Neolithic's will skip Pegasus World Cup

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – There will be five Grade 3 stakes on next Saturday’s card, but the one that figures to get the most attention is the 1 1/16-mile Harlan’s Holiday, which is expected to serve as Gunnevera’s final prep for the $16 million Pegasus World Cup on Jan. 27.

Trainer Todd Pletcher has five of the 18 horses nominated to the Harlan’s Holiday, including Neolithic, who finished third in the inaugural Pegasus last January. Like Gunnevera, Neolithic’s connections had hoped to use the Harlan’s Holiday as a stepping-stone to the 2018 Pegasus, but those plans recently changed.

“We’ve decided to give Neolithic a freshening, with the hope of possibly bringing him back again next year, although we are entertaining offers for him as far as a breeding career is concerned,” said Jack Wolf, whose Starlight Racing owns Neolithic in partnership with Qatar Racing.

Pletcher’s other nominees for the Harlan’s Holiday are Destin, Tommy Macho, and the 3-year-olds You’re to Blame and Sonic Mule, both of whom worked last weekend at Palm Beach Downs.