Breeders' Cup Classic: Early workers beat the rain

ARCADIA, Calif. – On a frenetic morning that saw two Kentucky Derby winners work hours apart at tracks separated by 32 miles, five horses preparing for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita on Nov. 5 turned in drills for the race on Thursday in Southern California, headed by the acknowledged favorite, California Chrome.

The morning began at 5:30 just down the road at Los Alamitos, where California Chrome went six furlongs in 1:12.08, according to Daily Racing Form clocker Mike Welsch; he was given an official time of 1:12.20. Later, here at Santa Anita, works were turned in by Frosted, Melatonin, Nyquist, and Win the Space.

Several of the works were moved up owing to a storm that was predicted to move into the area later Thursday.

California Chrome originally was scheduled to work on Saturday, but trainer Art Sherman said he was leery of working California Chrome over a track that might still be drying out on Saturday. California Chrome worked well under exercise rider Dihigi Gladney. Beginning at the five-furlong pole, he got to the wire in 59 seconds flat and continued out well without being asked for a thing.

“He was better this week than last week,” Gladney said.

Sherman said he was glad to get the work out of the way in advance of the storm.

“It’s supposed to come down pretty hard,” he said.

Sherman said he “wasn’t 100 percent sure” whether California Chrome would work next week at Santa Anita; he is scheduled to be sent by van here Sunday.

“We’ll see,” Sherman said. “He’ll gallop two miles every day. He puts so much into his gallops.”

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California Chrome won the Kentucky Derby in 2014. Nyquist won it this year. They will meet for the first time in the Classic.

Nyquist worked seven furlongs in 1:27.60, but the work did not go as trainer Doug O’Neill had planned, as workmate Ralis, under exercise rider Jonny Garcia, dashed out well in front of Nyquist seemingly before jockey Mario Gutierrez and Nyquist were ready.

Once about 20 lengths behind down the backstretch, Nyquist caught Ralis in upper stretch. O’Neill clearly was upset when the work began. He walked away in disgust from a group watching the work with him and watched the end of the work a good distance away. Minutes later, cooled out, he said, “What’s the saying, ‘Make a plan and God laughs at you?’

“We planned on them being a lot closer at the start. Mario made up a lot of ground,” O’Neill said. “He came back covered in dirt. The track seems heavy and safe. It’s got a good cushion. We’ll get a good blow out of him.”

Frosted, like California Chrome, had his work moved up. He had been scheduled to go Friday, the irony being that he came out here early from New York in anticipation of better weather.

Frosted worked a half-mile in 48.23 seconds under exercise rider Rob Massey. Neal McLaughlin, here assisting his brother, trainer Kiaran, said it was the first time Frosted had worked on dirt since March and the first time he had worked left-handed since January. He regularly trains on synthetic at Greentree in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., and works right-handed.

“We’re trying to get him nice and fresh, hopefully like he was before the Met Mile,” Neal McLaughlin said.

Frosted’s work was delayed slightly owing to a horse who dropped dead from an apparent heart attack at around 8 a.m., necessitating a delay to have the horse ambulance on the track.

“He had just walked out, so we took him back into the barn for a bit, but he was fine,” McLaughlin said. “The hard part’s over now. He’ll school in the paddock, and we’ll take him to the gate one day. We like the gate crew to be familiar with our horses.”

Melatonin worked five furlongs in 59.67 seconds under jockey Joe Talamo, just five days after working a mile as trainer David Hofmans tightens him for his first start in more than four months.

“He did that pretty easy,” said Hofmans, who said Melatonin could have a final half-mile breeze next week “if he comes out of this work as fresh as he did his last.”

Win the Space, with Gary Stevens up, went six furlongs in 1:13.16.

“He did it easily,” said trainer George Papaprodromou. “He barely asked him the last sixteenth.”

– additional reporting by Mike Welsch