Juvenile Turf Sprint: Ward sorts out juveniles
Wesley Ward pre-entered 10 youngsters in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, a race he won last year. Six of those also were pre-entered in the Juvenile Turf or Juvenile Fillies Turf, both run at a mile. Ward, known for his prowess with his globe-trotting 2-year-olds, is a master at placing young horses in a position for success. He said that a horse’s physical build and way of moving can be tells as to which will handle stretching out, and which ought to remain sprinters.
“You can kind of see it by their strides,” Ward said. “Some of the shorter, choppier strides, those are going to be the sprinters. Some of the horses that have a bigger body to them and longer strides, those are the ones that are gonna stretch out. . . . As you get through the summer and into the fall, you can tell which ones are gonna stretch out.”
An individual horse’s personality also can tip the scales in favor of attempting a longer distance, as an easygoing horse may be able to carry their speed farther. More-anxious horses are apt to spend their energy early but can sometimes be taught to settle. Ward referenced these points in discussing Saturday’s final Breeders’ Cup works for Campanelle and Outadore, expected to try the routes of the Juvenile Fillies Turf and Juvenile Turf, respectively. The duo breezed together, with Campanelle taking the lead position.
“Both horses have different demeanors,” Ward said. “Campanelle is really laid back, easygoing; nothing bothers her. She’s so fast, but she’s got a really great mind and is a really relaxed-type horse. Outadore is a little bit the opposite. He’s kind of a charged-up guy, and he wants to go, so we’ve been putting her in front and trying to get him to settle. Both horses are getting exactly what I want out of the works.”