Joseph opts not to ship White Abarrio; will go in Jockey Club Gold Cup
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – After briefly flirting with taking him cross-country for the Grade 1 Pacific Classic at Del Mar, the connections of White Abarrio have decided to leave their 2023 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner on the East Coast and run him in the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup on Aug. 31 at Saratoga.
Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. said what he’s seen from White Abarrio’s training since his fourth-place finish in the Whitney here on Aug. 3 leads him to believe he’s sitting on a top effort.
“The confidence the horse gives us right now, you don’t have to ship,” Joseph said Thursday about deciding to stay in Saratoga. “We feel like when he’s good, he’s as good as any. That’s what he’s showing us right now. He’s ready to run really well, and we feel his really good race is fast enough to win the race.”
In the Jockey Club Gold, White Abarrio is expected to face Mindframe, winner of the Grade 1 Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs; the Whitney Stakes top three finishers – Sierra Leone, Highland Falls, and Disarm – and Suburban Stakes one-two finishers Phileas Fogg and Antiquarian.
Irad Ortiz Jr. has ridden White Abarrio for his last 10 starts, including a victory in the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Classic. But Ortiz is committed to ride Mindframe in the Jockey Club Gold.
It is expected that Ricardo Santana Jr. will pick up the mount on White Abarrio for the Gold Cup. On Friday, over Saratoga’s main track, Santana guided White Abarrio through a half-mile work in 48.30 seconds, per Daily Racing Form clocker Mike Welsch. Working outside of the maiden Champagne Brunch, White Abarrio got his last quarter in 23.61 and continued out five furlongs in 1:01.10, six furlongs in 1:14.06, and seven furlongs in 1:27.83.
“I see exactly what I want to see, I’m extremely happy with the horse, I feel like we finally got him on the line that we need him to be and hopefully he stays this way into the race,” Joseph said. “There’s no reason the horse should not run as close to as fast as he’s ever run in his life before if everything stays as good as it is right now.”
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