Life Is Good takes aim at BC Classic and Flightline
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Life Is Good did not win Saturday’s Grade 1 Woodward Stakes with the brilliance many expected or to which they have become accustomed, but the performance was good enough for his connections to continue on to the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Nov. 5 at Keeneland and a meeting with the undefeated Flightline.
“We got what we were hoping for five weeks out from our main goal,” Todd Pletcher, who trains Life Is Good for WinStar Farm and China Horse Club, said Sunday morning. “Obviously, we wanted to win yesterday and hopefully have something left in the tank.”
Life Is Good, sent off at 1-20, had to repel a challenge from Law Professor to win by just 1 1/4 lengths over an extremely sloppy track. The 97 Beyer Speed Figure he earned was his lowest since he won his career debut with a 91 as a 2-year-old.
“To me, it’s a hard day to put too much emphasis on the figures,” Pletcher said. “It was the only two-turn race of the day, the track was changing throughout the day. He ran the last three-eighths in [36.50 seconds] and he galloped out good, too.”
In addition to the workmanlike manner in which Life Is Good won the race, there will be those who question his acumen at the Classic distance of 1 1/4 miles. In his only try at that distance, Life Is Good finished fourth in the Dubai World Cup. Pletcher said the Meydan track was extremely deep that day. He is hoping for a quicker surface that can sometimes be in play at Keeneland. In 2020, the last time the Breeders’ Cup was held at Keeneland, there were four track records set on the dirt.
“Obviously, we don’t know how the Keeneland track is playing because they haven’t been running there, but if you look, it might be the first time he’s really going to catch a quick surface in a while,” Pletcher said. “Clearly didn’t get one in Dubai; Saratoga was deep and demanding and this Aqueduct track has been deep and demanding since it opened. He might catch a glib track for the first time since the Pegasus.”
In the Pegasus, at Gulfstream Park, Life Is Good outfooted defending Horse of the Year Knicks Go into the first turn and scored a front-running, 3 1/4-length victory.
Life Is Good was scheduled to leave Belmont Park on Monday afternoon and arrive at Keeneland on Tuesday morning, said Pletcher, who will assemble the majority of his BC horses at Keeneland early.
Pletcher could have as many as four horses for the Classic. Americanrevolution, runner-up in the Jockey Club Gold Cup, and Happy Saver, fourth in Saturday’s Lukas Classic at Churchill Downs, are still pointed to that race. Dynamic One, the Grade 2 Suburban winner, is possible for the Classic or the Fayette Stakes on Oct. 29 at Keeneland.
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