Early Voting gets final tune-up for Jim Dandy Stakes

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Preakness winner Early Voting got his first feel for Saratoga’s main track Saturday morning as he worked five furlongs in 1:01 in preparation for next Saturday’s Grade 2, $600,000 Jim Dandy Stakes.

With regular rider Jose Ortiz up, Early Voting broke slightly off of stablemate Accretive, a 5 3/4-length debut winner June 26 at Belmont. Early Voting tracked Accretive to the top of the stretch after three furlongs in 36.47 seconds, and the two basically finished together with Accretive a short head in front at the wire.

“We wanted to see how he was moving over the track,” Brown said afterward. “He seems to be a pretty good horse in that way. It seems he takes his racetrack with him. I never see him train poorly, but it’s always nice to get that out of the way and give him a work over the track to see that he’s moving well.”

Brown had Early Voting based at Belmont Park since last November. He didn’t ship to Saratoga until last Sunday. Early Voting did spend part of last fall at Saratoga, working five times over the Oklahoma training track.

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Early Voting will be joined in the starting gate for the Jim Dandy by Zandon, who Brown worked five furlongs by himself in 1:01.95. It was Zandon’s second work at Saratoga and eighth since he finished third in the Kentucky Derby.

“It was a nice easy work for him,” Brown said. “I was really pleased in how he was moving.”

A field of four is expected for the Jim Dandy. Epicenter, the Kentucky Derby and Preakness runner-up, and Tawny Port, the Grade 3 Ohio Derby winner, are considered definite.

Ethereal Road, who worked a half-mile out of the gate in 49.60 on Saturday morning over the Oklahoma training track in company with the unraced 2-year-old Track Mate, is nominated to both the Jim Dandy and Friday’s $100,000 Curlin Stakes. Trainer D. Wayne Lukas has not committed to running the horse next weekend and said he could train the horse up to the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers here on Aug. 27.

The Curlin, restricted to 3-year-olds who have not won a graded stakes at a mile or longer this year, is expected to draw Artorius, Be Better, Creative Minister, Gilded Age, Golden Glider, Western River, and Wolfe County.

Entries for the Curlin will be taken Sunday.

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On Saturday, Creative Minister and Wolfe County worked five furlongs together in 1:00.95. Creative Minister ran third in the Preakness and fifth in the Belmont Stakes. Trainer Kenny McPeek said he was looking for a little class relief for Creative Minister.

Wolfe County, a son of Medaglia d’Oro, is coming out of a 1 1/2-length victory in a 1 3/16-mile maiden race June 24 at Churchill Downs.