting it to come out, so here we go.

"I thought the :23.16 quarter mile got us, but then he really slowed it down for Julien, luckily. I just kept yelling throughout the turn, 'Julien, let him go, let him go.' I knew he was fit, it was just a matter of getting the wire to come fast enough. He responded at the top of the lane. That was really special."

Prior to the Bowling Green Stakes, Glorious Empire won a June 28 optional-claiming allowance at Delaware Park by four lengths. He now has a career-best three-race winning streak from four starts this year. The victory in Saturday's Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" event earned the son of Holy Roman Emperor an automatic berth to the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T) in November at Churchill Downs. 

"This is my first grade 1, and we're going to bask in it," Lawrence said. "Of course, the Breeders' Cup is going to be a big option, but we're going to take it day by day and see how the horse is and everything. After this, that's going to be our big goal. Our big goal before was just to win a race at Saratoga with him, so he's exceeded our expectations."

Glorious Empire has earned $653,750 from his four starts this year alone. The gelding holds a 9-0-3 record from 23 starts, with earnings of $852,147. Bred in Ireland by Patrick Grogan out of the Pivotal mare Humble And Proud, Glorious Empire began his career in the U.K. before shipping to Hong Kong for a pair of races at Sha Tin Racecourse. He made his North American debut in 2016 with a fifth-place finish in the Ontario Jockey Club Stakes at Woodbine. He was claimed by former trainer Carlos Martin for Schera for $62,500 in May 2017 and was transferred to Lawrence's barn for the 2018 season.