Connections pondering next steps for Alwaysmining

Going into the Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Park last Saturday, a good performance by Alwaysmining was going to land him a next-race start in the $125,000 Federico Tesio, a race that would serve as a prep for the Preakness Stakes on May 18 at Pimlico.

But Alwaysmining ran so well in the Private Terms, going wire to wire to win by 6 3/4 lengths and earning a 95 Beyer Speed Figure, that owners Gregory and Caroline Bentley and trainer Kelly Rubley are toying with the idea of chasing some Kentucky Derby qualifying points. The likely spots would be the $1 million Blue Grass at Keeneland or the $750,000 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct.

The Tesio also remains solidly in play.

“We’re still talking about where he will run next,” Rubley said. “We’ll sit down and decide when the time is right.”

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Rubley has kept Alwaysmining on a conservative path this winter, which has paid off handsomely. A Maryland-bred Stay Thirsty gelding, Alwaysmining has steadily improved and won five races in a row at Laurel Park, including four consecutive Laurel stakes.

In the 1 1/16-mile Private Terms, he aced his first start around two turns, just as Rubley thought he would.

Jockey Daniel Centeno put Alwaysmining on the lead and kept him well out in the track entering the first turn, floating chief rival Joevia wide. Once Joevia took back, Alwaysmining galloped the competition into the ground. He covered his final five-sixteenths of a mile in 29.99 seconds, the final sixteenth in 6.19, and was moving very well at the finish.

“I was thrilled with his performance,” Rubley said. “The farther he goes the better. After watching his last quarter-mile I was speechless.”

A number of factors will be considered in determining Alwaysmining’s next race.

The Wood and Blue Grass are both on April 6, meaning Alwaysmining would be running back on three weeks’ rest. The April 20 Tesio, a win and you’re in for the Preakness, follows the Private Terms by five weeks.

The Tesio and Preakness would only require easy, in-state van trips from Rubley’s stable at the Fair Hill Training Center. The Wood or Blue Grass would require more extensive travel, and if he finished first or second and earned enough qualifying points to make the Derby field, he would then head to Lousiville to compete in a 20-horse field. The Preakness lineup could be half that size.

Also, as a gelding, Alwaysmining’s future is on the racetrack. Patient handling at this stage of his career could pay dividends down the road, especially with a wealth of 3-year-old stakes on the horizon.

Regardless of where he starts next, the Private Terms did not appear to take much out of Alwaysmining.

“When he got back to the test barn after the race, he didn’t even look like he’d run,” Rubley said. “He’s bright, he’s alert, he’s doing very well.”