NO BESTING BRICKS AND MORTAR IN NTRA TOP THOROUGHBRED POLL

Alicia Hughes/NTRA —-

LEXINGTON, Ky. (August 12, 2019) – No rival has been able to topple Bricks and Mortar on the race track this season and after his latest triumph in the Grade 1 Arlington Million XXXVII on August 10, the son of Giant’s Causeway remains equally dominant when it comes to his reign atop the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll.

Since ascending to No. 1 position in the poll on April 8, Bricks and Mortar has emerged as the leading Horse of the Year contender by adding top-level victories in the Old Forester Turf Classic, Manhattan Stakes, and Arlington Million to his prior wins this season in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational and Grade 2 Muniz Memorial Handicap. His triumph in the Arlington Million not only gave trainer Chad Brown a historic sweep of all three Grade 1 tests on the card, but it garnered Bricks and Mortar 36 first-place votes and 396 total points among NTRA voters this week.

“He’s had a remarkable year. Flawless,” Brown told NYRA’s publicity team the morning after the Arlington Million. “He’s a very rare horse and we’re lucky to have him. He’s had an outstanding career.”

Owned by Klaravich Stables and William Lawrence, Bricks and Mortar has won six consecutive races dating back to his victory in an allowance optional claiming test at Gulfstream Park last December 22. He has 10 wins from 12 career starts and a bankroll of $4,885,650.

Multiple Grade 1-winner McKinzie was the only other horse to earn first-place votes this week, getting the top spot on 4 ballots and notching 348 points to hold down the second position in the poll. Top distaffer Midnight Bisou (283 points) remains in third while reigning champion turf female Sistercharlie (IRE) (271) moved up one spot to fourth in the wake of her repeat victory in the Grade 1 Beverly D. Stakes this past weekend.

Steve Asmussen-trainee Mitole (168 points) dipped one spot to fifth with fellow Grade 1 winners World of Trouble (154) and Imperial Hint (112) ranked sixth and seventh, respectively. Maximum Security continues to be the lone 3-year-old in the top 10, sitting in the eighth position with 89 points. Seeking the Soul, who is slated to start in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic at Del Mar on August 17, is ninth with 65 points while Elate (64) rounds out the top 10.

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-august-12-2019/

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

https://www.ntra.com/wp-content/uploads/Polls-week29-by_voter-2019.pdf