Twenty Six Black in career form for G3 Belmont Turf Sprint

Roger Cimbora, Jr.’s New York homebred Twenty Six Black will look to make the grade in Saturday’s Grade 3, $200,000 Belmont Turf Sprint, at Belmont at the Big A.

The six-furlong outer turf sprint for 3-year-olds and up is slated as Race 4 on Saturday’s 12-race card, which is headlined by the Grade 1, $500,000 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic in Race 5. The stacked program is supported by the Grade 2, $300,000 Woodward in Race 6; the Grade 2, $250,000 Gallant Bloom in Race 8, and the Grade 3, $200,000 Vosburgh presented by Army Mule in Race 9, which offers a “Win and You’re In” berth to the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Del Mar. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern.

Trained by Horacio De Paz, Twenty Six Black [post 5, Flavien Prat, 123 pounds] has paired up career-best 100 Beyer Speed Figures for his runner-up effort in the Grade 2 Troy on August 3 and a 2 1/4-length score in the restricted Disco Partner on August 31 – both contested over 5 1/2-furlongs of firm turf at Saratoga Race Course.

De Paz said Twenty Six Black, who was gelded ahead of his 2024 campaign, has matured and improved throughout his four seasons of racing.

“It's an accumulation of getting through his conditions, seasoning and maturing,” De Paz said. “He's continuing to get better with age. We always thought he was a talented 2-year-old. He's had some breaks in-between, and I think that also helps. He only runs six or seven times a year and gets the winter off.

“Last year was his first year running as a gelding,” he added. “And all of that has helped him come to the level he's at right now.”

The 5-year-old War Dancer bay, piloted through his last two outings by returning rider Flavien Prat, went to post at odds of 10-1 in the Troy, his graded stakes debut, and closed from sixth position to finish 1 1/2-lengths back of pacesetting winner Bring Theband Home, who marked the half-mile in 43.39 and won in a final time of 1:00.38.

Last out, Twenty Six Black, the mutuel favorite, stalked from third position as Outlaw Kid reached the half-mile in 45.22 before advancing at the quarter-pole and taking command in upper stretch en route to victory over returning rival Bold Journey in a final time of 1:01.43.

De Paz indicated that Prat is able to use Twenty Six Black’s tactical speed as a weapon when needed.

“Flavien knows him and reads the race very well to be able to put him wherever you need to put him depending on what goes on up front,” De Paz said.

De Paz is following a winning recipe heading into this event with Twenty Six Black working a sharp solo half-mile in 48.20 seconds September 20 over the Belmont Park dirt training track – fourth-best of 132 efforts at the distance. He posted similar swift half-miles over the Saratoga main track ahead of the Troy [47.02, 1/168] and Disco Partner [47.02, 3/94].

“That's been the routine - we do an easy work first work back after a race and then we sharpen him up,” De Paz said. “We did the same thing at Saratoga before the Troy. He had a very sharp work, and you're always concerned about whether they did it too quickly, but he was well within himself and obviously he ran very good, so we kept that routine coming into the Disco Partner. We don't want to overdo it because he is fit, but it's fast enough to get him on his toes.”

De Paz said a good effort Saturday would propel Twenty Six Black, a three-time winner over course and distance, to a start in the $200,000 New York Turf Sprint Championship against fellow state-breds on October 25 here.

“He's an honest horse and just keeps trying. It's hard not to like a horse like that,” De Paz said. “He's a gentleman of a horse, too. He's so classy. He's a very easy horse to gallop and looks after himself very well. He's a delight to work with.”

Twenty Six Black is out of the First Dude mare Brazo de Oro, who also produced the stakes-placed De Paz trainee Can’t Fool Me for Cimbora, Jr. He has banked $493,310 via a 15-6-4-1 ledger.

Charles T. Matses’ Kentucky homebred Alogon [post 4, Dylan Davis, 121 pounds] will make his third appearance in this event, having finished a 1 3/4-length third last year to returning rival Senbei and a 1 3/4-length fourth in 2023 in an off-the-turf edition contested over sloppy and sealed footing.

Trained by Ned Allard, the 6-year-old California Chrome gelding has finished no worse than fourth in each of his last seven outings, dating to a narrow win in the Listed Parx Dash last August. Since that score, he dead-heated for victory with Works for Me in the Listed Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship in November and was a credible two-length third in the Grade 1 Jaipur in June at Saratoga.

He enters from a neck runner-up effort in the 5 1/2-furlong Da Hoss on September 6 at Colonial Downs won by Doncho, who arrived from a 5 1/2-furlong optional claiming win on August 8 at Ellis Park where his final time of 59.75 seconds on the firm turf broke Cogburn’s North American record of 59.80 set in last year’s Jaipur.

Reeves Thoroughbred Racing and Darlene Bilinski’s New York-bred Senbei [post 3, Manny Franco, 125 pounds], fifth last out in the Troy, will look to add to his impressive 5-3-0-0 record on the Big A turf.

Trained by Miguel Clement, the 6-year-old Candy Ride gelding won this event last year, rallying from fifth to score by 1 1/4-lengths over Nothing Better with Alogon another half-length back in third.

The talented chestnut was a four-time stakes winner on dirt in his first two years of racing before transitioning to turf in the summer of 2023. His local wins over course and distance also include an optional-claiming score last July and a frontrunning win in the state-bred Ashely T. Cole in June over returning foes Bold Journey and Run Curtis Run.

Senbei, bred by Dr. Jerry Bilinski out of the winning Western Cat mare Sweet Aloha, is a half-brother to multiple stakes-winners Filibustin and Indy’s Lady.

A talented field includes Dancing Buck [post 2, Kendrick Carmouche, 121 pounds], who won this event in 2022 for trainer Michelle Nevin; Bold Journey [post 6, Junior Alvarado, 121 pounds], a graded stakes-winner on dirt for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott; multiple graded stakes-placed Run Curtis Run [post 7, Jose Ortiz, 121 pounds] for trainer Mike Maker; and stakes-placed Live High Live Low [post 1, Javier Castellano, 121 pounds] for conditioner George Weaver. Acoustic Ave is entered for the main-track only.

America’s Day at the Races will present live coverage and analysis of the Belmont at the Big A fall meet on the networks of FOX Sports. For the broadcast schedule and channel finder, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule/.

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