McPeek hoping for big weekend in juvenile stakes

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Kenny McPeek was still a bit jet-lagged Tuesday after returning the previous day from his long trip to South Korea, where the trainer sent out The Truth Or Else to a fourth-place finish in a race called the Keeneland Sprint.

“I’ll be fine in a day or two,” said McPeek.

McPeek would be doing even better this weekend with good showings at Churchill Downs from his star 2-year-olds Sunny Skies and Ten City, who are among the top contenders in the Saturday co-features, the Grade 2 Pocahontas and Grade 3 Iroquois.

“I think both are going to get better with distance,” he said.

Entries for the 11-race Saturday card were drawn Wednesday, with big fields expected for the twin 2-year-old races. Both are 1 1/16-mile races offering Win and You’re In berths to the Breeders’ Cup and eligibility points to the 2018 Kentucky Oaks and Derby.

Ten City, the winner of the Bashford Manor at the spring meet, was third as the odds-on favorite behind Dak Attack last month in the Ellis Park Juvenile. Trainer Dale Romans considered the Iroquois for Dak Attack before deciding to wait for the Oct. 7 Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland with the unbeaten colt, who is a prospect for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

“I’ve got prospects for the Breeders’ Cup, but they’re all for the same race,” said Romans. “We’ll run Hollywood Star in the Iroquois, Dak Attack at Keeneland, and Free Drop Billy in the [Oct. 7] Champagne at Belmont. We keep them separated, and the timing makes sense for all three.”

Two other stakes, the Locust Grove and Open Mind, also will be run here Saturday. First post is 12:45 p.m. Eastern, with the last race going at about 5:20. That will give local sports fans plenty of time to move over to nearby Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium for the 8 p.m. kickoff to the Clemson-Louisville college football game.

Churchill estimates that about 1,000 Clemson fans attended the track prior to its night game two years ago with Louisville.