Clocker: Stopchargingmaria impresses in work

KEENELAND
Track: Fast
Weather: Raining
Temp: 62

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The clear skies that prevailed throughout the past week gave way to rain on Saturday morning at Keeneland, the change in weather having a major impact on the training schedules of a handful of prospective Breeders’ Cup starters, including Distaff contenders STOPCHARGINGMARIA and I’M A CHATTERBOX along with likely Sprint favorite PRIVATE ZONE.

Although rain fell steadily from the time the course opened at 5:30 a.m. until the harrows came out more than 2 1/2 hours later, the main track absorbed the water well and was officially designated as “fast” throughout the early training session. In fact, the added moisture seemingly served to tighten the surface a bit more than usual for that time of morning.

Surprisingly, Keeneland management opted to seal the track during the renovation break even though the forecast called for the rain to have moved out of the area by that time. The prospect of having a sealed track after the break prompted trainers to either push their scheduled works up several hours or postpone them altogether here Saturday.

Work of the day:

STOPCHARGINGMARIA (four furlongs in 46.91 seconds) was among those originally expected to breeze at 8:30 a.m. but instead came out to work during a pretty steady downpour at 6 a.m.

Stopchargingmaria went in company with the multiple allowance winner Catron and just toyed with her mate pretty much the entire way. Catron had to be put to a steady drive to keep pace with the multiple Grade 1-winning mare, who was well held throughout while breezing nearest the rail.

Stopchargingmaria stuck her head in front at the wire after posting a sparkling 22.09-second final quarter-mile split before proceeding to gallop out “insanely,” as trainer Todd Pletcher put it in a text message shortly after the work, edging a length clear after five furlongs in 58.90 before pulling up three-quarters in an awesome 1:11.92.

This was the second extremely impressive work that Stopchargingmaria has turned in over this track during the past week and gives every indication that she’s going into the Distaff at the top of her game.

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I’M A CHATTERBOX, like Stopchargingmaria, was slated to work after the break, but the news of a sealed track forced trainer Larry Jones’s hand. Although still fast, the track did have a bit of a splash to it by the time I’m a Chatterbox broke off at the five-furlong pole under regular rider Florent Geroux.

In what was little more than a maintenance-type drill, I’m a Chatterbox recorded splits of 24.16 and 36.14 for her opening three-eighths before completing the distance in 1:00.92, with Geroux sitting chilly and never prompting her. The gallop-out was just average, six furlongs in 1:15.33.
Word that the track would be sealed must have reached trainer Jorge Navarro’s barn a bit late, as PRIVATE ZONE was among the last horses on the track, Breeders’ Cup contenders or otherwise, coming out to breeze shortly before 8 a.m.

Private Zone backtracked to the five-furlong pole, quickly reversed direction, then broke off at the three-eighths pole, getting to the wire in 35.77 before continuing out a half-mile into the turn in 48.45, going fairly handily throughout. He eased up pretty abruptly thereafter, five-eighths in 1:03.60, in what, with the late switch in plans, was probably not what his connections were really looking for today.

LIMOUSINE LIBERAL was the first Breeders’ Cup horse to work shortly after the track opened, putting his ample speed on display for a second straight week, completing four furlongs from the three-eighths pole over the tight track in 46.40 before galloping out five-eighths in 59.80. He appears to be thriving, although he does seem a bit overmatched in the Sprint.

EXAGGERATOR, another originally scheduled to work after the break, breezed in the rain and dark around 6:30 while given the opportunity to stretch his legs a lot more than the previous week. Exaggerator broke off five lengths behind a target and drew nearly 10 lengths clear at the wire after completing five furlongs under some encouragement in 59.60 before galloping out six panels in 1:13.

MONGOLIAN SATURDAY, as usual, waited until just before the track closed for the morning to train, and for the second time in three days, he blew out three furlongs, this morning in 37.59 while ducking in some near midstretch before drifting back out again while galloping out into the turn. The speedster continues to use an unorthodox training method to prepare for his role as one of the likely pacesetters in the Turf Sprint.

BEHOLDER continues to make a very favorable impression, this morning galloping 1 3/8 miles out in the middle of the track at a fairly lively pace at her usual training time of 7:15 a.m. SMOOTH ROLLER also kept to what has now been a familiar schedule with him, never doing anything more than walking or jogging alongside a pony, going clockwise twice around the oval after the renovation break.