Breeders' Cup Classic: Sovereignty works five furlongs at Saratoga
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Sovereignty worked five furlongs in 1:02.76 Sunday morning over the Oklahoma training track in Saratoga and trainer Bill Mott said afterward the horse is expected to ship to Kentucky on Tuesday to continue preparations for the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Oct. 31 at Keeneland.
Saratoga track clockers caught Sovereignty in splits of 12.84 seconds, 24.79, 36.99 and had him galloping out six furlongs in 1:16.65.
Sovereignty, under assistant trainer Neil Poznansky, started his move behind his regular workmate Time To Roll. A video posted online under the X account @BobbyAtTheSpa showed Sovereignty about two lengths behind Time to Roll approaching the quarter pole. Sovereignty, coming on the outside, finished even with Time to Roll, but then galloped out far in front.
“Looked good breezing to me,” Mott said. “Neil thought everything was status-quo.”
While Mott has at times put Sovereignty in front of his workmate to allow him to better dictate the work, on Sunday Mott had Sovereignty start behind Time to Roll.
“We wanted a little bit better work and the other horse went all the way with him to the wire,” Mott said.
Sovereignty has not raced since his victory in the Grade 1 Whitney at Saratoga on Aug. 8. He was pointing to the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup on Sept. 18 at Belmont, but missed some training time and that race due to an abscess on his left hind foot. Sunday’s work was Sovereignty’s fourth since getting back on the worktab. He has trained in a bar shoe on his left hind foot but will not race in it, Mott said.
“I think he’s done enough,” said Mott when asked if he’s gotten enough training into Sovereignty to be ready for the Classic off a three-month layoff.
Mott plans another work for Sovereignty next weekend at Keeneland.
Mott also trains Knightsbridge, winner of the Grade 1 Pacific Classic in his last start. Knightsbridge has been on a different training schedule than Sovereignty and breezed five furlongs in 1:01.40 on Oct. 15. That move came 10 days after Knightsbridge worked six furlongs in 1:12.96.
Knightsbridge is expected to be pre-entered in both the Classic and the $1 million Dirt Mile. Mott said he is fine to run Knightsbridge in whichever race the team at Godolphin - which owns both horses - want to run in.
“It’s a team decision, I think,” Mott said. “I feel like I’m part of the team, but if they want to run in two different races I’m all in, but by the same token if they said they really wanted to run [Knightsbridge] in the Classic, I’m fine with it.
“As we speak right now there’s a good possibility that we run in two different races,” Mott added. “That could change, nothing’s written in stone.”
Mott also has T Kraft for a Breeders’ Cup race. T Kraft, winner of the Vosburgh, will be pre-entered in both the Sprint and Dirt Mile.
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