Sugoi had a long lead in Sunday’s Grade 1, $1 million Arlington Million. But William Buick, aboard favored Nations Pride, wasn’t worried.

“Look, he was the best horse in the race. We knew that,” Buick said afterwards. “I got to ride him in a breeze on the Oklahoma track in Saratoga. So I knew he was coming here in great form.” 

All that was left for him was to show it in the race, and that, too, proved to be no problem. 

Under a patient Buick ride, Nations Ride was 8 ½ lengths behind the leader after three quarters in 1:14.27, and still five lengths back after a mile in 1:38.94.

“The leader was getting a lot of rope, and he was getting it cheap,” Buick recalled. “I just wanted to have everything covered as well as I could.

Nations Pride, three wide into the stretch, put his head in front leaving the furlong pole and inched away to win by 1 ¾ lengths, getting the 1 ¼ miles in 2:01.96. More impressive: he covered the final quarter mile in a sharp 23.02 seconds.

Nations Pride was the even-money favorite in the Million, with second choice Integration finishing second. Ancient Rome, the third choice, also finished third; in fact, in an odd coincidence, the horses finished in the  order of their odds.

Nations Pride paid $4.00 to win, and the exacta returned $4.20 for a one-dollar wager. Talk of the Nation, Sugoi, and Highland Chief completed the order of finish.

With the win, Talk of the Nation, a homebred for Godolphin, continued to work on compiling one of the more impressive turf resumes of recent vintage. He now has four Grade 1 victories in his career, and those have come in three different countries.

The globetrotting, five-year-old, intact son of Teofilo has scored at the highest level twice in the United States and once each in Candad and Germany. The winner’s share of the million pushes him to nearly $3.5 million in career earnings, compiled in a 10-win, 18-start career.

NOTES In a pair of earlier graded stakes, the Graham Motion-trained Trikari impressed in a flashy 2 1/4-length score in the Grade 2 Secretariat, and the formidable Moira ran down defending champion Fev Rover to win the Grade 2 Beverly D., a “win and in” race for the Breeders’ Cup… Trikari, the 3-2 second choice, bided his time in fourth early under John Velazquez, four lengths away from a modest early pace, came three wide for the drive, and exploded past his rivals to win in 1:34.92 for a mile on firm turf. He is owned by Amerman Racing LLC….

Fev Rover, the defending champ, controlled the pace in the Beverly D., doling out a 49.22-second half-mile and three quarters in 1:12.69. But Moira, with Jose Ortiz up, remained in near attendance and went to the attack in the lane, eventually prevailing by a head in 1:54.80. The winner, a 5-year-old Ghostzapper mare, is trained by Kevin Attard for Lanni Bloodstock, Madaket Stables LLC, and SF Racing LLC. It was her sixth win from 14 starts, and she’s closing in on $2 million in earnings…

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