Race Day

Brave Monarch worked five furlongs out of the gate in 1.04:00 (16 of 17) on Thursday at Palm Meadows. Graham said, "We accomplished our goal of getting another breeze from the gate with him, and he is ready to run. He was the better or the duo that worked from the gate. I generally give my horses at least one sprinting race before stretching out around two turns, and this may sound unorthodox, but I want to go two turns with him first out. He doesn't have a ton of early speed, and I'm worried we won't get much out of his debut if we go short. He's quite fit, and I think he will benefit from added distance. Maria's Mon progeny tend to to their best running around two turns."

Accordingly, we are pointing for a maiden special weight going 1 1/16 miles on the turf on Friday, February 18th at Tampa Bay Towns. If this race overfills or is not used, we'll use the maiden special weight going 1 mile on the turf on March 4th at Tampa Bay Downs as our backup.

Workout

Brave Monarch worked at Palm Meadows this moring going 5F (Gate) on the dirt in 1:04:00 16 of 17

Updates

Brave Monarch is scheduled to work out of the gate on the dirt within the next few days at Palm Meadows in preparation for his racing debut. Terry, Tom Bellhouse, and Erin saw him train over the weekend. He’s carrying good weight and seems to move well over the dirt at Palm Meadows. Graham said, “This horse has done well for me. I’ve had a few Maria’s Mons over the years that remind me quite a bit of this horse. They trained decently over the dirt, but did their best running on the turf. When the new Tampa Bay Downs condition book comes out, I’d like to take a look at the maiden special weights there. You run for less money than at Gulfstream, but the competition is much easier. I want to give him every opportunity to run well first out. I think we’ll see him in the gate toward the end of this month

The Defense Rests worked three furlongs in 39:66 (11 of 12) on Monday at Belmont. “I told my rider to go nice and easy since it was his first work over this surface,” said Mike Hushion. “He is very healthy and moving well. We’ll keep him on a weekly breeze schedule moving forward.” A March return in a maiden special weight at Aqueduct remains viable.

Phosphorescent remains on target to ship to Florida to resume training on or around March 1st.

Mr. Fantasy had another week of turnout on Dr. Baker’s farm. Clinically, there is very little swelling and inflammation in his ankles, which is a very good sign. He remains on target to ship to Florida on or around March 1st in anticipation of going back into training about April 1st.

Workout

The Defense Rests worked out at Belmont this morning going 3F in 39:66 11 of 12

Workout Update

Brave Monarch worked four furlongs in 53:90 (14 of 18) in company with two other Graham Motion trainees on the turf on Wednesday at Palm Meadows. "Don't be alarmed by the slow time," said Graham. "This was quite a good breeze. He worked in company with two other maidens who have been quite competitive against maiden special weight competition, and he outworked them. I didn't want them to go too fast early. We emphasize a strong finish, and that's just what he did. This colt has really taken to the turf. I plan to work him two more times before running, once on the dirt out of the gate, and the other on the turf."
We'll likely see our grey son of Maria's Mon in the starting gate in the next Gulfstream condition book. This puts his debut toward the end of this month or early March, depending on race schedules. We'll firm up a date within the next few weeks.

Updates

Brave Monarch worked four furlongs in 53:90 (14 of 18) on the turf this morning (February 2nd) at Palm Meadows. Graham was traveling today and played phone tag with Jeff Lifson for most of the day regarding our colt. We’ll have work feedback tomorrow morning and will pass it along to you

The Defense Rests is galloping daily and is due to work as soon as we get some nicer weather in New York. The recent icy and snowy weather has wrecked havoc on training schedules. Mike reports that has shown no signs of colic and is completely healthy. He feels good and is on the bridle in his gallops. Now all we need is Mother Nature to cooperate so we can get him ready to run.

Phosphorescent remains turned out as we enter the final weeks of his recovery. We now plan to ship him to David McKathan’s farm in Ocala for about 60 days before he returns to Lupe’s barn at Parx. We’ve partnered with McKathan for several years and he is an excellent horseman. He breaks and trains all of our young horses before they ship to the racetrack. We also have many Partners down in Ocala during the winter months, so if you are in the area, you will have the opportunity to see him train. Upon arrival, he’ll walk for a few days before heading to the track and jogging. If all goes well, he will return to Lupe’s around May 1st. When he arrives back to Lupe, he will have a solid foundation underneath him as we look forward to a summer turf campaign.

Mr. Fantasy had an uneventful week of turnout on Dr. Baker’s farm. He remains on schedule to resume training around April 1st, but we plan to ship him south around March 1st and get him into the sunshine. We now plan to ship him to David McKathan’s farm in Ocala for about 60 days before he returns to Mike’s barn in New York. We’ve partnered with McKathan for several years and he is an excellent horseman. He breaks and trains all of our young horses before they ship to the racetrack. We also have many Partners down in Ocala during the winter months, so if you are in the area, you will have the opportunity to see him train. Upon arrival, he will be turned out for a few weeks before starting light training. If all goes well, he will return to Mike’s barn around June 1st. When he arrives back to Mike, he will have a solid foundation underneath him

Workout

Brave Monach work ed out this morning at Palm Meadows going 4F on the turf in 53:90 14 of 18