Ted Noffey wasn’t the only Grade 1-winning 2-year-old of 2025 named after a high-profile individual in the industry.
Brant, named by owner Amr Zedan for Peter Brant, a publisher, art collector, and owner of high-class racehorses, went 2 for 3 with a victory in the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity. His two wins, plus a game third in the Grade 1 FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile presented by the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance behind Ted Noffey, were enough to make Brant a finalist for the Eclipse Award in the 2-year-old male division.
Brant, a son of Gun Runner out of the Liam’s Map mare Tynan, was bred in Kentucky by PTK LLC. He brought a record $3 million at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Co.’s 2-year-olds in training auction in March, when purchased by agent Donato Lanni on behalf of Zedan.
:: Full list of 2025 Eclipse Awards finalists, including profile stories
“I mean he wasn’t a secret. He’s a pretty cool horse and everyone loved him,” Lanni told reporters after signing the ticket. “Just very lucky to get him for Amr Zedan. We always come here to look for nice horses, and he was a nice horse.”
Brant, trained by Bob Baffert, debuted July 26 at Del Mar, where he received a dream trip behind dueling leaders, swung three wide turning for home, and won by 5 1/4 lengths in stylish fashion. His final time of 1:02.63 for 5 1/2 furlongs translated to a 101 Beyer Speed Figure, which would end up being the only triple-digit Beyer Speed Figure recorded by a 2-year-old of either gender in 2025.
The quality of Brant’s maiden race was borne out later in the year as not only did he come back to win the Del Mar Futurity, but the third-, fourth-, and fifth-place finishers from the July 26 race – Balboa, Intrepido, and Conducted – all came back to become stakes winners at 2.
In the Del Mar Futurity on Sept. 7, Brant, after breaking in at the start, sped to the lead under Flavien Prat and set fractions of 21.88 seconds and 44.53 before holding his stablemate Desert Gate at bay to win by a length. In giving Baffert a record-extending 19th Del Mar Futurity victory, Brant ran the fifth-fastest Del Mar Futurity – 1:21.92 – run at seven furlongs.
Baffert felt Brant didn’t need another start before the Breeders’ Cup and brought him to the Juvenile fresh. Under Prat, Brant set the pace in the Juvenile, stalked intently by Ted Noffey. The latter took over from Brant in upper stretch, and Brant appeared to battle back but was ultimately no match for Ted Noffey and then lost second by a half-length to Mr. A. P.
Brant will winter in Southern California with Baffert and was expected to start breezing in mid-to-late January to prepare for his 3-year-old campaign.
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.