Good Magic, Vino Rosso, Prince Lucky drill for summer stakes

ELMONT, N.Y. – Good Magic, Vino Rosso, and Prince Lucky were the prominent 3-year-olds on the work tab Saturday at Belmont Park, while Gronkowski for the second straight week was not.

Good Magic, preparing for the $1 million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park on July 29, worked a sharp five furlongs in 1:00.81 in company with Backyard Heaven. The pair got their last quarter in 24.39 seconds and galloped out six furlongs in 1:14.10.

Good Magic, the Kentucky Derby runner-up, has not run since finishing fourth in the Preakness Stakes after dueling with Justify.

“He’s a tough horse. I think everyone now knows and respects that, and he’s come back and trained well,” trainer Chad Brown said. “Very proud of the horse, the way he’s handled everything; delighted to still have him breezing in top form. He breezed against an older horse today in Backyard Heaven, who is quite a nice horse himself, and I thought they went great together.”

Backyard Heaven, sixth as the favorite in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster, is pointing to the Grade 1, $1.2 million Whitney at Saratoga on Aug. 4.

Meanwhile, Brown said Belmont Stakes runner-up Gronkowski did not work for a second straight week. Brown previously said Gronkowski had had a “minor setback” out of his June 23 work. The horse is training and could return to the work tab next weekend, Brown said.

“Jim Dandy’s iffy now,” Brown said. “My goal is to make the Travers. If I fall behind, I’ll train him up to it.”

Brown also said that Instilled Regard, the Kentucky Derby fourth-place finisher who recently joined his barn, is galloping but not ready to breeze yet.

Vino Rosso, in his first work since finishing fourth in the Belmont Stakes, worked a half-mile over the main track in 50.32 seconds with the 3-year-old maiden winner Autostrade. Vino Rosso, the Wood Memorial winner, is targeting the Grade 2, $600,000 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga on July 28.

“We were just looking for a maintenance-type work; we’ll ship him up to Saratoga and get a little more serious for the next couple of breezes,” trainer Todd Pletcher said.

Prince Lucky, the winner of the Easy Goer Stakes on June 8 while making his second start as a gelding, worked a half-mile in 47.94 seconds, finishing slightly ahead of the Grade 1-winning filly Unbridled Mo, who is pointing to next Saturday’s Grade 2, $750,000 Delaware Handicap. Prince Lucky is likely to run in the $100,000 Curlin Stakes at Saratoga on July 27, though Pletcher didn’t rule out trying something more ambitious.

“The longer he’s been a gelding, the more professional and consistent he’s become,” Pletcher said.

Other notable works included:

• Hi Happy, the winner of the Grade 1 Man o’ War, worked a half-mile in 49.12 seconds in company with Blind Ambition. Hi Happy is pointing to the Grade 2, $250,000 Bowling Green on July 28, while Blind Ambition will run next Saturday in the $150,000 Forbidden Apple at Belmont.

• Lewis Bay, the 5 1/2-length winner of the Grade 2 Bed o’ Roses here on June 8, worked a half-mile in 48.21 seconds. She could train up to the Grade 1 Ballerina on Aug. 25.

• Pacific Wind, the winner of the Grade 2 Ruffian and fourth in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps, worked a half-mile in 47.60 seconds in company with the undefeated Chilean-bred Wow Cat, who went the same time. Both fillies are possible for the Grade 3, $200,000 Shuvee Handicap at Saratoga on July 29.