Perform works half-mile for Saturday's Preakness Stakes
?q=100)
ELMONT, N.Y. - Perform, the Federico Tesio winner, completed his serious preparations for next Saturday’s Preakness Stakes at Pimlico by working a half-mile in 48.16 seconds on Sunday morning at Belmont Park.
Under exercise rider Noemie Pauquete, Perform started about a length behind the 3-year-old maiden Weyhill Road. Perform went his opening quarter in 24.63 and got his last quarter in 23.53, while finishing basically on even terms with his workmate. The pair galloped out five furlongs in 1:01.26 and six furlongs in 1:14.76.
“I asked them to go off in like 25, finish up, run by the wire and gallop out good,” trainer Shug McGaughey said. “I thought his last work” - five furlongs in 1:00.56 on May 7 - “was a good work, but I thought this one was better. So I hope he’s improving in the right way.”
Perform is being supplemented to the Preakness for a fee of $150,000. He didn’t win his maiden until his fifth start, on March 11, a one mile and 40-yard race at Tampa Bay Downs. While there was still a chance to nominate to the Triple Crown by March 27 for a fee of $6,000, the connections passed on doing that.
McGaughey had thought about an allowance at Aqueduct in April, but the distance was 1 3/16 miles and he didn’t want to run Perform that far then. So he chose the Tesio, at 1 1/8 miles, on April 15. In the stretch, Perform looked beaten, as jockey Feargal Lynch tried to go outside, then ducked to the rail. Inside the sixteenth pole, Lynch got Perform to the outside and he was able to run down Ninetyprcentmaddie in the final jump.
“He was lumbering around there doing nothing at the start, but then he got to finishing,” McGaughey said. “Off of that, we’re in the position we’re in right now.”
A year ago, Creative Minister was supplemented to the Preakness for $150,000. He finished third and earned $181,500.
McGaughey said Lynch will ride the horse in the Preakness. Perform is scheduled to ship to Baltimore on Tuesday.
In other Preakness news Sunday:
*** Red Route One, the Bath House Row Stakes winner, worked a half-mile in 49.20 at Churchill Downs. Trainer Steve Asmussen was able to get the work in over a fast track before rains came in and made the track sloppy.
Asmussen is scheduled to work Kentucky Derby fourth-place finisher Disarm on Monday and then decide whether to run one or both in the Preakness.
*** Kentucky Derby winner Mage arrived at Pimlico at 6 a.m. Sunday following a van ride from Churchill Downs.
Also arriving at Pimlico were National Treasure, who flew cross-country from California to Newark, N.J., on Saturday, then vanned down to Pimlico; and Blazing Sevens, who arrived at Pimlico just before 9:30 a.m. Sunday following a van ride from Belmont.
Others expected for the Preakness are Chase the Chaos and Coffeewithchris.
The post position draw for the Preakness will be Monday afternoon.
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.