Just call him "Mr. October."
While they may not name a candy bar after him, like a certain New York Yankees slugger of the past, trainer Chad Brown surely has a flair for the dramatic once the cool, fall weather arrives.
The Saturday, Oct. 23 card at Belmont Park provided Brown with another opportunity to work his October magic as he sent out Klaravich Stables' Public Sector to capture the $400,000 Hill Prince Stakes (G2T) for 3-year-olds on turf.
"Mr. October," Brown said. "I'll take it. Anyone who is named Mr. October is doing well."
For the four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer, it was his ninth graded stakes win in October, joining a stellar list that includes the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Dixiana (G1T), Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (G1T), Champagne Stakes (G1), First Lady Stakes Presented by UK Healthcare (G1T), Beldame Stakes (G2), Sands Point Stakes (G2T), Knickerbocker Stakes (G3) and the Fasig-Tipton Waya Stakes (G3T).
Crunch the numbers a little more and Brown has prevailed in seven of the New York Racing Association's 16 graded stakes in October.
Admittedly, there's also some considerable status in being Mr. November, especially with the Breeders' Cup on next month's calendar, but success in October surely beats prosperity in the early months of the year.
"I'd rather be Mr. October than Mr. April," Brown said.
Another apropos moniker for Brown would be Mr. Saturday Afternoon as the Hill Prince victory marked the ninth consecutive Saturday the 42-year-old trainer has won a graded stakes at a NYRA track.
Public Sector was certainly a worthy candidate to extend Brown's fall romp to the winner's circle, as the 3-year-old son of Kingman turned in yet another gem in a career full of solid performances.
In his nine starts, the grade 2-winning Public Sector has five wins and three seconds. The only blemish on his resume was a dull 12th last year in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Presented by Coolmore America (G1T), a race he exited with a fever.
"The next day after the Breeders' Cup, he had a high fever. He was very sick," Brown said. "I have no doubt that he went into the race with shipping fever."
Public Sector was in top form for Saturday's 1 1/8-mile test as he posted a third straight win by catching Repole Stable's runner-up Never Surprised in the final furlong and serving up an encore of the 1-2 finish in the Saranac Stakes (G3T), which was also contested on, yes, a Saturday.
The victory came in Public Sector's first start at a distance beyond 1 1/16 miles and convinced Brown that the colt will have a bright future at age 4 at longer and more challenging distances.
"I've seen this horse develop all summer," Brown said. "As we've seen with some horses, with this horse as the summer went on, he started to show me he could stretch out and become a mile-and-a-quarter horse like many of our horses who have stretched out over time with maturity and experience. This guy's in that group."
While 1 1/4 miles may be in his future during 2022, up next will be a trip to the West Coast for the Nov. 27 Hollywood Derby (G1T) at 1 1/8-mile distance which, of course, will be contested on a Saturday at Del Mar.
"Win or lose, as long as he ran well today, we thought he could sort of follow the path of (2020 Hollywood Derby winner) Domestic Spending for his last start of the year," Brown said.
Bred by The Kathryn Stud out of the Montjeu mare Parle Moi, he was bought on behalf of Klaravich Stables by Mike Ryan for the equivalent of $217,823 from the Clearwater Stud consignment at the 2019 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale. He is Parle Moi's fourth foal and first stakes winner. She also has a Golden Horn yearling colt.
Never Surprised, a Constitution colt trained by Todd Pletcher, set the pace in the Hill Prince through fractions of :24.35 and :49.71 and enjoyed a 2 1/2-length lead after six furlongs in 1:14.13 over firm turf. By mid-stretch, he was still ahead by a length under Kendrick Carmouche, but at that point, Irad Ortiz Jr. had Public Sector in top gear. Third most of the way, Ortiz angled the 3-1 second choice ($8.60) out to the four path in the stretch and wore down the leader, triumphing by a neck in 1:48.68 for the third Hill Prince victory for both Ortiz and Brown.
"It was really a great ride by Irad. The horse is tremendously talented and he had a nice, clean trip but Irad gave it to him," said Brown, who was also fourth with Sifting Sands and 10th with Founder in the field of 11 3-year-olds. "He should be proud of this ride, it was a very skilled, experienced, focused effort by him and the horse."
Never Surprised, a 7-1 shot who was second to Public Sector by a length in the Saranac, was runner-up Saturday by 1 3/4 lengths over Red Oak Stable's It Can Be Done, a Temple City gelding trained by Gregg Sacco who showed at 48-1 odds.
"The horse ran very well. I'm really pleased with the way he ran," Carmouche said about Never Surprised. "Todd had him ready and I just tried to give him the best ride that I could."
Soldier Rising, the 8-5 favorite after seconds in the Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T) and the Jockey Club Invitational Stakes, was 10th early and rallied mildly for fifth.
