Peruvian star working toward BC Filly and Mare Turf
ELMONT, N.Y. – Smart Choice earned a fees-paid berth into the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf with her victory in the Gran Premio Pamplona Stakes in Peru on June 24.
She was shipped by her owners, Stud Starbucks, to the U.S. and trainer Todd Pletcher in July. On Monday at Belmont Park, Smart Choice had her first work for Pletcher, breezing a half-mile in 51.66 seconds over a soft Belmont inner turf course.
“We were just letting her get a feel for things,” Pletcher said. “We weren’t looking for too much. Sent her out by herself. She seemed like she was handling the ground fine, just looking around a bit.”
Smart Choice, an Argentine-bred daughter of Grand Reward, rallied widest of all in the stretch to win the Pamplona by officially a nose – though it looked more like a neck on video – for her sixth win from 14 starts.
Smart Choice spent about two months at Palm Beach Downs following a quarantine period, Pletcher said.
“She’s going through the acclimation process, which hopefully we have enough time to have her prepared for that race,” Pletcher said.
Oscar Performance works, heads to Ky.
Trainer Brian Lynch left New York for Kentucky on Monday afternoon and many of his top horses were soon to follow him to Keeneland.
That includes Oscar Performance, who on Monday worked five furlongs in 1:03.25 over the Belmont turf course. It was his first work since he won the Woodbine Mile Sept. 15, as he stepped up preparations for the Breeders’ Cup Mile on Nov. 3 at Churchill Downs.
“He was supposed to work an easy half, but he got a bit keen at the five-eighths so it looked like he went five-eighths,” Lynch said. “It was his first work back. I didn’t want to do anything real serious, but he seemed happy enough doing it.”
Turf workouts at Belmont were pushed back from Sunday to Monday. On Sunday, Lynch worked Heart to Heart on the dirt, and the multiple graded stakes winner went a half-mile in 49.73 seconds in preparation for Saturday’s Grade 1 Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland.
