Brilliant Speed set to debut in the Appleton Stakes for the new campaign
Brilliant Speed, a home bred for Live Oak Plantation 4-year-old colt is ready to make his return to races and the seasonal debut in the Grade 3, $100,000 Appleton Stakes over at Gulfstream Park’s turf course on 31 March, 2012.
Thomas Albertrani trained colt, capped off his 2011 campaign with a third place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf to winner St Nicholas Abbey, over a distance of one and a half mile at Churchill Downs’ turf course on 5 November, 2011.
The Florida bred son of Dynaformer, out of mare Speed Succeeds by Gone West, Brilliant Speed last spring participated in two legs of the Triple Crown. He finished seventh in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, over a distance 1 ¼ miles to winner Animal Kingdom and
then turned in a much better performance in the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes at about 1 ½ miles, as he closed in sharp in the stretch to grab the third finish to winner Ruler On Ice.
Recently, Brilliant Speed has been training at Palm Meadows for his return, and on 13 March, he turned in a work of five furlongs in 1 minute and 3 4/5 seconds ahead of the 1 mile long Appleton Stakes.
“He’s been training very well,” Albertrani said. “If you remember him last year, he was always a little light framed. He’s matured and muscled up more as an older horse. He’s been training very forwardly.”
Brilliant Speed turned in two notable performances last year, when prior to the Kentucky Derby he notched a win in the Grade 1 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes. Going over a distance of 1 1/8 miles, Brilliant Speed snatched victory from Twinspired and King Congie,
who finished second and third, respectively.
His other win of the season came in the Grade 3 Saranac Stakes at Saratoga, where he went 1 1/8 miles on turf and defeated Queen’splatekitten in second and King Congie finished third.
His season did culminate with the strong finish in the Breeders’ Cup Turf, but his second place finish in the Grade 1 Jamaica Handicap set the tone for the Breeders’ Cup.
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