By Steve Sherack
ELMONT, NY – Five years ago, Justify became the 13th winner of the Triple Crown with a gate-to-wire victory in the GI Belmont S.
The Ashford Stud-based stallion, quite fittingly, celebrated his first Grade I winner as a sire on the Belmont undercard courtesy of 'TDN Rising Star' Arabian Lion (Justify)'s good-looking 1 3/4-length victory as the 2-1 favorite over Drew's Gold (Violence) in Saturday's GI Woody Stephens S. Gilmore (Twirling Candy) was third.
The win marked a triumphant return to the Big Apple for Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, who was suspended from competition for one year from NYRA tracks stemming from his well-documented medical violation of disqualified 2021 GI Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit. The ban ended in January. Baffert hadn't started a runner in New York since Rockefeller (Medaglia d'Oro) finished 10th in the 2022 GIII Gotham S. at Aqueduct.
“He's just a smaller version of Justify and to have a horse by Justify–one of the greatest horses I've ever trained–and to bring him to New York and win a Grade I, that's what we're all in the game for,” Baffert said.
“I'm just going to enjoy this Grade I victory. It's great to be back here. Nothing like winning in New York. It means so much to the horse and the connections and I feel great about it.”
Drawn on the inside in post two in the 10-horse field, the Zedan Racing Stable colorbearer sat the trip from fourth, drafting in behind the two-for-two Federal Judge (Army Mule), who faced pressure to his outside from the well-backed Drew's Gold. The unbeaten Gold Fever S. winner made his move on the outside turning for home and was moving well, but Arabian Lion had other ideas. Arabian Lion was tipped out leaving the quarter pole and took flight in the stretch with good-looking strides to roar home for a career high.
An impressive debut winner at Santa Anita last October, Arabian Lion didn't fare well in his first two tries versus stakes company going two turns, finishing last of five as the heavy favorite in the GII Los Alamitos Futurity Dec. 17 and fourth in the GIII Robert B. Lewis S. Feb. 4. He bounced back with a huge second behind sidelined 'TDN Rising Star' First Mission (Street Sense) in the GIII Stonestreet Lexington S. at Keeneland Apr. 15, then put on a show on the GI Preakness S. undercard with a powerful front-running victory in the Sir Barton S.
“This horse, I've always been so high on, he's just been slow to come around,” Baffert said. “Amr Zedan, he let me be patient with him and now we're getting rewarded with he way he ran.”
He continued, “The Lexington S. was a headscratcher. It looked like he was going to win and I think he saw something in the crowd and quit running and then he got beat. His race at Pimlico was amazing. I flew him back to California and I said, 'I probably won't bring him back,' but he was doing so well, I could tell.”
Baffert added that Arabian Lion could target the $1-million GI Haskell on July 22 at Monmouth Park.
Pedigree Notes:
Arabian Lion, a $600,000 OBS April breezer (:10) from the first crop of Justify, becomes the seventh graded winner for his young sire. Arabian Lion's third dam is the legendary runner and producer Personal Ensign. Arabian Lion's dam Unbound began her career in Japan before being imported by SF Bloodstock and running second in a sprint stakes at Belmont. She was later sold for $310,000 to F. T. I at Keeneland November in 2015 in foal to Tiznow. After failing to produce a foal in the next two seasons following Arabian Lion, Unbound produced a filly by Frosted this year. Unbound's stakes-placed full-sister Mary Rita is responsible for recent GII Penn Mile S. winner Major Dude (Bolt d'Oro).
Saturday, Belmont Park
WOODY STEPHENS S. PRESENTED BY MOHEGAN SUN-GI,
$400,000, Belmont, 6-10, 3yo, 7f, 1:21.70, ft.
1–ARABIAN LION, 122, c, 3, by Justify
1st Dam: Unbound (SP, $359,826), by Distorted Humor
2nd Dam: Possibility, by A.P. Indy
3rd Dam: Personal Ensign, by Private Account
1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE I WIN. ($600,000 2yo '22 OBSAPR). O-Zedan Racing Stables, Inc.; B-Bonne Chance Farm LLC (KY); T-Bob Baffert; J-John R. Velazquez. $220,000. Lifetime Record: 7-3-2-0, $437,600. Werk Nick Rating: C. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Drew's Gold, 122, r, 3, Violence–Frolic's Revenge, by Vindication. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($25,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-James K. Chapman and Stuart Tsujimoto; B-Woodford Thoroughbreds, LLC (KY); T-James K. Chapman. $80,000.
3–Gilmore, 118, c, 3, Twirling Candy–My Surfer Girl, by Henny Hughes. 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. ($48,000 Wlg '20 KEENOV; $250,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Robert E. Masterson, Stonestreet Stables LLC, Jay A. Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital LLC and Catherine Donovan; B-Dividing Ridge Farm (KY); T-Brendan P. Walsh. $48,000.
Margins: 1 3/4, 3/4, 7 1/4. Odds: 2.35, 3.80, 7.20.
Also Ran: Federal Judge, Gun Pilot, General Jim, Victory Formation, Fort Warren, Dark Vector, Arman.
Scratched: Fort Bragg, Harrodsburg, New York Thunder.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs.
VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.