Almost 40 years into breeding and racing Thoroughbreds and standing some of the country’s top stallions at his Uxbridge, Ontario farm, John Brnjas watched his filly SIMPLY IN FRONT take down the biggest purse he has ever won in the game.
Watching from Woodbine racetrack, Brnjas saw his 2022 yearling purchase Simply in Front rally from a slow start to win the $1,767,100 AGS Music City Stakes (G2) at Kentucky Downs on Saturday, picking up a cheque for $1,176,600 (US). The Music City was one of six stakes races at Kentucky Downs that offered a $2 million (approx.) purse. The track has a short, boutique meet with huge purses for its turf races on the undulating course.
Simply in Front, bought by Richard Hogan as agent for Brnjas for $115,000 from the 2022 Keeneland September yearling sale, was only 6-to-1 after dropping very late from 18-to-1 for the 6 1/2 furlong turf dash, her first sprint race since she was second in her debut at Woodbine last August.
The daughter of Summer Front – Complicated by Blame, was second in the Grade 1 Natalma last year for trainer Pat Dixon and his Woodbine team. This year the filly has been in Kentucky with Eddie Kenneally where she won an optional race at Churchill Downs in June and she was back at Woodbine on July 27 when second to Time to Dazzle in the Grade 3 Ontario Colleen Stakes.
In the Music City, winning jockey Luis Saez brought Simply in Front, who was coming from last, wide into the stretch for the cavalry charge to the wire and was able to get up in the final strides to prevail in a final time of 1:16 for 6½ furlongs over a firm course.
Trainer Eddie Kenneally was rewarded for his confidence in the filly.
“The filly is getting good right now,“ said Kenneally, who also won Thursday’s Jeff Ruby One Dreamer with Safeen. “We liked her coming in here, we liked her cutting back to 6 ½. I knew she would like this new setup here, Kentucky Downs. She hadn’t run here before but I knew she would like it. Luis rode her with patience. There was some speed in the race. It set up nicely for us. She came home really strong.”
“(She broke) really slow,” Saez said. “She kind of fell asleep a little bit there. But we know they have a lot of speed and she always came with a big turn of foot, and she did today. Today she ran a big race.”
Prior to Simply in Front’s million-dollar score, Brnjas had won a pair of editions of the Grade 1 Northern Dancer Stakes, worth $300,000, with Johnny Bear, trained by his late daughter Ashlee.
Simply in Front, bred by William Harrigan and Mike Pietriangelo, is a half-sister to graded stakes winner Honor D Lady, stakes winner Churchtown and recent Saratoga two-year-old winner And One More Time, trained by Mark Casse.
Deeper in the family are many Odgen Mills Phipps stars including Simply In Front’s third dam EDUCATED RISK, a Grade 1 winner and her half-sister, Grade 1 winner INSIDE INFORMATION.
