Preservationist may await Woodward
ELMONT, N.Y. – After making a successful stakes debut winning Saturday’s Grade 2, $700,000 Suburban Stakes, Preservationist will now move north to Saratoga where he most likely will skip the Grade 1 Whitney on Aug. 3 and point to the Grade 1 Woodward on Aug. 31.
Preservationist earned a career-best 108 Beyer Speed Figure for his 4 1/2-length victory over Catholic Boy in the Suburban and running back in four weeks off a lifetime-best figure may not be prudent.
“Most likely won’t go there,” Jerkens said of the Whitney.
Preservationist had been a challenge for Jerkens as the 6-year-old son of Arch had only made seven career starts going into the Suburban. Between foot issues and other physical issues, Jerkens had to stop on Preservationist many times.
“I knew he had a lot of talent, it was frustrating as hell,” Jerkens said Sunday morning. “He’d come back from a routine gallop and act like a horse that was tying up and he wasn’t tying up. We had to keep stopping and starting over again.”
Preservationist, owned by Centennial Farms, has now won three consecutive races this year.
Jonathan Thomas, the trainer of Suburban runner-up Catholic Boy, said his first inclination is to wait for the Woodward as well, but he said he would nominate to the Whitney and see how the horse is doing prior to entry time.
Thomas said Catholic Boy had a cut on his left leg, but otherwise he was fine. The horse was a bit keyed up early in the race and made a move to the lead down the backside that he took to the top of the lane before giving way in the stretch.
“I would have preferred if we could have sat in the pocket behind Preservationist, but the horse was amped up and he resented the kickback. Javier [Castellano] did the prudent thing. I’m disappointed, but not discouraged.”
While Thomas noted Catholic Boy was conceding six pounds to Preservationist, he did praise Jerkens for the job he did having Preservationist prepared for that performance.
“That’s a superior training accomplishment,” Thomas said.
