Antonucci and Arcangelo deliver timely boost to US racing with Belmont Stakes success

Joseph O’Brien secured Listed success at Longchamp on Sunday with the Christophe Soumillion-ridden American Sonja although it paled in significance to the weekend’s major international result.

The 2023 US Triple Crown finished in the early minutes of Sunday morning with a historic Belmont Stakes outcome as Jena Antonucci became the first woman to train a winner of one of the three signature races in US racing.

A tumultuous five-week period marked by the Kentucky Derby run amid a spike in equine fatalities at Churchill Downs, and a Preakness victory for the lightening rod figure that is Bob Baffert, ended on an unlikely upswing as jockey Javier Castellano guided Arcangelo to classic victory.

It was a first Belmont in 15 attempts for Castellano, just over a month after the veteran Hall of Fame Venezuelan rider secured a first “Durby” on his 16th try.

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For a trans-Atlantic sport mired in welfare and medication controversies largely of its own making, the uniformly positive headlines arising from Jena Antonucci’s landmark victory was a godsend result for a beleaguered industry.

Thirty years after Julie Krone became the first and still only woman to ride a Triple Crown race winner on Colonial Affair in the Belmont, and half a century on from Secretariat’s iconic success, Antonucci (47) supplied an unlikely but uplifting finale.

Having bypassed the Triple Crown’s first two legs, Arcangelo, a cheap $35,000 buy, built on a Grade Three success at the New York track last month. He made the most of a dream rails run into the straight and at the line he had a length-and-a-half in hand of the favourite, Forte.

Previously, 10 women had saddled Belmont runners with the best finish by the Diane Carpenter-trained Kingspot in 1988.

Antonucci, who started training in 2010 after spending time working for the renowned D Wayne Lukas, and had previously saddled just 161 career winners, with never a single Grade One runner before, defied some of US racing’s powerhouse operations when it counted.

“Just overcoming the adversities,” said an emotional Antonucci when asked about her historic achievement.

“You go through growing, you go through career, you take it on the chin, you fight for that spot and you feel you have to prove your worth. Horses don’t care who you are. They know who you are,” she added.

It might have occurred in a racing jurisdiction very much an outlier in terms of medication but the Belmont outcome was a boost internationally too considering so much reputational blowback has arisen from across the pond in recent years.

There was an inevitable political aspect to such a ground-breaking victory too.

Jessica Harrington continues to be a pioneering figure on the classic scene in Ireland. Criquette Head-Maarek landed 13 classics in her native France as well as a trio of Arc successes.

If the 30-year gap back to Krone’s Belmont remains dispiriting then Arcangelo’s victory was at the very least timely. The grey son of former world’s best Arrogate may not be finished either having landed the “Test of Champions” on just his fourth start.

“He’s just figuring it all out. He’s just a big kid,” said Antonucci.

“Javier did such a great job. There were a lot of horses taking up in the first turn and he sorted that out and got it together, and on the backside made his way up the rail. We knew we wanted to get a little jump on them. We weren’t even worried about the distance. His cruising speed is just stupid, stupid fast,” she added.

Arcangelo now disputes 8-1 favouritism with Forte and another winner on Saturday’s Belmont card, Codys Wish, for the Breeders Cup Classic in November.

‘Never give up’

It is a decade since Katherine Ritvo broke new ground in that race when scoring with Mucho Macho Man.

Asked about any message she thought Arcangelo’s Belmont might send out, Antonucci said: “Never give up and if you can’t find a seat at the table, make your own table and build your team and never give up, You are seen, people see you, just keep working your butt off.”

American Sonja was cut to 20-1 by some firms for Royal Ascot’s Coronation Stakes later this month after making most of the running in Sunday’s Prix Volterra in Paris.

O’Brien’s runner dominated under Christophe Soumillon and won by a comfortable length-and-a-quarter from Turn Cartwheels. The Harrington-trained Small Oasis chased her compatriot to the straight but faded to sixth.

American Sonja previously finished fourth to Zarinsk in the Group Three Cornelscourt Stakes at Leopardstown last month.