Life Is Good might prep for Whitney in John Nerud Stakes
The multiple Grade 1 winner Life Is Good returned to trainer Todd Pletcher’s Belmont Park barn on Tuesday and he could return to the races in the Grade 2, $250,000 John A. Nerud Stakes at Belmont on July 2.
Life Is Good had been at WinStar Farm in Lexington, Ky., since he returned home from Dubai where he finished fourth as the favorite in the $12 million Dubai World Cup on March 26. Prior to that, Life Is Good had won six of seven starts, including the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile and the Pegasus World Cup, both Grade 1 races.
Pletcher said Tuesday afternoon that Life Is Good’s summer goal is the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney at Saratoga on Aug. 6 and that the Nerud, at seven furlongs, might be a good prep for that 1 1/8-mile race.
“He’s versatile enough to do anything,” Pletcher said. “In order to take our best shot at the Whitney, we might be better suited to have a prep race before that. We’ll see how he trains.”
Pletcher said Life Is Good had a breeze at WinStar last Friday before he shipped to New York.
Meanwhile, Pletcher said that Americanrevolution, last fall’s Grade 1 Cigar Mile winner, had a solid breeze Monday at Belmont Park, working five furlongs in 1:01.02 over the training track.
“If he comes back with a breeze like that next week, we’ll be on target for the Commentator,” Pletcher said, referring to the $200,000 race for New York-breds going one mile on the May 30 Memorial Day card.