CATHOLIC BOY HOLDS FINAL SPOT, BRICKS AND MORTAR STILL OUT FRONT IN NTRA TOP THOROUGHBRED POLL

Alicia Hughes/NTRA —-

LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 8, 2019) – A runner-up finish by Catholic Boy in the Grade 2 Suburban Stakes on July 6 provided the only movement in this week’s NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll.

Catholic Boy, a Grade 1 winner on turf and dirt, ran second as the favorite behind Centennial Farms’ Preservationist in the 1 ¼-mile Suburban at Belmont Park. That defeat dropped the son More Than Ready from sixth to tenth in the NTRA Poll as he earned 52 points from voters.

Trainer Jonathan Thomas said Catholic Boy is likely to stay on dirt for his next outing, eyeing a cut back to nine furlongs in the Grade 1, $750,000 Woodward on August 31 at Saratoga – which is shaping up as a potential rematch with Preservationist.

“The Woodward will be our major target,” Thomas told NYRA’s publicity team. “While we think he’s a mile and a quarter horse, I feel more confident cutting him back to a mile and an eighth now more than ever just off of the tactical speed he seems to have.”

There were no major changes beyond Catholic Boy’s shift as the Chad Brown-trained Bricks and Mortar, currently on a five-race win streak, continues to enjoy the view from the top spot with 29 first-place votes and 387 points. The son of Giant’s Causeway, who is pointed to the Grade 1 Arlington Million on August 10, most recently worked four furlongs in :48.80 over the Belmont Park inner turf on July 7.

Multiple Grade 1 winning-stablemates Mitole (8 first-place votes, 356 points) and Midnight Bisou (2 first-place votes, 274 points) continue to sit second and third, respectively. The Bob Baffert-trained McKinzie (1 first-place vote, 258 points) remains fourth with fellow Grade 1 winner World of Trouble (212 points) holding in fifth.

The Dallas Stewart-trained Seeking the Soul (126 points) moves up one place to take over the sixth spot from Catholic Boy. Multiple Grade 1 winner Rushing Fall, who is nominated to the Grade 1 $500,000 Diana on July 13 at Saratoga, is seventh with 120 points followed by two-time Dubai World Cup winner
Thunder Snow (IRE) (88 points), and Vino Rosso (87) in eighth and ninth.

The Top Thoroughbred Poll wraps up November 4 after the running of the Breeders’ Cup.

The NTRA Top Thoroughbred polls are the sport’s most comprehensive surveys of experts. Every week eligible journalists and broadcasters cast votes for their top 10 horses, with points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. All horses that have raced in the U.S., are in training in the U.S., or are known to be pointing to a major event in the U.S. are eligible for the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll.

The full results for the NTRA Thoroughbred Poll can be found on the NTRA website at:

https://www.ntra.com/ntra-top-thoroughbred-poll-july-8-2019/

Full accounting of top 10 votes by voter can be found at:

https://www.ntra.com/wp-content/uploads/Polls-week24-by_voter-2019.pdf

Cover Photo: Catholic Boy; Susie Raisher Photo