Three contenders put physical problems behind them in Fountain of Youth

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Horses on the Kentucky Derby trail typically need to overcome a hurdle or two. A few colts set to run Saturday in the Grade 2, $400,000 Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park are fair examples.

Rattle N Roll, trained by Kenny McPeek, and the Dale Romans duo of Howling Time and Giant Game already have experienced minor physical setbacks on the Derby trail, but all are healed up and looking to put their best hooves forward in the 1 1/16-mile Fountain of Youth.

Rattle N Roll has not raced since a 4 1/4-length triumph in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland in early October. A planned start in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile was nixed after the colt incurred a quarter crack in a back foot, and now he’ll be returning from a layoff of nearly five months.

:: Access morning workout reports straight from the tracks and get an edge with DRF Clocker Reports

Rattle N Roll had his final prerace work at Gulfstream last Saturday, a five-furlong team drill in 58.60 seconds.

“He’s gotten bigger and stronger from 2 to 3,” McPeek said. “He’s been working like a beast. A little split in the back hoof just needed time to grow out, and he had a patch on it for a while. He doesn’t even have the patch anymore. It’s a non-issue.

“I do think he’s the kind of horse that might need a couple of races to get in gear, but I really believe he’ll be a horse to contend with.”

Neither of the Romans pair is quite as accomplished as Rattle N Roll, and both will be looking to rebound off a disappointing performance.

Howling Time won his first two starts, including a 3 1/4-length score in the Street Sense at Churchill Downs, before fading to fifth as the front-runner in the Kentucky Jockey Club on Nov. 27 won by the McPeek-trained Smile Happy, one of the Derby favorites. A son of Not This Time, Howling Time was scratched off the program for the Sam F. Davis on Feb. 12 at Tampa Bay Downs when “he was coughing his head off the morning before the race,” Romans said.

“Luckily it wasn’t anything serious and we only missed a few days of training,” he said. “Obviously, he’s been working extremely well,” referring to three straight bullet workouts last month at Gulfstream.

“There seems to be a lot of speed in this race, so hopefully [jockey Joe Talamo] can sit off it and save ground and run a big one.”

Giant Game ended his 2-year-old campaign with a maiden win at Keeneland and a third-place finish in the BC Juvenile, but the Juvenile has so far become a negative key race, with none of its participants having made advancement. Moreover, the Giant’s Causeway colt was eighth the Holy Bull on Feb. 5, his lone race since the Breeders’ Cup. Romans said Giant Game displaced his palate during the Holy Bull and underwent minor throat surgery three days later.

:: KENTUCKY DERBY 2022: Derby Watch, point standings, prep schedule, news, and more

“He was back training by the following weekend, so hopefully we’re past all that,” Romans said. “We know he’s a good colt. Now we need him to go out there and show it.”

Twelve 3-year-olds plus one also-eligible were entered Monday for the 74th Fountain of Youth, a 50-20-10-5 points qualifier toward the Kentucky Derby on May 7. It’s the 12th of 13 races on a card that starts at 12:10 p.m. Eastern, with post time set for 5:42. CNBC will have extensive coverage on a two-hour broadcast starting at 4.