East Avenue works toward Oaklawn Mile

East Avenue worked a half-mile Friday morning at Fair Grounds in a swift 46.80 seconds, the fastest of 117 works at the distance. He is set to make his 4-year-old debut March 28 in the $500,000 Oaklawn Mile.

East Avenue, a Grade 1 winner at 2, finished second by a nose in the Blue Grass Stakes last April and won the Grade 3 Matt Winn at Churchill before ending his 3-year-old campaign with a fifth in the West Virginia Derby on Aug. 3.

Trainer Brendan Walsh, who said East Avenue has trained strongly this winter, had the colt with his Palm Meadows string until early this month, sending East Avenue to Fair Grounds to facilitate the ship to Oaklawn.

* Ben Curtis, third-leading rider this season at Fair Grounds, took off his mounts the last three days of the meet to fully recover from a spill during a race last week. Curtis, his agent Ron Faucheux said, has no serious injuries and could have pushed himself to ride this weekend, but he instead will fully heal and prepare for the Keeneland meet.

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