Five-Time Eclipse Award Winner Also Won in 2024 with Frost Free
BALTIMORE – Belladonna Racing, Twin Brook Stables, Woodford Racing, B.C.W.T Ltd., Savvy Stables, GRC Racing and Taylor Creek’s Retribution emerged from a tight pack in mid-stretch and scooted away to a 1 ¾-length triumph in Saturday’s $150,000 Chick Lang at Pimlico Race Course.
The 50th running of the six-furlong Chick Lang for 3-year-olds was the fourth of 10 stakes, five graded, worth $3.3 million in purses on a spectacular 14-race program headlined by the historic 150th Preakness Stakes (G1), Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown.
Retribution ($20) provided jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. with his second win of the day after he took the opener on Brittany Russell-trained 8-year-old gelding Augusta Melody. Ortiz also won the 2024 Chick Lang on Frost Free.
One Nine Hundred, favored at 2-1 off a seven-length maiden special weight score March 29 at Aqueduct, was out quickly and outran Faster Gator to his inside for the lead, going a quarter-mile in 22.86 seconds. Ortiz kept the bay son of Vekoma in the clear from their outermost post and was able to work himself over into a contending position after a half in 46.18.
Straightening for home, One Nine Hundred was unable to ward off a host of challengers including previously undefeated Ancient World, who found some trouble on the far turn. Retribution dug in gamely between the two horses and edged clear under Ortiz to win in 1:11.27 over a fast main track.
Touchy got up late to be second, 1 ¾ lengths ahead of Ancient World, followed by Normandy Coast, One Nine Hundred, Perfect Force, Faster Gator, Slam Notion, Tiny Lade, Chipotle and Keep It Easy.
Retribution is trained by Cherie DeVaux, who earned the top prize in last year’s Preakness weekend trainer bonus and had to scratch program favorite and defending champion Pyrenees from Friday’s historic Pimlico Special (G3) after he came out of a recent work unsatisfactorily. DeVaux watched Retribution’s win from Kentucky Saturday.
Bred in Kentucky, Retribution was making just his third start and stakes debut in the Chick Lang after graduating at first asking Feb. 15 at Fair Grounds and running third to subsequent stakes-placed Gunmetal in an April 8 optional claimer at Keeneland.
Run as the Hirsch Jacobs Stakes from its 1975 inception to 2009, the Chick Lang was renamed in honor of the racing industry legend widely known as ‘Mr. Preakness,’ who passed away in 2010 at the age of 83.
$150,000 Chick Lang Quotes
David Ingordo, managing partner of winning Owner Belladonna Racing LLC and husband of Winning Trainer Cherie DeVaux – “What I have learned about Cherie DeVaux, other than the fact that she is my wife, when she picks a spot to step one up, the horses are usually going to perform. We were talking about this race, and he was obviously eligible for an allowance race, but she wanted to take a shot when she saw the speed inside and how he has been training. The way he runs, she thought it could turn out like it did. If you said draw it up on a white board, we would have drawn it up this way.”
Winning Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. (Retribution) – “He broke so good and when he broke that well, it made everything a lot easier. I had the 11 post, and it looked like there was a lot of speed on paper. So, I was afraid to take ahold of him. He broke sharp. Then in the middle of the turn he started making his own run and I said, ‘Beautiful.’ Then I had a horse next to me and he fights, and I said, ‘All right, let’s do it.’ And he showed what he can do.”