Jim McCue/Maryland Jockey Club
With three runner-up finishes in stakes races already under his belt, including two graded events, Kaleem Shah’s Brigand won his first black type victory in the $100,000 City Of Laurel Stakes for three-year-olds run at seven furlongs Saturday at Laurel Park.
Becoming the first horse trainer Bob Baffert has ever run at Laurel, Brigand shipped to Maryland from his Belmont home base for a first stakes appearance since finishing second in the Mike Lee at Belmont in June. In the interim Brigand had won two of four starts by open lengths against state-breds at the allowance level.
Sent off as the 9-5 second choice with Laurel’s leading rider Abel Castellano aboard, Brigand made the lead early from his inside post, pressed by the speedy Service for Ten and carving out fractions of 23.41 and 46.74.
Brigand outlasted Service of Ten, and the favorite (and potential closer) Hardened Wildcat did not fire. Bellefire, however, made a bold run down the middle of the track in late stretch, but could not catch Brigand, who finished a length to the good in a final time of 1:23.08. Javerre finished third another length back.
“The instructions were to break good, not hustle too much and let him do his own thing,” Castellano said. “We were pressured the whole backside but he relaxed. When we got to the half mile pole he changed the lead, he got relaxed and comfortable, he was going good and I knew I was going to have the horse left. That is a nice horse.”
Kaleem Shah, who lives in nearby Vienna, VA, said, “Bob chose this spot. He told me this was a good spot. He thought he would win and that was good enough for me.”
A son of Flatter, Brigand made headlines last year when he brought the top price of $925,000 at the OBS March sale. Making all three juvenile starts on synthetic at Hollywood Park and Del Mar, he won his debut and finished in the Grade 3 Hollywood Juvenile.
In four stakes appearances in nine starts this year, including the City of Laurel, Brigand twice ran second to eventual Grade 1 winners: The Lumber Guy (winner of the Grade 1 Vosburgh) in the Grade 2 Jerome at Aqueduct in April, and Willy Beamin (winner of the Grade 1 Foxwoods King’s Bishop) in the Mike Lee at Belmont in June. His record now stands at 4-5-0 from 12 starts with $288,820 in earnings.
Bred by Berkshire Stud in Pine Plains where he was foaled, Brigand is out of Silence Please, an unraced Quiet American mare. Four foals (all New York-breds) have won, including Sky Music, a stakes-winning colt by Sky Mesa ($124,900). Her 2-year-old colt by Bluegrass Cat named Everydoghashisday has placed three times in seven starts. Silence Please also has a yearling filly by Bernstein, a weanling full sister to Brigand and was bred this year to Mineshaft.
