Kentucky Derby Pedigree Profile: Somelikeithotbrown

If you dig down far enough, you can find some black-type in the pedigree of Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) winner Somelikeithotbrown. His sire, Big Brown, has been a decent sire and his best graded winners have done it going longer on the dirt. The best was Dortmund, who won the Santa Anita Derby (G1) at three. Big Brown’s offspring also usually have decent early speed.

Somelikeithotbrown’s dam, Marilyn Monroan, was a good second in her second career start going two turns on the synthetic track at Turfway Park. The daughter of Tapit went back and forth on synthetic and turf without much success. She only had one start on the dirt, where she was beaten 5 3/4 lengths going two turns at Churchill Downs. The daughter of Tapit was not going to be dropped in class any further, and more racing might have de-valued her, so she was off to the breeding shed.

Marilyn Monroan was bred to Mission Impazible and that foal was placed at two and three. Somelikeithotbrown was her second foal and then she went back to Mission Impazible, which resulted in a colt, and she produced another colt in 2018 sired by Temple City.

Somelikeithotbrown’s second dam, the Belong to Me mare Summer Scene, won at two and has produced two minor winners from seven foals to race.

The reason Summer Scene was bred to Tapit, which produced Marilyn Monroan, was that she was a half-sister to champion juvenile colt Stevie Wonderboy, winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) and Del Mar Futurity (G2), and Theysken’s Theory, winner of a Group 3 in England who just missed by a neck in the Garden City Stakes (G1) going nine furlongs on the turf.

So, Somelikeithotbrown’s dams are by Tapit, Belong to Me, Summer Squall and Roberto. He is inbred to Danzig 3 X 4 and his dam is inbred to Weekend Surprise 4 X 4 through her son’s A.P. Indy and Summer Squall. Big Brown himself is inbred to Northern Dancer 3 X 3, so Somelikeithotbrown is inbred to Northern Dancer 3 X 3 X 5.

There is plenty of quality in the sires of Somelikeithotbrown and he has enough pedigree farther down the page to be ignited by an outlier like Big Brown. The bay colt has only had one start on dirt, his career debut at Saratoga on a sloppy track in an off-the-turf event, and the rest have come on turf and synthetic. Yet, he has a dirt pedigree which has prospered on the other surfaces and reminds me of 2011 Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Animal Kingdom, who made his dirt debut in the Run for the Roses and won the Spiral Stakes (G3) as his ultimate prep, the same race that is now known as the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3).

PHOTO: Somelikeithotbrown and jockey Tyler Gaffalione win the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) at Turfway Park on March 9, 2019 (c) Coady Photography/Turfway Park