Tapwrit gets another week of leisure

ELMONT, N.Y. – Unlike his fellow Triple Crown race winners, Always Dreaming and Cloud Computing, Belmont Stakes winner Tapwrit did not work on Saturday. Aron Wellman, the president of Eclipse Thoroughbreds, one of the principal owners of Tapwrit, said trainer Todd Pletcher decided to wait another week before breezing the colt as the connections decide what to do next.

Wellman said that while races such as the Jim Dandy and Haskell are under consideration, Tapwrit could simply train up to the Travers at Saratoga on Aug. 26.

“We want to take our time and do right by the horse,” Wellman said. “He’s had a strong and filled campaign. We’re pleased with his energy and his condition, and there’s a possibility we might find it a bit easier to train him to the Travers. We think he’s the type of horse that could succeed if we choose that route.”

In 2004, Birdstone won the Travers having not raced since winning the Belmont Stakes. In 2013, Orb was beaten just three-quarters of a length in the Travers after not having run since the Belmont.