Zulu Kingdom Upsets Maker's Mark Mile

Win No. 3,000 for trainer Chad Brown came in fitting fashion—on the grass, at the highest stakes level, and with a polished comeback performance from Zulu Kingdom (IRE) in the $506,263 Maker's Mark Mile Stakes (G1T) at Keeneland. Plus, with an assist from jockey Flavien Prat. Numerous key scratches in the race—some connections opted to avoid running their horses against a high-class field that included reigning champion turf male Notable Speech (GB)—thinned the competition and its early pace. So Prat and Zulu Kingdom capitalized. Sent forward by Prat past the stands for the first time, Zulu Kingdom controlled the mile turf race with comfortable splits of :23.89, :47.71, and 1:11.58, and opened up on the opposition with a decisive second-turn and early-stretch burst, while some of his rivals including Notable Speech were scrambling for running room. In front by 2 1/2 lengths with a furlong to run, Zulu Kingdom outlasted South African group 1 winner One Stripe (SAF) for a three-quarter-length victory. He was timed in 1:34.90 for the distance on firm turf, returning $12.08 to win. Rhetorical, last fall's Turf Mile Stakes (G1T) winner at Keeneland, ran third, another half-length back. Heavily favored Notable Speech, making his first start since winning the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T) last fall at Del Mar, rallied to be a close fourth after being hemmed in behind horses until late in the stretch. "I hope I don't have that much traffic there on the way home," quipped his British-based trainer, Charlie Appleby. "Well, that was a mess," jockey William Buick added. Meanwhile, it was the perfect trip for Zulu Kingdom, though the highly versatile ridgling made his own luck. He has now finished first in graded stakes on the lead or from as far back as 9 lengths off the pace, and has a 7-for-9 record with earnings of $1,236,637. The Ten Sovereigns (IRE) ridgling out of the Smart Strike mare Zindziswa would be 8-for-9 if he had not been disqualified from victory in his last start in the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame Stakes (G2T) Aug. 1 at Saratoga Race Course. His owners—Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb, William Strauss, and Michael Caruso—have raced him in the United States since his 2-year-old season after acquiring him following a debut victory in France in 2024. Reflecting on the Maker's Maker Mile triumph, Prat said, "Honestly, I felt very comfortable on the lead. He gave me a good run when we turned for home. Obviously he hadn't run for a while, so I knew he was going to be tired late, so I kept him busy and his talent showed." Brown, off-site because of upcoming key workouts from some of his leading horses April 11 in South Florida, said his focus with Zulu Kingdom would be on attempting to win the Fourstardave Stakes (G1) at Saratoga this summer and the Breeders' Cup Mile at Keeneland in the fall. The 47-year-old trainer praised the teamwork that led to 3,000 victories, all since 2007. A five-time Eclipse Award winner, Brown is widely considered to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer after he completes the requisite 25 years of training for eligibility. Three of his 3,000 wins have come in renewals of the Maker's Mark Mile. He said the milestone gives me "a chance to reflect and appreciate the horses, team members, owners, and jockeys that have really contributed to it. If you don't have all those things in place, if you're missing any one component, you can't have an accomplishment like this. There's no way you'll never even get close. … It's sort of remarkable to think back about all the individual contributions and sacrifices made—a lot of loyalty, a lot of consistency, a lot of hard work."