Math Wizard pushes Ny Traffic just enough in workout
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. wanted to make sure he found someone competitive enough in his barn to work with his Kentucky Derby-bound Ny Traffic after the renovation break here Thursday. And he found the perfect mate in the older Grade 1 winner Math Wizard.
Breaking from the five-furlong pole, Ny Traffic, working nearest the rail, and Math Wizard were inseparable throughout the work. They completed the distance in 1:00.34, with a final quarter in 23.75 seconds, and galloped out six furlongs in 1:13.76. Tyler Gaffalione was aboard Ny Traffic, and Joseph’s assistant Sabina Langvad rode Math Wizard. Gaffalione was deputizing for Paco Lopez, who is listed to ride Ny Traffic in the Derby.
The work was the second for Ny Traffic since his second-place finish behind odds-on Authentic in the Grade 1 Haskell at Monmouth on July 18.
“He went well,” Joseph said. “I wanted something at a middle distance – five furlongs – and they did it the right way, finishing strong with a good gallop-out. He’s a solid work horse, but I didn’t want to overdo it. That’s why I put him inside. I didn’t want Math Wizard to go too fast and have him chasing from outside. Both riders executed it perfectly.”
Joseph said all has gone well for Ny Traffic since the Haskell and that he plans to complete all his major training at Saratoga before boarding a flight to Churchill Downs on Monday or Tuesday before the Derby.
“I don’t want to be too confident, but everything has gone as good as we hoped to this point,” Joseph said. “Next week will be his serious work. I’ll sit him five or six lengths off another horse. Just who that will be, I haven’t decided yet.”
:: KENTUCKY DERBY 2020: Derby Watch, point standings, prep schedule, news, and more
Chances are it won’t be Math Wizard again. The winner of the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby last year, Math Wizard is coming off a second-place finish behind Global Campaign in the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup on July 18. Joseph has two options for Math Wizard’s next start, either the Grade 1 Woodward here Sept. 5 or the Charles Town Classic a week earlier.
“It’s going to be the owner’s choice, and right now we are leaning towards Charles Town, but that could be subject to change,” Joseph said.