As is to be expected with little more than a week left until the Breeders' Cup, the majority of the day's workouts were at Santa Anita Park, although there was a sprinkling of action at various other tracks across the country.
At Betfair Hollywood Park . . .
Hazardous, a two-year-old gelding pointing toward the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Sprint, seemed sharp enough going a half-mile in :49.20. Trained by Carl O'Callaghan, the son of Candy Ride is coming off of a 13 1/4 length victory in a claiming race at Santa Anita, signaling him as a colt of pretty good quality -- although he'll be taking a pretty big step up in class and will be one of the longer shots in the Juvenile Sprint field.
At Calder Race Course . . .
Last year's Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (gr. I) winner Musical Romance, gearing up for a defense of her title, breezed five furlongs in a bullet :59.80 over a sloppy track. Trained by William Kaplan, the five-year-old mare has had an excellent season this year, with victories in the Princess Rooney Handicap (gr. I) and Inside Information Stakes (gr. II) among her victories. I would expect that today's workout will be her final prior to the Breeders's Cup, where she is expected to be among the favorites.
At Churchill Downs . . .
Breeders' Cup Turf entrant Optimizer was the lone Breeders' Cup contender on the work tab. The D. Wayne Lukas-trained three-year-old could not have found a tougher spot to make his debut against older horses, but after breezing five furlongs in 1:00.80, it is apparent that he is as ready as he can be.
At Delaware Park . . .
Marathon entrant Not Abroad, coming off of a strong victory in the Maryland Million Classic Stakes, was sharp breezing a half-mile in :48.40. Fourteen furlongs may be stretching Michael Petro-trainee's limits, but he did finish second in the twelve-furlong Greenwood Cup (gr. II) earlier this year, giving support to the belief that he might be up to handling the extended distance of the Marathon.
At Parx Racing . . .
The star of the morning was Poseidon's Warrior, winner of the Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap (gr. I) two starts back and most recently third in the Vosburgh Invitational Stakes (gr. I). Trained by Robert E. Reid Jr., the four-year-old colt breezed a half-mile in :49.88 seconds, one of the slower works of the morning.
At Santa Anita Park . . .
A total of eleven Breeders' Cup pre-entrants were out for serious training this morning, including eight from the barn of Doug O'Neill. Those eight were, in alphabetical order . . .
Boxuer des Rues - Pre-entered in both the Sprint and the Turf Sprint, this four-year-old son of Smart Strike breezed in company with Cogito and proved much the best while clocking six furlongs in 1:13.80.
Cogito - His six-furlong time was an unimpressive 1:14.60, but given that all of his racing experience has come on turf, it's probably wisest to forgive this poor main-track breeze and assume he'll perform better when returned to his favorite surface.
Handsome Mike - Winner of the Pennsylvania Derby (gr. II) breezed in company with the two-year-old Know More and while his time of 1:15.20 was slightly better than the juvenile's clocking, Know More did appear capable of leaving Handsome Mike behind at any time if asked.
He's Had Enough - Working alongside the talented group I winner Private Zone, this Breeders' Cup Juvenile candidate breezed six furlongs from the gate in 1:12.40, the fastest time of the morning. And according to DRF.com, he missed the start of the work by a couple of lengths, which makes the clocking even more impressive.
Know More - As mentioned above, he worked in company with Handsome Mike and seemed to be the stronger of the pair, even though his final time of 1:15.40 was slightly slower than his stablemate's. He has been pre-entered in both the Juvenile and the Juvenile Turf, with the latter race being the more likely goal.
Quail Hill - Breeders' Cup Marathon entrant is coming off of a runner-up effort in the Ralph M. Hinds Handicap at Fairplex Park, in which he set the pace before ending up second, five lengths behind Worth Repeating. His 1:14.80 clocking for six furlongs wasn't particularly quick, but then again, you don't want to be sharpening your speed when preparing to traverse fourteen furlongs!
Richard's Kid - Three-time grade I winner is pointing toward a start in the Classic, where the ten-furlong distance and projected quick pace should help set up his late run. Working in company with the two-year-old maiden Cinco de Mario, Richard's Kid's final time for six furlongs was only 1:15.40, but he wasn't really asked for much in his final serious Breeders' Cup prep.
South Floyd - Runner-up in the Tim Conway Stakes, this son of Any Given Saturday went six furlongs in 1:15.40 in preparation for a start in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Sprint.
Also on the Santa Anita work tab were Suggestive Boy (Mile, 6f in 1:13.60), Beholder (Juvenile Fillies or Juvenile Sprint, 5f in 1:01.60), and Moulin de Mougin (Juvenile Fillies Turf, 5f in 1:02.20.)
-Keelerman
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