Monmouth roundup: Adhamo wins 1st Grade 1 in United Nations

Trainer Chad Brown won four consecutive graded stakes on the Haskell Stakes undercard to tie a record set by Todd Pletcher when Adhamo defeated stablemate Tribhuvan and eight other top turf runners in the Grade 1, $600,000 United Nations Stakes on Saturday at Monmouth Park.

Pletcher won five races on the 2016 Haskell card but not four straight stakes, as was the case with Brown, who also won an allowance race earlier on the card.

Adhamo, who had been third and second in two previous Grade 1 stakes, finally broke through for his top-level score. The 4-year-old colt owned by Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb and partners, came from off the pace as the 9-5 favorite to run down tiring stablemate Tribhuvan, the 2021 winner of the United Nations. Locally based Epic Bromance, who was sent off at 72-1 and was the longest shot on the tote board, was 1½ lengths back in second. Temple took third, another head back.

“He’s been a little unlucky this year.,” Brown said of Adhamo. “He’s still a little bit of a work in progress. I’m still trying to figure out what his best distance is, and ground and such. I was pretty confident going in to today that if he was able to get out in the clear and with a little bit extra ground to work with that he could run down a horse as good as Tribhuvan, and he did. He’s a pretty talented horse. We’re still figuring the horse out.

“(Jockey) Flavien Prat worked out a beautiful, patient trip. It’s not like he had a fast pace to run into today either, so he earned this win today.”

Prat rode four straight graded stakes winners on the undercard.

Adhamo’s final time for the 1 3/8 miles was 2:12.60 over firm turf. He paid $5.60 for a $2 win bet.

In the other supporting stakes on the Haskell Stakes card:

$400,000 Monmouth Cup (G3)

Highly Motivated and Pipeline, both from the powerhouse barn of four-time Eclipse Award winning-trainer Chad Brown, finished one-two, respectively, in the Monmouth Cup as Highly Motivated established a short-lived new Monmouth Park track record for 1 1/8 miles.

The 4-year-old Highly Motivated, owned by Klaravich Stables and ridden by Prat, rated off the pace of his stablemate and then made a sweeping move leaving the backstretch to run by stablemate Pipeline, owned by John D. Gunther and Eurowest Bloodstock, in the lane and prevail by 1¾ lengths in 1:46.53 on a fast track. Informative took third, another 2¾ lengths behind.

Spend A Buck set the old track record for the distance in 1985. Cyberknife, trained by Brad Cox, set a new record shortly after Highly Motivated's race, winning the $1 million Haskell Stakes (G1), stopping the timer in 1:46.24 for the nine furlongs.

The win was the first in a graded stakes for Highly Motivated, who competed on the 2021Triple Crown trail to no avail. Brown sent him to the sidelines to find his legs again, according to Brown, who added that it’s taken this long for the horse to realize his potential.

Highly Motivated is by Into Mischief and with the win upped his record to 4-2-1 in nine career efforts. Sent off at 4-5, he returned $3.60 to win.

$400,000 Molly Pitcher Stakes (G3)

Klaravich Stables’ multiple graded stakes winning Search Results  asserted herself as one of the best in the Filly & Mare division with a dominating performance in the Molly Pitcher Stakes as she powered through the lane for a three-length victory.

The 4-year-old filly took the lead in the far turn and then sailed clear to the wire to cover the 1 1/16th-mile on a fast track,

$201,000 Matchmaker Stakes (G3)

Lemista, who was a multiple graded stakes winner in Ireland before owner Peter Brant purchased her and brought her stateside in 2021, captured her first North American win and graded stakes win in North America with a gutsy effort in Matchmaker Stakes

Lemista rated off the pace in the 1 1/8 miles turf race, took the lead heading for home, and dug in late to repel a charge from her fast-closing stablemate Fluffy Socks and cross the wire a half-length in front. Vigilante’s Way finished took third by a neck.

Lemista covered the nine furlongs over firm turf in 1:47:07. Dispatched as the fourth betting choice in the field of eight fillies and mare, she paid $11.20 for a $2 win bet.

The top three finishers will be awarded a season to WinStar stallions Global Campaign, Tom’s d’Etat, and Improbable.

$100,000 Wolf Hill Stakes

Breakthrough, who is owned by RT Racing Stable and trained by Juan Avila, broke through in the listed Wolf Hill Stakes to win the first stakes race of his career and post the upset under Samy Camacho.

Breakthrough, a 4-year-old gelded son of 2016 Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist, covered the 5½ furlongs over firm turf in 1:00.99 to finish a half- length in front of Belgrano in the eight-horse field. Admiral Abe was third, another 1½ lengths behind. Graded stakes winner The Critical Way, who won the Wolf Hill last year, finished fifth as the even money favorite.

Breakthrough, who won his second straight 5½-furlong sprint on the Monmouth Park turf, returned $34.80 to win. He improved his record to 4-3-0 in 13 starts.