Gormley, Battle of Midway drill for Kentucky Derby

ARCADIA, Calif. – Gormley and Battle of Midway, the first two finishers in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby on April 8, worked independently at Santa Anita on Saturday in advance of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 6.

Gormley, trained by John Shirreffs, worked six furlongs in 1:15.80 in company with stablemate Oregon.

Battle of Midway, trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, also worked in company and was timed in 1:00.60 for five furlongs.

Battle of Midway worked slightly after dawn under jockey Flavien Prat. Battle of Midway started behind a stablemate in the workout and took command in the stretch, Hollendorfer said.

“He had a target to run at,” Hollendorfer said.

Battle of Midway will have one more workout at Santa Anita on Friday before being sent to Churchill Downs next weekend.

“He got a lot out of the Santa Anita Derby, so we don’t have a lot to do with him,” Hollendorfer said.

Earlier this week, Battle of Midway was acquired privately by WinStar Farm and Don Alberto Stable from Rick Porter.

Later in the morning, Gormley worked in company with Oregon and began about four lengths behind his stablemate. Gormley caught Oregon on the turn and rallied on the inside through the stretch to finish in front. Typically, horses working in company finish on the outside of stablemates, but Shirreffs wanted Gormley to close on the inside in case a similar scenario develops in the Kentucky Derby at 1 1/4 miles.

Overall, the workout was designed to teach Gormley to be patient, Shirreffs said.

“I like the way he started out,” Shirreffs said. “We want him to stay back as long as possible. It’s a mile and a quarter, and there’s no reason to be in a hurry.”