THE other Grade 1 on the Belmont card was the Manhattan Handicap over 10 furlongs on turf and it went to Instilled Regard, a Chad Brown-trained, five-year-old son of Arch who was recording the first Grade 1 victory of his career.

Blocked behind horses coming into the straight as stable companion Rockemperor surged to the lead, Instilled Regard and Irad Oritz Jr found daylight following Rockemperor’s path and the colt accelerated between horses, posting a 22.31sec final two furlongs to nail Rockemperor by a neck. Sadler’s Joy, second last year, took third.

“When I asked him for it, he gave it. I had to work so hard but when I tipped him out, he responded so well,” Irad Ortiz jr said.

“It’s unfortunate one of them had to lose. In the end, Instilled Regard just made the last move of the chess match. I’m so proud of the horse. He keeps getting better,” Chad Brown said as Instilled Regard’s victory gave him his sixth victory in the Manhattan.

Juddmonte Farms’ homebred Tacitus got a deserved win in the Grade 2 Suburban over 10 furlongs, winning by eight and three-quarter lengths. Last year’s Belmont Stakes winner Sir Winston trailed in last.

Without a win since taking the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby and Wood Memorial Stakes in the spring of 2019, the son of Tapit and champion mare Close Hatches was placed in his five other starts at three including the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, Belmont Stakes, Travers Stakes and Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes.

He made his four-year-old debut in February, finishing fifth in the Saudi Cup, then returned to run fourth in the May 2nd Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap.

BOB Baffert added another quality three-year-old to his classic band, depleted by the loss of Nadal and Charlatan last month, when the Uncle Mo colt Uncle Chuck won the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Derby, going away by four lengths in the colours of his joint owner Mike Pegram.

It was just the second start for Uncle Chuck, who cruised to a seven-length victory in his career debut in a mile maiden on June 12th at Santa Anita.

“That was good. We’re just learning more and more about Uncle Chuck.

“He’s still pretty green, but he’s got gears,” Baffert said.

THE split samples on two Bob Baffert-trained horses who ran at Oaklawn Park in early May, Charlatan and the filly Gamine, have both returned as positive for small degrees of lidocaine, a local anesthetic.

In a statement Baffert’s lawyer said the trainer would be contesting the positive tests, on the grounds that the positives came from accidental contamination.

This second incidence of a failed test involving a high-profile Baffert-trained horse after it was revealed last year that Justify had tested positive for scopolamine, a drug that can improve horses’ breathing and heart-rate, after winning the Santa Anita Derby in 2018.

Baffert’s explanation was that the trace amounts of the drug were the result of environmental contamination caused by the presence of Jimson Weed in feed, a naturally growing substance where hay and straw are grown in California.

The California Horse Racing Board did not pursue the case.

The statement on Baffert’s behalf by attorney Craig Robertson claimed that an employee handling both horses caused the Oaklawn contamination.

Broke his pelvis

“The employee previously broke his pelvis and had been suffering from back pain over the two days leading up to May 2nd. As a result, he wore a Salonpas patch on his back that he personally applied.

“That brand of patch contains small amounts of lidocaine. It is believed that lidocaine from that patch was innocently transferred from the employee’s hands to the horses through the application of tongue ties by the employee that was handling both horses leading up to May 2nd.”

The tests revealed minute traces of the drug but still well above the permittted thresholds.