Swiss Skydiver heading early to Saratoga to prepare for Personal Ensign

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Swiss Skydiver won’t be home any time soon. The champion filly is scheduled to move from Belmont Park to Saratoga early this week, with trainer Ken McPeek intent on getting her back to peak health for the Grade 1 Personal Ensign on the Aug. 28 Travers card.

Normally based in Kentucky, Swiss Skydiver was supposed to run last Saturday in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps on the Belmont Stakes undercard, but she was scratched after coming down with an elevated temperature the morning beforehand.

Under different circumstances, Swiss Skydiver would have returned to Churchill Downs last week and trained there until McPeek saw fit to send her to Saratoga sometime this summer. But with the Churchill barn area closing July 5 for nine weeks for a $10 million renovation of the turf course, McPeek is sending some of his Kentucky horses to Saratoga earlier than he normally would. Saratoga starts July 15.

Swiss Skydiver, a three-time Grade 1 winner voted the Eclipse Award for top 3-year-old filly of 2020, has not raced since finishing third in the April 17 Apple Blossom to Letruska, who strengthened her hold on the top spot in the filly-mare division by winning the Ogden Phipps by 2 3/4 lengths. Letruska, back at Keeneland with trainer Fausto Gutierrez, also has the Personal Ensign on her agenda.

Swiss Skydiver, said McPeek, “only missed a few days” because of the minor illness and returned to training at Belmont earlier this week.

Meanwhile, McPeek is looking ahead to other stakes around the country with some of his other top horses.

King Fury, headed to the June 26 Ohio Derby at Thistledown, was scheduled to work Saturday in his fourth breeze since he was scratched from the May 1 Kentucky Derby.

Crazy Beautiful, twice a Grade 2 winner this year, likely goes next in the Grade 3 Delaware Oaks on July 3, McPeek said. Oliviaofthedesert, a last-out winner of the Panthers at Prairie Meadows, probably will return to Prairie for the Iowa Oaks on July 2, while Forever Boss, fourth in the Black-Eyed Susan last month, could go next in the Grade 3 Indiana Oaks on July 7.

Envoutante, an easy last-out winner of the Shawnee on May 29 at Churchill, remains on target for the Grade 2 Fleur de Lis on closing day of the Churchill spring meet, June 26.