Charlie Appleby-Trained Ottoman Fleet To Defend Title In Saturday's Fort Marcy

Godolphin’s Ottoman Fleet and jockey Richard Mullen will look to defend their title in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Fort Marcy, a nine-furlong inner turf test for older horses, at Belmont at the Big A.

Trained by Charlie Appleby, the 5-year-old Sea The Stars gelding enjoyed a perfect trip under Mullen in this event last year over firm footing at Belmont Park, saving ground in fifth position before surging up the rail to score by 1 3/4-lengths.

“He's a horse that likes to run at a decent gallop and they went a nice pace,” recalled Mullen. “I got a nice position early on going into the first turn and I was able to drop in to the rail. Having watched a lot of races here, I noticed they tend to sway off the fence [turning for home].

“I could just see them drifting off the rail and that was the opportunity, but you have to have the horse,” added Mullen. “You can only make those moves when you've got as much horse as I had underneath me. He's a horse that travels extremely well and has that turn-of-foot, so I knew I'd be in and out of that gap pretty quickly. He was full-of-run, quickened nicely and put the race to bed. It was a fantastic win.”

On Saturday, Mullen will ride in New York for the first time since the Grade 2 Bowling Green on July 30 at Saratoga Race Course where he was unseated from Rebel’s Romance, who clipped heels with Tawny Port. Mullen sustained a broken collarbone, thumb, ribs, three fractured vertebrae, and a punctured lung in the accident. He was transported to Albany Medical Center and eventually returned to England to start his rehabilitation at Peter O’Sullevan House, which is sponsored by the Injured Jockeys Fund, before continuing his comeback in Dubai.

He returned to action over the winter in the UAE, picking up his first victory since being sidelined by guiding Caram’bar to a win on December 1 at Al Ain Racecourse.

“You're always wondering when the first one will come along, and I was fortunate that it came pretty quick. I wouldn't have got back without the support I had. I can't thank NYRA enough for their help, the paramedics at Saratoga and the medical staff at Albany,” Mullen said. “Most importantly, I have to thank His Highness Sheikh Mohammed, Charlie and the whole Godolphin operation because they supported me from when I was back home and into rehabilitation in Dubai - and my family were hugely supportive as well.

“I probably caused a lot of people a lot of heartache, but that stubbornness of jockeys comes into play as well with trying to get back. We don't like being on the sidelines and I'm no exception. Unfortunately, I don't bounce like I used to,” added Mullen, with a laugh.

Mullen also credited a positive attitude for helping him get back to winning ways in short order.

“I think it was mentally more challenging than the physical side. Luckily, I didn't need surgery,” Mullen said. “The people at the Peter O'Sullevan House did a fantastic job. I was there for 3-to-4 weeks to start the rehabilitation and then I flew back to the heat and sunshine of Dubai to continue my rehabilitation out there.

“I was back riding out at the end of October and back on the racetrack in November,” continued Mullen. “It was pretty remarkable because the doctors said I wouldn't sit on a horse until February, but jockeys don't take orders too kindly and I was adamant I would be back before Christmas.”

In February, Mullen captured Abu Dhabi's Group 1 HH The President Cup for the fifth time, guiding Rb Kingmaker to victory in the one of the world's richest events for purebred Arabians - offering a purse of DH 4.5 million [USD$1.225 million].

“I've won that five times, it's been a lucky race for me. It was just nice to get back into the swing of things after what happened. It was a pretty successful winter," said Mullen, who rode Reynaldothewizard to victory in the 2013 Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen at Meydan Racecourse.

Last year, Ottoman Fleet won the Group 3 Earl of Sefton at Newmarket en route to his Fort Marcy coup and the talented gelding has followed the same route this year by taking the nine-furlong Earl of Sefton by one length over good going on April 17. That effort came after a brief freshening following a three-race winter campaign at Meydan that saw him chase home his victorious stablemate Measured Time twice when third in the Group 2 Al Rashidiya in December and second in the Group 1 Jebel Hatta in January. Ottoman Fleet completed his Dubai campaign with an off-the-board effort in the Group 2 Singspiel in February.

“He had a solid campaign in Dubai and ran Measured Time - who is a pretty smart horse and you'd expect to see in Saratoga in a Grade 1 - pretty close,” said the 48-year-old native of London, England. “His form is always best fresh, so his last run in Dubai you could put a line through it. They took him home and freshened him up and you saw what he did in the Earl of Sefton.”

Mullen said he is hopeful he can put together a similar trip for Ottoman Fleet as he did last year in this event.

“He likes to be ridden quietly and get a tow into it,” Mullen said. “We have a nice stall and hopefully we can sit in and take our time and have something to aim at up the straight - fingers crossed he can do it again.”

And the veteran rider said he is hopeful he can produce more positive memories this summer when he joins a shuttle stable of Appleby horses at Saratoga.

“Hopefully, I'll get to see a little more of Saratoga than I did last year,” Mullen said. “I loved it the short time I was there, it's a fabulous racetrack. I loved my time in New York - the people are very enthusiastic and I really enjoyed it. Hopefully, we can have more success.”

Ottoman Fleet, who followed last year’s Fort Marcy score with a rallying third-place finish in the Grade 1 Manhattan at Belmont, has banked $619,057 through a 16-5-4-5 record. He will exit post 5 Saturday carrying 122 pounds.

Michael Iavarone, Jules Iavarone, Nicholas Zoumas and Frank Argano’s multiple graded stakes-winner Master Piece [post 1, Dylan Davis, 122 pounds] returns to the scene of his rallying neck score in the 11-furlong Grade 2 Red Smith in November.

Trained by Rick Dutrow, Jr., the 8-year-old Mastercraftsman ridgling enjoys a consistent record of 28-7-4-4 for purse earnings of $722,577 that includes a Group 2 win in his native Chile along with a 3 1/4-length win in the 2022 Grade 2 Eddie Read Handicap in July at Del Mar.

The well-traveled gray has competed at 13 racetracks, posting wins at distances ranging from one-mile to 11 furlongs. He joined Dutrow, Jr.’s barn last year and arrives from a close third in a 1 1/16-mile allowance contested over good going on April 6 at Keeneland.

“I haven’t seen a whole lot of change [in ability] with him since he’s been with us and he is just in a groove,” Dutrow, Jr. said. “I think he runs better with cooler weather and last year it was cooler when he won [the Red Smith]. Now coming up, the weather is still cool and I think he’ll run a good race. He always runs his race and I think he’s going to be fine for this race.”

Master Piece worked an easy half-mile in 50.80 seconds Saturday over the Keeneland main track in his second breeze back since his allowance effort.

“We were happy with his race at Keeneland and are happy with how he’s training,” Dutrow, Jr. said. “He’s doing very good. He’s always happy in the morning, trains well and happy.”

Three Diamonds Farm’s Atone [post 2, Kendrick Carmouche, 122 pounds] made the grade with a three-quarter length score in last year’s Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational at Gulfstream Park.

Trained by Mike Maker, the 7-year-old Into Mischief gelding rallied impressively from 11th-of-12 in this year’s Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational in January to finish fourth just 1 3/4-lengths back of Warm Heart. The runner-up of that event, I’m Very Busy, came back to win the Grade 2 Muniz Memorial Classic at Fair Grounds and is entered in Saturday’s Grade 1 Turf Classic at Churchill Downs.

Atone finished a troubled fifth in the Grade 3 Canadian Turf on March 2 at Gulfstream and followed three weeks later with a closing second in the Grade 3 Kentucky Cup Classic traveling nine furlongs over the Turfway Park synthetic.

Out of the graded stakes-placed A. P. Indy mare Captivating Lass, Atone has banked more than $1.4 million through a 32-7-5-5 ledger.

Four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Chad Brown will look to capture a record-extending seventh Fort Marcy win with Jeffrey Drown and Don Rachel’s stakes-placed Exact Estimate [post 4, Manny Franco, 118 pounds].

Brown, who took his first Fort Marcy in 2015 with Big Blue Kitten, won five-straight runnings of this event with Robert Bruce [2018], Olympico [2019], Instilled Regard [2020], Tribhuvan [2021] and L’Imperator [2022] before Ottoman Fleet broke the streak last year.

Exact Estimate, a 5-year-old Into Mischief bay, finished first or second in each of his last four starts, taking a nine-furlong event here in September to go along with a last out handicap win going 1 1/8-miles on March 2 over the Gulfstream synthetic.

The prominent runner was a close second in his stakes debut here in November in the one-mile Artie Schiller when three-quarter lengths back of multiple stakes-winner Big Everest.

Out of the graded stakes-placed Dixie Union mare Magic Union, Exact Estimate is a half-brother to dual Grade 3-winner Tizamagician.

Joseph Allen’s multiple graded stakes-placed Kentucky homebred Siege of Boston [post 8, Jorge Ruiz, 118 pounds] has hit the board in 13-of-15 starts for trainer James Toner.

The 5-year-old War Front bay graduated in November 2022 here traveling one-mile over firm footing to close out his sophomore season. Last year, he won a pair of optional-claimers on turf when a gate-to-wire winner at 1 1/16-miles at Gulfstream and a stalking winner of a nine-furlong tilt in June at Laurel Park.

Siege of Boston made his last three starts in Grade 3 company, finishing third in both the nine-furlong River City in November at Churchill and Tampa Bay at its namesake track in February ahead of a closing second last out in the aforementioned Canadian Turf.

He is out of the Sadler’s Wells mare Peinture Rare, who is a half-sister to 1997 Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe-winner Peintre Celebre.

Rounding out a talented group are multiple graded stakes-placed Limited Liability [post 3, Eric Cancel, 118 pounds] for Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey; graded stakes-placed Pioneering Spirit [post 6, Jose Lezcano, 124 pounds] for trainer Linda Rice; and stakes-placed New York-bred Olympic Dreams [post 7, Trevor McCarthy, 118 pounds] for conditioner Pat Quick.

The Fort Marcy is slated as Race 8 on Saturday’s 11-race card that also features the Grade 2, $200,000 Ruffian in Race 10 and the Listed $150,000 Elusive Quality in Race 9.

First post at the Big A is 1:05 p.m. with the facility open to the public from 10 a.m. - 8:45 p.m. to accommodate a 10:30 a.m. first post at Churchill Downs for their 14-race card that features the Grade 1, $5 million Kentucky Derby in Race 12 at 6:57 p.m. The Big A will host a Kentucky Derby watch party Saturday featuring free bourbon tasting, a premium cigar stand, live music and food trucks.

America’s Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the Belmont at the Big A spring/summer meet on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.