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Brion saddles formidable trio in G1 A.P. Smithwick Memorial

by Mary Eddy

Trainer Keri Brion will have three chances to secure a repeat victory in Wednesday’s Grade 1, $150,000 A.P. Smithwick Memorial for older horses travelling 2 1/16-miles on the hurdle at Saratoga Race Course.

Brion enjoyed a stellar breakout year in 2021, sweeping all of NYRA’s Grade 1 steeplechase events and all but one of America’s top-level races over the hurdles. Last year, she conditioned The Mean Queen to Champion Steeplechaser honors with a campaign that included a victory in the Grade 1 Jonathan Sheppard Handicap at the Spa where she also finished second and third with Baltimore Bucko and French Light.

Baltimore Bucko gave Brion the victory in last year's Smithwick with a strong front-running performance under Thomas Garner. The win was the first Grade 1 for both Baltimore Bucko and Brion.

“It’s so crazy,” Brion said of entering three top horses for a chance at another Smithwick. “These three are very good and I really don’t know which one I’d choose. Their works last week were all really good.”

Leading Brion’s Smithwick trio is the veteran gelding Iranistan, winner of the Grade 2 Temple Gwathmey over multiple graded stakes-winner Snap Decision in April at Middleburg. The 8-year-old son of Einstein posted a close second in the 2018 running of the Smithwick for Hall of Fame conditioner Jonathan Sheppard and followed with a third in the Grade 1 New York Turf Writers Cup [now the Jonathan Sheppard Handicap] the same year.

“Iranistan is fabulous,” Brion said. “He’s been had some injuries so he’s quite lightly raced, but he’s in great form. He loves his job and loves to run and compete. He’ll show up. To beat Snap Decision, he was at the top of his game.

“He breezes just as good as the young horses do,” added Brion. “We train them similarly to the flat horses because they have to run home that last straight. He can work three quarters in 1:15 in hand. He shows no signs of backing up or slowing down.”

Iranistan did not finish in his latest outing, struggling with a jump early in the Grade 1 Iroquois on May 14 at Percy Warner where stablemate Historic Heart also did not finish.

“We didn’t really have a great day for the Iroquois,” said Brion. “Our horses were too sharp for the course and had to relax and settle. We’ll throw out that race. Both are doing good and I expect both to run really well.” 

Iranistan, who was assigned the second-heaviest weight in the field at 152 pounds, will be ridden by Jack Doyle from post 7.

Historic Heart, a 5-year-old gelded son of Fracas, will make his Saratoga debut after winning the Carolina Cup Hurdle in April at Camden. Brion said distance limitations can be blamed for his last-out troubles in the three-mile Iroquois.

“He doesn’t want three miles. He’s a sharp, speedy type and Saratoga will suit him,” said Brion. “My stable jockey [Parker Hendriks] had his choice of the three and chose to ride him, and he’s won on all three of these horses.”

Hendriks will ride Historic Heart [148 pounds] from post 4.

French Light, who finished a game runner-up in this event last year behind stablemate Baltimore Bucko, posted a dominating 5 1/4-length allowance victory going 2 3/8 miles at the Spa in 2020 before shipping to Ireland where he finished a close second in the INH Stallion Owners EBF Hurdle. The 7-year-old son of Muhtathir was last seen taking the Queens Cup on April 30 at Charlotte by three-quarters of a length after closing from last-of-4.

“He won his only start this year and runs his best races fresh,” said Brion. “He won a stake in April and he’s been training really well for this. He loves Saratoga and hopefully can finish one better than last year.” 

French Light will carry 144 as Harrison Beswick rides from post 5.

The Leslie Young-trained Pistol Whipped, who has been assigned a field-high 158 pounds, enters from a second to Snap Decision in the Grade 1 Iroquois where he briefly lost position but battled back well to secure place honors 2 1/4-lengths ahead of third-place finisher Amschel. The son of Beneficial was a four-time winner in England prior to his American debut in the Iroquois.

Young will also saddle Grade 2-winner Redicean [144 pounds] as he looks for his second American graded stakes coup. He was last seen taking the Grade 2 David Semmes Memorial on May 7 at Great Meadow. His lone victory at Saratoga came in 2019 in the restricted Jonathan Kiser Novice.

Pistol Whipped will be ridden by Nicolai DeBoinville from post 3 while Thomas Garner is tasked with the ride aboard Redicean from post 6.

Completing the field are Chief Justice [post 1, Barry Foley, 146 pounds] for trainer Cyril Murphy and the Kate Dalton-trained mare Down Royal [post 2, Bernard Dalton, 141 pounds]. 

The A.P. Smithwick is slated as Race 1 on Wednesday’s 10-race card, which also features the $125,000 Suzie O’Cain in Race 9. First post is 1:05 p.m. Eastern. 

Saratoga Live will present daily coverage and analysis of the summer meet at Saratoga Race Course on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

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