X Y Jet lands in soft spot in prep for stakes

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Jorge Navarro had two choices for X Y Jet’s final prep for his first major goal of the season, the Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen. He could ship X Y Jet to Tampa Bay Downs for Saturday’s Pelican Stakes and a possible confrontation with Imperial Hint, or find a softer spot, like Wednesday’s $52,000 feature at Gulfstream Park, a six-furlong optional claimer.

Not surprisingly, Navarro chose the course of least resistance for the fragile X Y Jet, who has finished second in two of the last three renewals of the Dubai Golden Shaheen. X Y Jet will go postward the heavy favorite in Wednesday’s ninth race, which lured a field of nine that also includes Grade 2 winner Noble Indy in his return from a seven-month hiatus. The race is one of three straight allowance events on the 10 race card.

X Y Jet returned from nearly a seven-month layoff as the defending champion in the Sunshine Millions Sprint here on Jan. 19 and promptly found himself in a suicidal pace duel with Ray’swarrior for five furlongs before faltering to finish fourth as the 1-2 favorite. X Y Jet has had only one work since the race, an easy half-mile at Palm Meadows in 49 on Feb. 6.

“We just want to try to do the right thing for the horse,” said Navarro. “There’s no need to go to Tampa this week to run against Imperial Hint. Nothing is easy, but this looks like a perfect spot and gives us seven weeks to Dubai.”

Navarro, who said X Y Jet has trained as well as ever since coming to Palm Meadows this winter, just put a line through X Y Jet’s disappointing effort in the Sunshine Millions Sprint.

“That was crazy going so fast like that on the part of the riders of both horses that day,” said Navarro. “After that last one, I never know what to expect any more, although I don’t see anything with his speed in this race.”

Regular rider Emisael Jaramillo will again be aboard X Y Jet, who breaks from the outside in post 9.

Noble Indy has not started since finishing seventh and last in the Grade 3 Dwyer last July at Belmont Park. The race was the third poor effort in succession for Noble Indy, the winner of the 2018 Louisiana Derby who also finished 17th in the Kentucky Derby and 10th in the Belmont Stakes.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, Noble Indy has turned in a steady series of five-furlong works at Palm Beach Downs in preparation for his return, including three bullet drills since Jan.12.

Reason to Soar also returned in the Sunshine Millions Sprint off a long layoff and finished fifth, beaten 7 1/4 lengths by upset winner Quijote. Reason to Soar had crossed the wire second behind X Y Jet in the Grade 3 Smile Sprint here last June before being disqualified and placed fifth for causing interference in early stretch. Trained by George Weaver, Reason to Soar had won all four of his local starts prior to the Smile.

Another entrant returning from a layoff is Cove Blue, who has not started since turning in a career best effort winning an optional-claiming race at Churchill Downs in late May. Completing the field are Timber Ghost, My Carrots, Santiamen, Millionaire Runner, and His Name Is Sue.

Turf runners get their chance

The first two allowance events on the card are both scheduled to be run on the grass, the seventh race at 1 1/8 miles for older horses, the eighth race at 1 1/16 miles for 3-year-olds.

Trainer Mike Maker entered a pair in the seventh race, including likely favorite Peacock Kitten, a lightly raced Kitten’s Joy colt who finished second behind the stakes-placed Bern James Bern going 1 3/16 miles in his 3-year-old finale here on Dec. 30.

Navarro sends out key contender Golden Spear, who finished third, a length behind winning 6-5 favorite Illudere, despite traffic issues through the stretch in January in his first start since joining the barn.

Sambacer and Skywire, who each won his only start, are among the key players in the eighth race. Other contenders include the stretch running Jais’s Solitude, a runner-up at Tampa Bay Downs in his most recent start, and King Ottokar, a wire-to-wire maiden special weight winner in his local debut here last month.