Brother Bird, a Yonaguska colt and a half-brother to this year’s Kentucky Derby (G1) winner and Preakness Stakes (G1) runner-up Mine That Bird, finished a very green third in his career debut Saturday – a 6-furlong $55K maiden race for 2-year-olds at Saratoga Race Course.
Here’s the chart call:
BROTHER BIRD was reserved early, lodged a three wide move to reach contention at the quarter pole and flattened out.
Here’s what trainer Todd Pletcher said in a David Grening Daily Racing Form interview a couple days before the race:
He’s been training steadily, but he gives us the impression that he’s going to want more distance and might need a race or two to get it all together. We’ve done everything we can do in the mornings, so it’s time to go over there and start the process.
Although Brother Bird did not win, he did finish a respectable third and it is evident that he will need more time to blossom into a promising thoroughbred. However, Brother Bird is getting an earlier start than some previous Cherokee Run sire line colts.
Musket Man (Yonaguska-Fortuesque by Fortunate Prospect) did not go to the track until October of 2008 when he won first out in a Maiden Special Weight at Belmont Park. Musket Man would go on to win this year’s Tampa Bay Derby (G3), Illinois Derby (G2), and finish third in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness.
The Pamplemousse (Kafwain-Comfort Zone by Rubiano) also made his first start in October of last year where he finished fourth in a Maiden Special Weight at Santa Anita Park. In November, The Pamplemousse made his second start finishing third in a Maiden Special Weight at Hollywood Park. Finally, in December, The Pamplemousse broke his maiden in a Maiden Special Weight at Hollywood Park. The Pamplemousse would go on to win this year’s San Rafael (G3) and Sham Stakes (G3). The Pamplemousse was one of the favored horses going into the Santa Anita Derby before an injury knocked him out of the Derby and off of the Triple Crown trail.
It is still early and only time will tell if Brother Bird will have an impact on the Triple Crown trail.
So far, he’s off to a decent start.
The comments above may have come from last years blog, but considering the showing at Saratoga yesterday, it seems that Musket Man and Brother Bird may have just reached their ful stride.
ReplyDeleteI would like to hear more about your assessments of the Cherokee Run sire line. I'm stationed closed to the University of Arizona. We plan on taking a mare to Chelokee next year.
Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading the blog. I really like the Cherokee Run sire line and think that it is an important line to follow.
Your question prompted me to write an update to an orignal blog I wrote about the Cherokee Run sire line on July 3, 2009.
Good luck breeding your mare to Chelokee. If I could get the name of the mare, I'd like to do a hypomating on them.