Breeders' Cup: Rich Strike shows he's feeling good after bout with cough

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Rich Strike returned to the track Friday morning with a spirited gallop, alleviating any concerns that there might be something amiss with the Kentucky Derby winner heading into the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 5 at Keeneland.

“He was super strong,” trainer Eric Reed said. “He’s fine.”

On Tuesday, Rich Strike worked five furlongs in 1:02.71 at Keeneland and afterward coughed a few times. After a normal day off on Wednesday, Rich Strike didn’t go to the track Thursday. Instead, Reed opted to jog and gallop him a few times around the shed row in a nearby empty barn. Reed had taken bloodwork on Rich Strike following the work and it came back fine, he said.

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“He hasn’t coughed since Tuesday,” Reed said. “It was just overkill on my end, playing it safe. My vet told me to send him out, but I was just being cautious.”

Reed said Rich Strike will be on a regular early morning gallop pattern up to the Breeders’ Cup. Reed said he is inclined not to give Rich Strike another workout before the Classic since the horse gets so much out of his daily gallops.

“I’d only do it if he got unmanageable in his gallops and I feel like I needed to knock the edge off him,” Reed said. “I watched Flightline gallop for the first time [Friday]; it gives you goosebumps. We’re all going to need to be on edge to stay with him.”

Indeed, Flightline, the undefeated superstar and prohibitive Classic favorite, had a very impressive-looking gallop in the dark Friday morning at Keeneland, one day in advance of his final prerace workout Saturday morning. Keeneland fans who attended the races early Friday got a sneak peek at Flightline, who schooled in the paddock prior to the card’s first race.

Life Is Good, the expected second choice for the Classic, had a 1 1/16-mile gallop Friday morning. Trainer Todd Pletcher said he went easy with the three-time Grade 1 winner because he was expected to have his final workout Saturday morning as well.

The only Breeders’ Cup Classic horse to work Friday did so hundreds of miles away at Saratoga, where Olympiad, the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup winner, worked a half-mile in 49 seconds over the Oklahoma training track, according to track clockers. He went by himself whereas last week he went in company with Cody’s Wish.

“We put some pretty stiff works in him leading up to this,” trainer Bill Mott said by phone from Saratoga. “This is what we wanted.”

Mott worked seven of his nine potential Breeders’ Cup starters at Saratoga on Sunday, including War Like Goddess (a half-mile in 49.80 seconds in company) and Cody’s Wish (a half-mile in 48 seconds).

Of Cody’s Wish, among the favorites for the Dirt Mile, Mott said “He was moving like a well-oiled machine coming through the stretch.”

All seven of Mott’s Saratoga-based horses were expected to leave upstate New York Saturday afternoon and arrive at Keeneland early Sunday morning. Casa Creed (Turf Sprint) and Channel Maker (Turf) are based at Churchill and Belmont, respectively.

At Keeneland Friday, Pletcher worked four of his 2-year-olds topped by the pair of Forte and Lost Ark, who went a half-mile in 48.81 together in preparation for the Juvenile, according to DRF clocker Mike Welsch.

“I was happy with both of them,” Pletcher said. “Seemed to make good teammates again. Solid work, finished up good, galloped out strong.”

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While Forte is likely to go off the second choice behind Cave Road in the Juvenile, Lost Ark would be a longshot if he runs. Pletcher said he would talk to managing partner Curtis Harrell of Harrell Ventures about whether to run Lost Ark in the Juvenile or await a race like the Remsen on Dec. 3 at Aqueduct.

“The breeze I saw this morning was good enough to run if they want to take a shot,” Pletcher said.

Lost Ark won the Sapling at Monmouth but had a nightmarish trip while finishing sixth in the Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland behind Forte.

Pletcher worked his pair of Juvenile Fillies prospects, Chocolate Gelato and Atomically, who went a half-mile in 50.11, according to Welsch. Atomically, who will be making her first start for Pletcher in the Juvenile Fillies, had her Beyer Speed Figure adjusted from a 77 to an 83 for her win in the My Dear Girl Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

At Churchill Downs on Friday, Champagne runner-up Verifying worked five furlongs in 1:00 in company with Juvenile Fillies prospect Chop Chop. Churchill clocker John Nichols caught the pair in splits of 11.80, 23.40, 35.80, and 47.40 and galloping out six furlongs in 1:13.

“I thought Chop Chop was moving maybe a little easier on the outside,” trainer Brad Cox told Churchill Downs publicity. “They both cooled out well and will head over to Keeneland on Monday.”

The Juvenile lost one candidate as Awesome Strong was withdrawn from consideration due to a “minor shin problem,” trainer Jorge Delgado said. Awesome Strong, who had won all four of his races including all three legs of the Florida Sire Series, will be sent to Ocala for 60 days’ rest of before preparing for a 3-year-old campaign.

Congruent will run in the Juvenile and not the Juvenile Turf, trainer Antonio Sano said Friday. Congruent worked a half-mile in 49.91 over Keeneland’s main track, and jockey Luis Saez told him he liked the dirt. Saez, however, is expected to ride Lost Ark if he runs.

“I like him better on the dirt than the turf,” Sano said of Congruent.

Curly Jack, the Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes winner, worked a half-mile in 50.30 on Friday at Keeneland after moving over from Churchill Downs earlier in the week.

“It was just an easy half-mile with a nice gallop-out,” trainer Tom Amoss said at Keeneland. “We feel we put in all the major work into him already.”

With Wound Up listed 26th on the preference list for the Juvenile Turf Sprint, the son of Mendelssohn will make his debut on dirt in the Juvenile.

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