Wonderful? Shane’s Wonder tackles Chick Lang
Looks for fourth straight to begin career
Linda Dougherty
May 15, 2026
Bob Hutt of Uptowncharlybrown Stud LLC admits that, at first, he “didn’t expect much” from an unraced 3-year-old gelding named Shane’s Wonder that was in the barn of longtime Parx Racing trainer Alfredo “Freddy” Velazquez.
And then the horse started working.
“I asked Freddy if he thought Shane’s Wonder had promise,” recalled Hutt, the CEO, president and founder. “Freddy said, ‘Promise? Do you understand how good this horse is? This horse is better than any horse you’ve had.’”
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Velazquez appears to have been right on the money with his assessment. The son of Pennsylvania stallion Eastwood out of the stakes-placed First Defence mare One Fast Chick, bred by Uptowncharlybrown Stud, has been a perfect 3-for-3 since debuting at Parx February 17 in a six-furlong special weight event. On that day, he seized the lead from the start, then cruised to a nearly 12-length blowout over seven rivals on a muddy track under jockey Eliseo Ruiz.
His second and third starts, both with Ruiz aboard, were equally impressive. On March 25, he was again never headed in a $69,000 allowance optional claiming at 6-½ furlongs, coming home in a quick 1:17.07. He then performed a wire-to-wire romp in the $75,000 Wait For It Stakes for Pennsylvania-breds April 22 at six panels, timed in 1:10.49.
The chart footnote for the Wait For It noted Shane’s Wonder “…responded when asked at the top of the lane, shook free, pulled away in hand and was geared down late.”
“He just wants to go, he’s so classy,” said Ruiz. “I don’t want to take him back, I say, ‘OK, you want to run, let’s go.’”
The speed figures Shane’s Wonder has recorded point to his talent, including an 86 Beyer after his allowance score, two consecutive 10+ Ragozin numbers and Thoro-graph numbers of 3 and 4.
After the gelding’s allowance win, Hutt received a call from a representative of the Inglis Digital USA sales company, who said they’d like to put him in their April 2026 catalog. Hutt agreed, choosing to sell 75 percent of the gelding while retaining 25 percent for Uptowncharlybrown Stud. But the gelding was an RNA at $380,000, just missing his reserve price of $390,000, according to Hutt.
At age 83, Velazquez knows a thing or two about horses and isn’t one to give false praise. Since saddling his first horse in 1984, he’s had nearly 1,250 winners from about 7,800 starters, with purse earnings of nearly $23 million. He knows that horses with the talent of Shane’s Wonder don’t come around that often, if at all.
“He’s getting better and better,” said Velazquez. “So far we know what we’ve got and now we wait for a real test.”
Shane’s Wonder will get that real test in the $150,000 Chick Lang Stakes, a six-furlong dash for 3-year-olds, on the Preakness Day undercard May 16. Ruiz, however, will be replaced in the saddle by Mychel Sanchez, as he’s serving a 30-day suspension set down by Parx stewards.
The bay gelding faces seven rivals in the Chick Lang and breaks from the six-hole. Among those in the field are the Steve Asmussen-trained Obliteration, winner of the Gr. 3 Sanford Stakes; Fulmine, winner of the Hutcheson Stakes at Gulfstream in March; and Igniter, who captured the Jimmy Winkfield Stakes at Aqueduct in his most recent start for Richard Dutrow, Jr.
Before Shane’s Wonder ran his first race, Hutt decided to mark the occasion of his 80th birthday in a special way. He told the nearly 400 people in the thoroughbred partnership that he “wanted to share the joy” and that they could buy into Shane’s Wonder for $80 – and the gelding sold out quickly.
Then on the day of the gelding’s debut, he sent an email expressing his confidence to all of them, writing that he expected him to prevail and “… it’s just a question of how much he’ll win by.” The 11-½ length victory margin proved him right.
So now it’s on to Laurel Park, where Shane’s Wonder will put his unbeaten streak on the line and give his many owners the thrill of being part of the festivities on Preakness Day.
“The excitement is off the charts,” said Hutt.
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