El Cordobes leads strong trio of European shippers in G1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic

A triad of European contenders will compete amid a field of seven in Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic, led by Godolphin’s multiple Grade 1-winner and world-traveler El Cordobes for internationally renowned trainer Charlie Appleby.

The Joe Hirsch Turf Classic winner is eligible for a bonus from the Japan Racing Association if said winner is selected and runs in the 2026 Japan Cup at Tokyo Racecourse. 

The 1 1/2-mile Widener turf test for 3-year-olds and up will be El Cordobes’ first outing since landing a 4 1/4-length fifth in the Group 2 H. H. The Amir Trophy on Valentine’s Day at Doha won by Deep Monster, who exited to finish third to Romantic Warrior in the Group 1 Hong Kong Champions & Chater Cup. El Cordobes' effort in The Amir Trophy, which came three months after a third in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf at Del Mar, was at about this distance over firm footing, with eight of his last nine efforts coming at 12 furlongs.

“We sort of just worked back from a winter campaign with him,” Appleby said. “We are starting off where we are and thought he would do well for the break and he’s had a nice break for summer. He’s very much on a winter program, for sure, and hopefully will do well and go and win this and put himself in the Breeders’ Cup picture again. If he goes and runs well, we will go down a normal sort of route with him, campaigning through the winter and ultimately looking at Qatar and the Dubai City of Gold and stuff like that. That’s why he’s not been seen for the summer. Hopefully it’ll answer everyone’s questions.”

The 5-year-old Frankel gelding has been a model of consistency since stretching out in distance last year, including a breakout performance in Newmarket’s Group 2 Princess of Wales’s last July with a two-length score over Wimbledon Hawkeye. He followed that effort with his first top-level score in his first American foray, taking Saratoga Race Course’s Sword Dancer last August. There, he was third in the early stages and was relegated to sixth at the stretch call as others advanced, but he pounced at the perfect time under returning rider Flavien Prat to secure the half-length victory over Rebel Red with stablemate Nations Pride finishing another three-quarter lengths back in third.

El Cordobes went on to complete his campaign with respectable thirds in a pair of Grade 1s, including this event won by stablemate Rebel’s Romance when contested over the Aqueduct Racetrack turf, and a rallying effort in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Del Mar to land two lengths behind the victorious Ethical Diamond and three-quarter-lengths back of Rebel’s Romance.

“He goes into the race in good order and Flavien Prat rides – he’s won on him in the Sword Dancer and we’re very much looking forward to having our first runner at the new Belmont track,” Appleby said. “The horse has worked well and his preparation has gone very well going into the race. Obviously, he’s had a nice break. He’s a horse who, as we know, likes quick and flat tracks there in America.”

Prat will look to visit the winner’s circle again atop the classy bay from post 3.

Mrs. David Aykroyd’s Irish homebred Pride of Arras brings strong form to his stateside bow for conditioner Ralph Beckett, led by a trio of group scores at this distance and at 1 5/16 miles in Great Britain. He arrives from a one-length coup of the Group 3 September on September 5 around right-handed synthetic at Kempton Park, tracking just off the pace and taking over with an eighth of a mile left to run to keep on gamely through the wire. The multiple Grade 1-winner Constitution Hill finished fourth.

“He’s trained well since Kempton. It’s not been much time between, but we are happy with him,” Beckett said. “He traveled so well to Bahrain last year, which was a good trip for him, so it made sense to see what he can get done overseas.”

That trip to Bahrain yielded a 3 1/4-length fourth to Grade 1-winning multimillionaire Royal Champion in the Group 2 Bahrain International Trophy going about 10 furlongs around right-handed bends, capping a season that included a pair of left-handed Group 2 wins in the 10 1/2-furlong Dante in May at York and the 12-furlong Great Voltigeur in August there.

“He particularly likes going left-handed on a flat track, so Belmont should suit him really well,” said Beckett, a two-time Breeders’ Cup winner. “I always try to take the horses we think will travel best to America and I think that’s definitely the case with him.”

The 4-year-old New Bay gelding is out of the Oasis Dream mare Parnell’s Dream, a two-time winner for these connections and a half-sister to Kissable, dam of Grade 2 Pennine Ridge-winner Legend of Time.

Pride of Arras has been ridden by Rossa Ryan for each of his nine starts, but will emerge from post 2 on Saturday in rein to James Doyle.

The European contingent is completed by Mrs. Fitriani Hay’s Fort George [post 6, Kieran Shoemark], who makes his third start of an American endeavor that began in July with a nose second to Ole Crazy Bone in the Grade 2 Bowling Green presented by Emerald Ecovations at Saratoga.

Trained by Ed Walker, the 4-year-old Territories gelding tracked his rival throughout the 1 3/8 miles over firm footing and gave chase down the lane, inching closer under returning rider Kieran Shoemark and just missing as Ole Crazy Bone completed the course in 2:14.18.

Fort George then headed south to Kentucky Downs for the Grade 2 Kentucky Turf Cup Invitational last out on September 5, where he utilized opposite tactics than the Bowling Green with a deep closing effort from last-of-9 under Jamie Spencer against a field that included Ole Crazy Bone and fellow European contenders Tiffany and Ethical Diamond. Those two finished a respective first and second with another four lengths back to Fort George in third, while Old Crazy Bone faltered and finished eighth.

Walker said drawing the outermost post and racing wide was not ideal.

“He’s doing great and we’re very happy with him,” Walker said. “He had a great run in the Bowling Green and I thought he ran well at Kentucky Downs; bad draw, slowly away and a messy race. I think the two [Europeans] got a much better trip than he did. That was a little bit frustrating, but I’m really excited for the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic and excited to be back at Belmont and see what that’s like. Sadly, though, I’m not sure I can be there, but hopefully it’ll be a good opportunity for Fort George.”

Following the Bowling Green, Fort George was entered in the Grade 1 Christophe Clement Turf on August 15 at Saratoga, but scratched due to a foot abscess.

“We were gutted to miss the Clement, but he seems to be training very well and Hannah [Smith], who takes care of him, is doing a great job,” Walker said. “And Jack [Steels], my assistant, went over to help out at Kentucky Downs was very impressed with how he’s looking and training.

“It’s all very positive, so roll on next weekend,” Walker added. “Hopefully he can run a big race and in the dream scenario he can win that and head on to the Breeders’ Cup, which would be the plan if everything went well. It hasn’t so far, so we are due a bit of luck.”

Fort George has compiled a 14-3-5-4 record with $454,501 in total earnings, aided by a win in the Group 3 Dubai Millennium in January at Meydan and subsequent runner-up effort in the Group 2 Dubai City of Gold there one month later. The British-bred chestnut is out of the Teofilo mare Dusty Red, a half-sister to Grade 2 Lake Placid-winner and Group 3-producer Spotlight.

Four American contenders will provide steep opposition to the trio of shippers, including multiple Grade 1-winner Far Bridge [post 4, John Velazquez] for conditioner Miguel Clement and Grade 1-placed Minaret Station [post 1, Jose Ortiz] for trainer Will Walden.

LSU Stables’ Far Bridge seeks his second win in this event after taking the 2024 edition at Belmont at the Big A for late Hall of Fame trainer Christophe Clement. Now in the care of Clement’s son Miguel, the 6-year-old English Channel bay has hit the board in 3-of-5 starts for his current conditioner, and returns from a six-month respite dating to a gritty repeat win by a neck in the 12-furlong Grade 3 Pan American in March at Gulfstream Park.

Far Bridge has been a model of top-level consistency, beginning in 2023 with his first stakes win in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby going 10 furlongs over the Belmont green. As a 4-year-old, he earned wins in the Grade 1 Sword Dancer at Saratoga ahead of the Joe Hirsch that was contested at Aqueduct. Last year, he scored wins in the Pan American and Belmont at the Big A’s Grade 2 Man o’ War to kick off a 6-3-0-1 campaign that included a third in the Grade 1 Resorts World Casino Manhattan and a win in the Grade 2 Bowling Green at the Spa.

Far Bridge returned to the work tab in early August over the local main track, where he has posted six timed efforts since. On Saturday, he got a feel for the turf course, covering a half-mile in 52 seconds flat in company with Willpowered. 

“I thought he worked well and the question mark is, is he 100 percent ready to run his ‘A’ race? I’m not entirely sure, but the horse is training very well and he’s giving us every indication he’s back to his best,” Clement said. “Coming off a long layoff at that level, to run in such a prestigious race is always a tall task, but nevertheless, he’s top class, and usually good horses overcome little variables.

“Even if we get beat, sometimes getting the race back into him is probably what’s best for him and we might have to accept it… sometimes you have to lose the battle in order to win the war, and this might be one of those cases,” he added.

Far Bridge has compiled a 21-10-3-3 record, with earnings of more than $2.5 million.

OXO Equine’s Kentucky homebred Minaret Station looks to make amends for a three-quarter-length defeat to the mare Survie in the Christophe Clement Turf last out. The 4-year-old Instilled Regard colt is normally a rallying type, but pressed the pace under returning rider Jose Ortiz and took a head lead at the stretch call. He ran on determinedly but was caught late and earned a career-best 97 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort.

The lightly-raced bay has hit the board in 7-of-8 efforts, led by a Grade 2 win as a juvenile in Keeneland’s 1 1/16-mile Bourbon. Last year, he won the lone start of his campaign in the Listed American Derby in June at Churchill Downs, and returned there 10 months later to finish a one-length fourth in the Listed Opening Verse. He was beaten less than one length in each of his last three starts, finishing second in the Grade 3 Arlington in Louisville and third in the Bowling Green a half-length back of Ole Crazy Bone and Fort George before his Clement effort.

Minaret Station is out of the multiple graded stakes-winning Sir Prancealot mare Beau Recall.

Completing the field are the pair of three-time Grade 1-winner Program Trading [post 7, Ricardo Santana, Jr.] and Grade 2-winner Asbury Park [post 5, Manny Franco] for five-time Eclipse Award-winning conditioner Chad Brown, a three-time Joe Hirsch-winner with Big Blule Kitten [2015], Beach Patrol [2017] and Rockemperor [2021].

Klaravich Stables’ Program Trading, a topflight winner of the Saratoga Derby Invitational and Hollywood Derby as a sophomore, added Churchill’s Grade 1 Turf Classic to his resume in May 2024 and made one more start before a 14-month layoff. He returned last August and was winless in his first seven starts back, but was nearly a Grade 1 winner again when a three-quarter-length second to Rhetorical in the Coolmore Turf Mile last October at Keeneland. He returned to winning ways this summer with back-to-back scores at Monmouth Park in the Listed Monmouth and Grade 2 United Nations en route to a last-out third in the Clement.

Peter Brant and St. Elias Stable’s Asbury Park has made two starts this year, finishing a distant last-of-9 in the Turf Classic in May at Churchill off a seven-month respite, and improving to land a half-length second to Rothschild in a 1 3/8-mile optional claimer on August 22 at the Spa. He earned his first stakes win in October with a two-length score from off-the-pace in the Grade 2 Jockey Club Derby Invitational at Belmont at the Big A, and will make his first start at 12 furlongs.

The Joe Hirsch Turf Classic is slated as Race 10 on Saturday’s 11-race card, which features three additional graded events, including a pair of Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” qualifiers in the Grade 2, $500,000 Flower Bowl [Filly and Mare Turf] in Race 11 and the Grade 3, $250,000 Vosburgh [Sprint] in Race 9. The program is supported by the Grade 2, $250,000 Gallant Bloom in Race 4. First post is 12:05 p.m. Eastern.

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