The pace scenario may not have been in Devamani's favor in the $145,500 Knickerbocker Stakes (G2T), but everything else seemed to be.
A ground-saving trip, well-timed move by jockey Joel Rosario, and fondness for yielding turf was more than enough to compensate for a lone speed horse in a small field as Devamani moved to the front approaching the eighth pole and captured the Oct. 18 Knickerbocker by two lengths.
Olympico rallied from last in the field of five to take second, giving trainer Chad Brown a 1-2 finish in a 1 1/8-mile stakes at Belmont Park delayed six days due to adverse weather conditions.
"He's a neat horse. He's a very well-bred horse," Brown said about Devamani, a 6-year-old Dubawi gelding who provided him with his first Knickerbocker win. "He's always been at the top of his game in his training, his looks and such. Joel really rode him perfect."
Devamani was claimed for $62,500 by trainer Rob Atras on behalf of Sanford Goldfarb—who now owns him along with Samuel Abraham —out of an Aug. 17, 2019, race and then landed in Brown's barn for a 2020 campaign that has included two seconds and two thirds in six starts.
Bred by S. C. H. H. The Aga Khan Studs, he started the year with runner-up finishes in the Tampa Bay Stakes (G3T) and Fort Marcy Stakes (G2T) before getting his first graded stakes win in the Knickerbocker.
"Obviously, he took to our program well right away, and we had him running in stakes right away. He's a very useful horse, and he'll be exciting to have as a 7-year-old here next year," Brown said. "This horse has a pedigree to get better when he gets older. I'm not shy to run 6-, 7-, or 8-year-olds on the turf. Sometimes, they find their feet there. I'll talk to the ownership group and see, but this horse is running super. We may run him one more time (this year) or we may not. But I'm looking to run him as a 7-year-old.
"I really got affected by the pandemic because I usually don't get started (with my stable) until (the spring when racing was canceled) but this horse didn't miss anything. He ran in a lot of the races we wanted to be in and can use a break."
Devamani was one of three horses in the race exiting the Lure Stakes, in which he finished third.
He was third along the inside in the Knickerbocker as En Wye Cee carved out slow fractions of :25.66, :51.13, and 1:15.58 on a clear lead with 2-1 favorite Breaking the Rules, who was fourth in the Lure, chasing in second. But even with a languid pace, En Wye Cee, making just his second turf start for owner Waterford Stable and trainer Todd Pletcher, was unable to pull away as Rosario moved Devamani to the outside in the upper stretch and powered past his rivals.
The 3-1 fourth choice ($8.80), Devamani was timed in 1:51.78.
"He was just there for me and was able to go along early and he kept going," Rosario said. "To be up a little closer with the slow pace, he was on his game. He always runs hard. He had been unlucky a couple of times, and he got the job done today."
Brown expected Olympico to be closer to the pace than Devamani but was satisfied with a runner-up finish from the 5-year-old Rajsaman gelding owned by Wonder Stables, Michael Dubb, Madaket Stables, and Bethlehem Stables who has been supplemented to the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
"He was a little out of position. I thought he would be ahead of Devamani early. I was surprised they flip-flopped," Brown said. "(Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr.) thought he gave him a good run. Fortunately, he was able to squeak out second there."
Olympico, who was fifth in the Lure, finished a neck ahead of En Wye Cee, a 4-year-old Declaration of War colt.
