Mohaymen Easily Wins the Nashua Stakes at Aqueduct

Mohaymen, another highly regarded gray son of Tapit, will give the leading sire an early contender on the 2016 Kentucky Derby trail, after the Shadwell Stable runner won the $200,000 Nashua (G2) at Aqueduct on opening day of the fall/winter meeting. This $2,200,000 yearling purchase is also the son of graded stakes winning mare Justwhistledixie and is a half-brother to the 2013 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner, New Year’s Day.

At the start, Magna Light broke sharply and sprinted to the lead in this one-turn mile, opening up a 1½-length advantage on Jay’s Way and Flexibility, who were head and head for the second position. At this point Mohaymen was in sixth place in the middle of the track five lengths behind the leader. The first quarter went in 23.47 and after a half-mile in 46.90, Magna Light still was on the lead but Mohaymen had steadily moved up and now sat in third only a length and half behind.

After six-furlongs in 1:10.78, Magna Light was no match for Mohaymen, who easily took the lead with steady urging from his regular rider Junior Alvarado. The son of Tapit had no trouble holding off the late challenges of New York-bred Flexibility, who got up for second, and Sail Ahoy, who came up the rail to get the show spot. The final margin of victory was 1¾-lengths with a final time of 1:36.01.

Mohaymen, which means “protector” in Arabic, gave trainer Kiaran McLaughlin his fourth win in the Nashua. He previously took this stake in 2013 with Cairo Prince, 2007 with Etched, and in 2006 with Day Pass. McLaughlin also had Frosted, another gray son of Tapit, run fourth in this year’s Kentucky Derby.

McLaughlin sees a bright future for this Shadwell runner, “He's a very talented horse and I'm glad he lived up to the betting public's odds. He's got a great pedigree. It's just great to win for Shadwell Stable, Rick Nichols [General Manager of Shadwell Farm] and everybody in Lexington. I've been with them for 22 years, so it's a special win. We definitely have Derby fever. [His next race] would be the [Grade 2] Remsen [at Aqueduct] or the Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs on the same day [Saturday, November 28]."

Mohaymen now has a perfect career record of two for two. He won his maiden race at Belmont Park on September 19, as the 9-5 favorite. Today, he was also the top choice by the betting public, returning $4.20, $2.70, and $2.30. The $120,000 winner’s share of today’s purse boosts his career earnings to $165,000.