American Pharoah, Beholder stay dry

LEXINGTON, Ky. – American Pharoah got no farther than Barn 62 on Wednesday morning at Keeneland, as the steady rain that has soaked this area for 48 hours left the track sloppy and prompted trainer Bob Baffert to keep American Pharoah inside. Baffert had American Pharoah walk the barn, where it was dry, rather than jog over a sloppy surface, which had been the original plan.

With nice weather forecast for the rest of the week, American Pharoah should be just fine to gallop Thursday and Friday before racing for the final time Saturday in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

His final workout was Monday at Santa Anita, he flew on Tuesday, and walked Wednesday, so by Thursday morning, “I’m going to be in trouble,” joked his exercise rider, Jorge Alvarez, “because he’ll be really fresh.”

One barn over, Beholder also stayed indoors at Barn 60 and was walked under tack with exercise rider Janeen Painter.

Trainer Richard Mandella said the blood work drawn from Beholder on Tuesday came back “perfect,” and it would not be overstating things to say that Mandella is quietly confident that Beholder is ready to run a corker Saturday. Last week, Beholder had a temperature one degree over normal after flying from California.