Half-Brother To Irish War Cry, Irish Strait Earns Black Type In Red Bank

The 5-year-old half-brother to Wood Memorial winner Irish War Cry, Isabelle de Tomaso’s homebred Irish Strait earned his first graded stakes victory Saturday at Monmouth Park. Guided by Orlando Bocachica, Irish Strait took the lead immediately out of the gate in the G3 Red Bank, holding it all the way around the course to win by about 2 1/2 lengths on the wire. Trained by Graham Motion, the son of English Channel covered a mile on the good turf in 1:35.66.

“I didn’t know that’s what he (jockey Bocachica) was planning, but it was a smart move that proved right,” Motion said. “This horse has really improved this year.  I know he hadn’t won yet until today, but those were some very tough races and good ones from him. This might be his optimal distance, but you never know, we may try him longer, especially if he keeps improving as the year progresses.”

Irish Strait, off at odds of 9-1, took the lead right out of the starting gate, pulling away by 1 1/4 lengths over Rose Briar and Schoolofhardrocks. After measured fractions :24.27 and :48.98, Bocachica asked the gelding for a burst of speed at the five-sixteenths pole, gaining a three-length advantage on his closest rivals.

Having gotten the jump on both Synchrony and Rose Brier, Irish Strait was simply ridden out through the stretch to maintain his advantage, crossing under the wire about 2 1/2 lengths in front. Synchrony was a clear second over Rose Brier, while Can’thelpbelieving came from well of the pace to finish fourth.

“My thinking was to take him to the lead because that’s where he runs his best race,” said Bocachica. “Once we got to the lead, I tried to slow down the pace. He stayed relaxed the whole way and once I asked him to run, he went so I knew they were going to have to try and catch me.”

Bred in New Jersey by his owner, Irish Strait had previously earned a third-place finish in the G3 Tampa Bay Stakes in February of 2017. The Red Bank was his second foray into graded company, and the improving gelding recorded his fifth lifetime victory from 17 starts. Irish Strait boasts earnings of over $230,000.

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