Whitmore has first work toward Count Fleet

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Whitmore is gearing up for next month’s Grade 3, $500,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap at Oaklawn Park.

He drilled five furlongs in 59.40 seconds on a fast track at Oaklawn on Saturday. It was his first move since winning the $150,000 Hot Springs Stakes by a length and a half March 9. In that race, Whitmore covered six furlongs in 1:09.39 on a good track, and his Beyer Speed Figure of 104 is the best number put up this meet at Oaklawn.

Whitmore was making his first start of the year in the Hot Springs, following a runner-up finish in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint in November at Churchill Downs. Trainer Ron Moquett said a few days following the Hot Springs that he was pleased to see Whitmore equal his Beyer of 104 in the Breeders’ Cup.

A Grade 1 winner, Whitmore will be looking for his third consecutive win in the Count Fleet. He boasts an outstanding 7-for-10 record at Oaklawn, where he has earned $1.1 million of his $2.4 million fortune. Whitmore has not lost at Oaklawn since 2016, when he ran third in the Arkansas Derby. He is now 6.