Trainer David Donk pragmatic about win streak

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Trainer David Donk has won his last five races at Aqueduct, going 3 for 3 last Sunday after winning with his final two runners the previous day.

Donk knows his streak won’t last forever and could very well end Sunday, when he sends out Pragmatist in a maiden $30,000 claimer at Aqueduct. Pragmatist is winless in four starts and takes another step down the claiming ladder in this 6 1/2-furlong race.

Donk is even pragmatic when it came to his win streak. The most notable victory came from T R Crew, who took advantage of a short field and a contested pace to win a second-level allowance by 3 1/4 lengths while earning a 98 Beyer Speed Figure, a career-best for the gelding by Mizzen Mast.

“Four-horse field, two horses set up a pretty big pace,” Donk said. “I was fortunate where the track changed Sunday to where you could close.”

Donk does not have any pie-in-the-sky plans for T R Crew, especially with the spring approaching and the New York stakes races likely becoming more difficult. Donk noted that T R Crew is a Pennsylvania-bred and there may be opportunities at Parx or Penn National.

“I don’t know how good he’s going to be in New York,” Donk said. “He’s a cut below the better horses.”

On Feb. 24, Forever Daisy won a New York-bred maiden special weight by 6 1/4 lengths. Donk believes she could be better on turf than dirt.

“She could probably go into my turf arsenal in April,” Donk said.