Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Graded winners reboot careers
ELMONT, N.Y. – On the comeback trail from disappointing 3-year-old campaigns after winning graded stakes at age 2, Complexity and Instagrand both find themselves in the same second-level allowance race on Sunday’s closing-day card at Belmont Park.
The 6 1/2-furlong race, which goes as race 3, drew a field of eight.
Complexity, trained by Chad Brown for Seth Klarman’s Klaravich Stables, won the Grade 1 Champagne here in October 2018. After finishing 10th in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, Complexity had an ankle chip that needed to be removed.
He was ambitiously spotted in the Grade 1 Woody Stephens for his return and finished last of 11. After another setback, Complexity is making just his second start of the year in this spot. In addition to having to square off against Instagrand, Complexity has the rail draw and will likely catch a sloppy track.
“It’s time to get him running again,” Brown said. “He didn’t have the year we thought he’d have. We’re starting over. I’d rather not have a lot of things – the weather, the draw, and how difficult it came up – but what are you going to do?”
Instagrand won the first two starts of his career by a combined 20 1/4 lengths, including the Grade 2 Best Pal at Del Mar in the summer of 2018. He was put away for the rest of the year with the hopes of getting on the Triple Crown trail.
Instagrand, owned by Larry Best’s OXO Stable, finished third in the Grade 3 Gotham at Aqueduct and third in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby, ruling out a run in the Kentucky Derby. On Derby Day, he finished eighth of 13 in the Pat Day Mile and emerged from the race needing a piece of a hind sesamoid surgically removed.
He was prescribed 30 days off, but Best gave him 60. He returned to the barn of trainer Don Chatlos – who took over horses Best previously had with Jerry Hollendorfer – and began breezing late in the meet at Saratoga.
Joel Rosario will ride Instagrand from post 2.
“Rosario got a good work out of the gate in 58 and change with him, and then I worked him three-quarters on the training track and he got a good blow out of that,” Chatlos said. “Seems tight.”
Chatlos is hoping that with
Instagrand’s speed he won’t have to deal with any mud being kicked back in his face.
“He’s fast,” Chatlos said. “He should get out of there – won’t take a bunch of mud in the face. Until they do it, they haven’t done it.”
Instagrand and the rest of Chatlos’s stable will be shipped to Southern California on Nov. 3.
Tiz the Law working along
Tiz the Law had his second straight strong work since winning the Grade 1 Champagne
on Oct. 5, going five furlongs in 1:00.78 on Friday morning over the Belmont Park main track. Tiz the Law is preparing for the Grade 2, $300,000 Kentucky Jockey Club on Nov. 30 at Churchill Downs.
Tiz the Law, under Manny Franco, started eight to 10 lengths behind stablemates Im the Captain Now and L’Indiscret. He gradually gained on his pacesetters, tipping out into the three path and catching Im the Captain Now on the wire, covering four furlongs in 48.13 seconds. He was credited with his gallop-out time of 1:00.78 for his work.
“It looked like he was just cantering,” said Robin Smullen, assistant to trainer Barclay Tagg. Smullen communicated with Franco via two-way radio. “I told him just put your hands down and let him gallop out as he wants.”
Pletcher pleased with Bellavia
Bellavia, a 2-year-old by Honor Code making his first start for trainer Todd Pletcher following a private sale in August, won a six-furlong maiden race by two lengths Wednesday at Belmont Park. He covered six furlongs in 1:11.45 and earned a 77 Beyer Speed Figure.
“It was good. I was happy with it,” Pletcher said. “Didn’t break great, kind of got stuck on the inside there and I thought he handled that pretty professionally, and he won with something in reserve.”
Pletcher said he wanted more time to think about what Bellavia’s next start would be, but that it most likely would come in South Florida.
Bellavia was previously trained by Jena Antonucci.
◗ Following Sunday’s card, there will be four dark days before racing on this circuit moves to Aqueduct starting Friday.