Mott confirms Sovereignty out of Jockey Club Gold Cup
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ELMONT, N.Y. – Making official what was widely anticipated, trainer Bill Mott said Friday that Sovereignty, the Grade 1 Whitney winner and reigning Horse of the Year, will not be entered in the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup to be run next Friday at Belmont Park.
Sovereignty more than a week ago developed an abscess in his hind left foot that forced him to miss two workouts and has kept him off the track for more than one week. Mott said Friday that the hope is Sovereignty could return to the track by the middle of next week and that he plans to attempt to train Sovereignty up to the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic on Oct. 31 at Keeneland.
“All I can tell you is I can take the 57 years of experience I have doing this and do my best,” Mott said.
Mott has two other potential candidates for the Gold Cup but as of Friday, did not confirm if he was planning to run either in the 1 1/4-mile race. Baeza, fourth in the Whitney, was to have a breeze on Saturday in Saratoga and that workout will help decide if he will run there or in the Grade 1 Goodwood at Santa Anita on Sept. 26, which is where Baeza was being pointed. Stars and Stripes, winner of the Birdstone Stakes at 1 3/4 miles in his most recent start, on Friday worked a half-mile in 49.12 seconds over the Oklahoma training track, per Daily Racing Form clocker Mike Welsch.
Mott said he was happy with the work and planned to talk to the owners of Stars and Stripes later Friday to decide whether or not to run.
On Friday, the Gold Cup lost another prospective starter in Money Game, who suffered an injury to his right front leg in a workout Friday morning at Saratoga. Money Game had won his first four starts before finishing a well-beaten second to Knightsbridge in the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup on July 18. Trainer Brad Cox said Money Game should be fine but will obviously miss the Gold Cup.
Trainer Mark Casse said Friday that he was leaning toward running his champion filly Nitrogen in the Grade 2, $250,000 Beldame on Sept. 25 at Belmont rather than the Jockey Club Gold Cup. Nitrogen was scheduled to breeze at Belmont Park on Saturday morning.
Casse had planned to run Nitrogen in Saturday’s Locust Grove Stakes at Churchill Downs, but Casse said it was too hot to ship the filly on the day she was scheduled to leave Saratoga. Instead, Casse kept her in Saratoga until the beginning of the week, when he shipped her to Belmont Park.
“Our goal is to try and win the Breeders’ Cup [Distaff],” Casse said Friday. “Our thought is maybe a little easier race prior to it is better. Right now, the plan is to go to the Beldame.”
Meanwhile, at Belmont Park Friday morning, Phileas Fogg, who won the Grade 2 Suburban on July 4 by 10 lengths, worked five furlongs in 1:00.45 over Belmont’s main track under jockey Kendrick Carmouche. Phileas Fogg went his first three furlongs in 36.60 seconds and came home in 23.75.
“The way he did it, he started off nice and easy, but turning for home he finished very, very nice and the gallop-out was beautiful,” trainer Gustavo Rodriguez said. “Kendrick told me, ‘Gustavo, he loves the track.’ ”
Forever Young, unraced since he finished second to Magnitude in the Dubai World Cup in March, was released from quarantine on Thursday and visited the main track Thursday morning for a light gallop. He was back on the track again Friday morning as well.
Willy D’s and Banishing, the one-two finishers from the Charles Town Classic, are expected for the Gold Cup.
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