Endorsed takes on 'quality group' in Belmont's Champagne Stakes

Godolphin's Endorsed, coming off a victory by a neck in his debut on August 18 at Saratoga Race Course, will make both his Belmont Park and stakes debuts on Saturday in the Grade 1, $500,000 Champagne for 2-year-olds.

The Kiaran McLaughlin trainee breezed twice on Belmont's Big Sandy in September after arriving from Saratoga and will take aim at the one-turn mile with a spot in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile on the line. 

"He's doing great and everything is in good shape," McLaughlin said on Friday morning. "He looked good today and he's ready to go tomorrow. Everything is in good shape."

The Medaglia d'Oro colt drew the rail in the 10-horse Champagne field and is 7-2 on the morning line. McLaughlin said he is ready to see how Endorsed handles the increased competition level after earning an 89 Beyer Speed Figure in his win over six furlongs on a wet Saratoga main track.

"His work here was very fast and quick," McLaughlin said. "He's stepping up from a maiden race, but so are a lot of them. It's a quality group of colts and we just hope that we get lucky. It's a very important race."

Endorsed won from post 4 in a nine-horse field at Saratoga but will be breaking from the inside with jockey Joe Bravo in the irons on Saturday.

"It's not my ideal spot, but he's done everything right. It's not a big deal," McLaughlin said. "It seems like the [inside] has been good at Belmont this meet, so it might be the best place to be. But you never know. I think there's a lot of pace in this race, so he might be laying just off of them. You don't know. We'll let Joe Bravo figure out where he wants to be."

Shadwell Stable's Qurbaan will also help make Saturday a busy one for McLaughlin, with the 5-year-old Speightstown horse set to compete in the Grade 1 Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland, a "Win and You're In" race for the Breeders' Cup Mile.

Qurbaan shipped in from Saratoga, where he breezed five furlongs on September 21 on the Oklahoma turf track before putting in his latest work at the Greentree Training Center on September 28. Qurbaan will be making his first start since winning the Grade 2 Bernard Baruch on September 3 at the Spa.

"We were thrilled with his Bernard Baruch and he came out of it in great shape," McLaughlin said. "We're excited about it. It rained hard there last night, so the [turf] might be soft. But it would be huge to win that race."

Peter Deutsch's Take Charge Paula came out of her sixth-place finish in the Grade 3 Charles Town Oaks on September 22 in good order but was undecided on the next spot for the 3-year-old daughter of Take Charge Indy.

Before running at Charles Town, Take Charge Paula ran third in the Jersey Girl on June 10 at Belmont and followed with a seventh-place finish in the Grade 3 Victory Ride on the same track July 8.

"She came out of it in good shape," McLaughlin said about her last race. "She didn't run that great but we're not sure what we are going to do next with her at the moment."