Sweet Reason bypasses Kentucky Oaks to await Acorn

Sweet Reason, third in the Grade 2 Gazelle last out, will skip the Kentucky Oaks and instead be pointed to the Grade 1, $750,000 Acorn at Belmont on June 7.

The Acorn is run as a one-turn mile. At 2, Sweet Reason won the Grade 1 Spinaway, a seven-furlong race run around one turn, and was a good second in the Grade 1 Frizette, a one-turn, one-mile race at Belmont, following a slow start.

Trainer Leah Gyarmati said she would prefer to give Sweet Reason a little more time before her next start and would like to “go back to one turn.”

“I think she really likes this track, too,” Gyarmati said. “When in doubt, go back to what you know. She might turn out to be good around two turns, but the smart thing right now is back off and go back to one turn.”

Races like the Acorn, the Mother Goose, and the Test, at Saratoga, are all run around one turn.

Badgett heading to Florida

Trainer Bill Badgett has given up his New York string of horses and will head down to south Florida, where he will be based at Gulfstream Park.

“My kids are all in college. They’re going to race year-round down there. Hopefully, it’s a little better way of life,” Badgett said.

Badgett said he has some 2-year-olds waiting for him in Florida and will pick up some older horses when he gets down there.