Bedard's future is on dirt; makes first start for new owners
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HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Bedard’s blossoming dirt form was one of the primary reasons he was purchased at auction late last year with the intention of running him at Oaklawn Park.
He goes in Monday’s eighth race, an entry-level allowance for 4-year-olds and up at 1 1/8 miles. A field of nine has signed on, including Mischelof, a Chilean-bred son of Into Mischief, and King Russell, the runner-up in the 2023 Arkansas Derby. The card was originally scheduled for last Thursday, but was transferred to Monday due to excessive rainfall.
Bedard was a $210,000 purchase at a Keeneland auction in November. A son of Nyquist who was previously based at Woodbine, he races for Staton Flurry, Mark Schlesinger, and Corey Smith. Bedard was third in the Prince of Wales, the second leg of the Canadian Triple Crown, in September at Fort Erie in his dirt debut, then won a maiden special weight on the main track at Keeneland in his last start Oct. 17.
“He looked like he really stepped forward once he got off the [synthetic track] and onto the dirt,” Flurry said. “He ran a really big number at Keeneland breaking his maiden, then the horses that ran second and fourth behind him in that race came back and won maiden special weights. It seemed like everything was on the improve once he got to dirt, so we said ‘We’ll take a shot on him, see if we can have some fun with him.’ ”
Bedard, who owns the field’s best last-race Beyer Speed Figure, an 84, will break from the rail. Trainer Brad Cox has given the mount to Cristian Torres.
Bedard is representative of the change Flurry, 34, has made with his stable since winning the Oaklawn owner title last season. He had about 40 horses to accomplish that feat and now estimates he has 12 to 15 in training, with several in partnerships.
“The last couple of years the goal was to set up for here,” he said, “and have a lot of horses to try and chase the title. Now that that’s done, I want quality over quantity.
“We’re just taking it easy. We’ve got a handful of claimers here and there and hopefully Bedard will be a good allowance horse and maybe even more for us. We’re also trying to develop some young horses, see what they turn into for us.”
Flurry said the bulk of his horses are racing at Oaklawn. He has one horse at Turfway Park, one at Santa Anita, and one at Parx Racing. He also has three horses in Ireland, with two of those young fillies who just turned 2. Purchased in Europe, one is by No Nay Never and the other is by Mohaather.
“I just wanted to get a feel for the different forms of racing,” Flurry said. “The turf over there is phenomenal. And it’s just a whole different process, the entry process, the declarations, and all that. It’s so different from the U.S.”
Flurry has won a couple of races in Ireland and is utilizing trainer Jack Davison.
For now, though, his focus is on the Oaklawn dirt with Bedard.
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