Belmont: Hungry Island, Winter Memories work towards Garden City rematch

ELMONT, N.Y. - Lake Placid winner Hungry Island and beaten Lake Placid favorite Winter Memories both put in workouts Sunday morning at Belmont Park in preparation for their rematch in next Saturday’s Grade 1 Garden City Stakes.

Hungry Island, who has won four consecutive races, breezed at daybreak on Belmont’s main track, going four furlongs in 47.43 seconds and galloping out five furlongs in 1:00.08 for trainer Shug McGaughey.

About three hours later, Winter Memories worked five furlongs in 1:03.48 over the inner turf course with new rider Javier Castellano aboard. Three sets of orange traffic cones were up, commonly referred to as dogs, which meant the turf works were done approximately 30 feet from where the inside rail was located.

Winter Memories did get the last quarter of her work in 23.86 seconds and galloped out extremely well, not being pulled up until midway down the backside. Winter Memories did appear to shorten stride at the wire, but trainer Jimmy Toner attributed that to Castellano taking a hold of the filly in deep stretch.

“I told him if he wanted to turning into the lane you can nudge on her a little bit and this way you can feel the acceleration,’’ Toner said. “But then he grabbed her and put his hands back down again.’’

Toner noted that the turf course was softer than he thought, adding “I wouldn’t say she grabbed it as well as if we had a nice firm turf course.’’

In addition to Hungry Island and Winter Memories, others pointing to the Garden City include Arch Support, Kathmanblu, Limonar, More Than Real, Pinch Pie, Salary Drive, Theyskens’ Theory, and possibly Good Karma.

Also working on the turf Sunday was multiple Grade 1 winner Get Stormy, who was credited with a half-mile in 52.32 seconds, getting a final quarter in 24.57 seconds under jockey Ramon Dominguez. Get Stormy is preparing for a start in the Grade 1 Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland on Oct. 8. It was Get Stormy’s first breeze since he finished second to Turallure in the Grade 2 Bernard Baruch at Saratoga on Aug. 26.

“The idea was to get a little air into him,’’ said trainer Tom Bush, who added he still has time to get three more works into Get Stormy. “Ramon said he actually got a little something out of it. He said he was very surprised how soft the turf was … there’s a lot of give to it.’’

Get Stormy had cut out of the Bernard Baruch with a several-inch gash above the hock on his right hind leg, which is believed to have happened by another horse stepping on him.

“It’s more an abrasion than it is a cut, it’s just that it’s an abrasion that took off three layers of skin deep; several layers of the epidermis came off, that’s why it’s so slow to granulate back in,’’ Bush said. “It’s doing very well. He really never got any swelling or any kind of hematoma in the area so we were very lucky there too.’’

Also working at Belmont Park was Travers runner-up Rattlesnake Bridge, who went four furlongs in 47.56 seconds in preparation for a possible start in the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby. Rattlesnake Bridge began his work several lengths behind workmate Implosion, but ended up finishing the work with a horse of Chad Brown’s who broke off almost simultaneously with one of his own stablemates.

Fire on Ice, the impressive 2-year-old debut winner at Saratoga trained by John Kimmel, worked four furlongs in 48.03 seconds in company with Mineralogist over the Belmont training track. He began the move three lengths behind Mineralogist and finished on even terms at the wire.

Kimmel is pointing Fire On Ice to the Grade 1 Champagne at Belmont on Oct. 8.

At Saratoga, King’s Bishop runner-up Uncle Mo worked four furlongs in 48.30 seconds. He is preparing for a start in the Grade 2 Kelso at Belmont Park on Oct. 1.