Summary:
Trainer Rudy Rodriguez says the Kentucky Derby is
not on his mind just yet for recent Jerome Stakes (G2) winner Vyjcak, but it’s
hard to believe him. The colt will
get a little break and re-emerge in the Gotham (G3) at Aqueduct March 2nd. In the meantime, Rodriguez will try to
work on getting Vyjack to relax more// Connections for 2nd place finisher Siete
de Oros will target the Withers (G3) on February 2. Ramon Preciado, the owner/trainer, said the addition of
blinkers in the Jerome seemed to have helped// Goldencents will have one or two
more races before the Derby.
Trainer Doug O’Neill said the colt came out of the race fine, yet no
specific race plans are set. The
Robert Lewis (G2) at Santa Anita on February 2nd is not likely for Goldencents,
seeing as O’Neill is pointing Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) runner-up He’s Had
Enough to the race. The trainer
also indicated that Avare, winner of the Eddie Logan Stakes, will ship to
Oaklawn for the Smarty Jones Stakes January 21st// Kiaran McLaughlin hopes to
have two contenders in the Withers, but neither appears to be a threat at this
point. Long River will come off a
dissapointing 4th in the Jerome, while Valid, a half brother to Malibu Prayer,
broke his maiden at Laurel// Nick Zito is trying to take things slow with
recent maiden breakers Eton Blue and Mountain Eagle. The former is a son of Giant’s Causeway out of the Kentucky
Oaks winning mare Bird Town. Zito
mentioned a lot of trainers are waiting to take their best shots later in the
Derby season when Derby points are higher// Contender lists and rankings are
starting to pop up, including the first from well-respected Steve Haskin of The
Bloodhorse. He has Violence in
the top spot, which is not too surprising, but by placing Power Broker at #2
Haskin seems to be instigating a debate more so than making any kind of strong
case. Power Broker’s weak
performance in the Breeders’ Cup and long break from training should raise a
serious red flag// more…
Articles:
Pasco,
Gasparilla draw accomplished nominees (Tampa Bay Downs)
Contender
lists/Rankings:
Destination
Louisville [Steve Haskin Contender List] (Bloodhorse Blog)
Vyjack
moves up NY’s Kentucky Derby rankings (Horseracing Nation)
Kentucky
Derby contender watch list (SB Nation)
Works:
Always
in a Tiz- GP- 5F- 1.01:90- B- 19/28
Flashback-
SA- 5F- 1.00:40- H- 9/53
Super
Ninety Nine- SA- 5F- 59:00- H- 1/53
