Asmussen glad Magnitude back in form, not ready to commit to Travers

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Magnitude, who made an eye-catching return to the races with a 9 1/4-length victory in Saturday’s $250,000 Iowa Derby at Prairie Meadows, was expected to arrive in Saratoga on Wednesday to prepare for his next race, which could be the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers on Aug. 23.

Trainer Steve Asmussen was not ready to commit to a next start just yet when reached by phone Sunday morning, but he was just glad to have Magnitude back.

“See how we do, we’ll celebrate him for awhile,” Asmussen said.

Magnitude, a son of Not This Time owned by Winchell Thoroughbreds, was briefly on the road to the Kentucky Derby when he won the Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes by 9 3/4 lengths at Fair Grounds on Feb. 15. He was found the following day to have an ankle chip that needed to be surgically removed, effectively knocking him off the Triple Crown trail.

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In Saturday’s $250,000 Iowa Derby, Magnitude maintained a measured one-length advantage over Mister Omaha through six furlongs in 1:10.94 before beginning to pull away under Ben Curtis. Despite changing to his left lead in midstretch before switching back to his correct lead late, Magnitude ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:42.26. He earned a105 Beyer Speed Figure, three points fewer than the 108 he earned winning the Risen Star.

“He’d been training very impressively, not that I expected him to run a 105 Beyer first time off the bench, but it is what it is,” Asmussen said. “It’s nice to start off where he finished in February, good to have him back.”

Several hours earlier on Saturday, Asmussen won the Grade 3 Sanford Stakes at Saratoga with Obliteration, who rolled to a 10 1/2-length victory in the six-furlong stakes for 2-year-olds. Obliteration, a son of Violence, earned a 91 Beyer Speed Figure for the victory. Obliteration won his debut on June 12 at Churchill Downs by 7 1/2 lengths.

Asmussen said assistant trainer Scott Blasi “was happy” with the way Obliteration came out of the Sanford and said he would likely make his next start in the Grade 2, $200,000 Saratoga Special here on Aug. 2.

“Waiting for the Hopeful would be too damn long,” said Asmussen, referring to the Grade 1 race for 2-year-olds here on Sept. 1.

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