Gotta Go back from long break in sprint

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The last time Gotta Go was seen locally, at this time last year, he was on the Kentucky Derby trail, a dream that ended following a sixth-place finish in the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth and an 11th-place effort in the Blue Grass.

On Sunday, Gotta Go returns to Gulfstream Park to kick off what trainer Ian Wilkes hopes will be a successful 4-year-old campaign. He will be turning back to six furlongs and facing six rivals in the 12th race, the second and best of two consecutive optional-claiming races on the 13-race card.

Gotta Go was a stakes winner at 2 and ran second in the seven-furlong Swale here last winter prior to his disappointing outings in the Fountain of Youth and Blue Grass. A son of Shanghai Bobby, Gotta Go would start just once more on the year, finishing a tiring sixth in the Grade 3 Peter Pan last May before going to the sidelines.

“He started getting sick on me last year. In fact, that may have been the reason for his form deteriorating like it did at the end there, so we just decided to regroup and give him the time off,” Wilkes said. “He’s been training well, but he’s probably not 100 percent ready to go just yet. We needed to get a race to knock some of the cobwebs off, sharpen him up, and get him back into the swing of racing again, and this is the one I found. Eventually, I hope to stretch him back around two turns, and I also wouldn’t mind trying him on turf sometime down the road.”

Timber Ghost also is coming off a layoff, having been idle since finishing second under similar conditions in his 3-year-old finale on Nov. 21 at Aqueduct. The Stronach Stables homebred had captured his two previous starts, posting a 95 Beyer Speed Figure in winning his first-level allowance condition going seven furlongs early last fall at Belmont Park.

Impact Player is the likely favorite and one to beat in the main event after returning from a 10-month layoff to finish third, beaten a neck, here Jan. 20 for trainer Todd Pletcher.