Travers in the mix for Caracaro

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Caracaro, narrowly defeated by Country Grammer following a stirring stretch duel in the Peter Pan here on Thursday, could be a candidate for the Grade 1 Travers, according to Gustavo Delgado Jr., whose father, Gustavo Delgado, trains the 3-year-old son of Uncle Mo.

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Caracaro stuck his head in front of Country Grammer near midstretch before being outfinished by the rail-skimming winner. Caracaro earned a career-best 95 Beyer Speed Figure, which came in only his third start.

“He came out of the race well and we’re going to give him about 10 days before making a decision on where to run next, although the Travers is definitely a possibility,” the younger Delgado said. “We were delighted with his effort in the Peter Pan. I think the track up here is a little deeper than the one he was training on at Calder. That and going a mile and one eighth for the first time. He just got a little tired at the end.”

The Travers will be run Aug. 8 at Saratoga.

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Delgado also said that Bodexpress has returned to his barn at Saratoga after being scratched in the post parade just prior to Saturday’s Monmouth Cup. The race was to be Bodexpress’s first start since his third-place finish in the Grade 3 Hal’s Hope at Gulfstream Park four months earlier.

“We couldn’t send any of our people to Monmouth without them getting COVID tests, so we shipped him to trainer Kathleen O’Connell’s barn,” Delgado explained. “They called after he arrived and told us he had a little nick on his face, which was new, although it didn’t appear to be anything. But in the post parade he began to bleed a little from that spot and the state vet scratched him, which was the right thing to do. The horse is back here, he’s fine, and we have two choices for his next start, either the Whitney, which is a tough race to come back in, or the Alydar, which seems to make the most sense.”