Breeders' Cup Classic: Arcangelo has first California workout
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A little more than a week after his arrival from New York, the star 3-year-old Arcangelo worked five furlongs in 1:02.20 at Santa Anita on Thursday, the start of his local preparation for the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 4.
“It was a nice first work over the surface,” trainer Jena Antonucci said. “I’m boring. I have no complaint.”
Arcangelo, unraced since a one-length win on a muddy track in the Grade 1 Travers Stakes at 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga on Aug. 26, was ridden by his regular exercise rider Robert Mallari in the workout.
Owned by Blue Rose Farm, Arcangelo was flown to California on Sept. 27. Arcangelo will have slightly more than a month of training at Santa Anita before the BC Classic, his stakes debut against older horses.
“He likes the surface,” Antonucci said. “He’s settled in really well.”
Antonucci said Arcangelo will have workouts on the stable’s “same schedule” as has been customary in recent months, or once every 10 days.
Thursday’s workout was not particularly fast, ranking 16th of 17 at the distance, and was the first for Arcangelo since he breezed five furlongs in 1:03.20 on the training track at Saratoga on Sept. 22.
Arcangelo has won his last four starts, including the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes at 1 1/2 miles at Park on June 10, a victory that gave Antonucci the distinction of being the first woman to train the winner of a Triple Crown race.
In the BC Classic, two of Arcangelo’s top rivals will be 3-year-olds, notably the California-based Arabian Knight and Geaux Rocket Ride, who were first and second in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic at 1 1/4 miles at Del Mar on Sept. 2.
The Japanese shipper Ushba Tesoro and the New York graded stakes winners Bright Future, White Abarrio, and Zandon are rated as the leading contenders among older horses.
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