Palace Malice feeling good following Belmont win
Jun 9, 2013 15:03:59 GMT -5
Post by Evelyn on Jun 9, 2013 15:03:59 GMT -5
Rumour has it he's considering the invitation to appear at Quantum U LOL
The good news is all 5 of Pletcher's are doing well after the long mile and a half.
Palace Malice feeling good following Belmont win
Both Dogwood Stable's Palace Malice and trainer Todd Pletcher were feeling good Sunday morning following the colt's 3 1/4-length victory over Preakness winner Oxbow and Kentucky Derby victor Orb in the Belmont Stakes Saturday at Belmont Park.
"He is a remarkable horse," said Pletcher, who was celebrating his second Belmont victory. "He bounces out of his races really well. It was a tough race, a demanding race, and he surprises me how resilient he is. He was feeling very good this morning."
With three different horses having won the Triple Crown races, the three-year-old division remains a work in progress, said the trainer.
"It's not coincidental at all that the horse who won the Belmont ran in the Derby and skipped the Preakness," said Pletcher, who won the 2007 Belmont with the filly Rags to Riches. "If you want to win the Belmont, it makes a lot of sense to sit out the middle one. The fresh horse is always going to have an edge, in my opinion.
"I think (Palace Malice) did more to leave the division wide open," he added. "Everyone kind of goes into the rest of the summer and the fall of the year with similar resumes. I don't think there's a clear-cut leader. Largely it will depend on what happens in the fall of the year. It will be interesting to see how they stack up when that happens."
For Palace Malice, that path likely will run through Saratoga Race Course and the Grade 2, $600,000 Jim Dandy on July 27, followed by the Grade 1, $1 million Travers on August 24.
"Honestly, the way he's feeling this morning, I don't know that I am going to be able to give him much time off," Pletcher admitted. "He's just that kind of horse. He's a high-energy, good-feeling horse. He'll go back to the track four days from now. We'll probably carry forward to the Jim Dandy."
While Pletcher made history by saddling a record five starters in the Belmont, he does not think that will happen in the Mid-Summer Derby.
"There's a lot of nice races around so I'm sure we'll find spots for them," he said of his large contingent of talented sophomores. "We'll try to spread them out as best as we can, but the Travers is kind of the next big coveted prize.
"Unlimited Budget (who finished sixth in the Belmont) will most likely go to the (Grade 1, $300,000) Coaching Club American Oaks (at Saratoga) on July 20 if she comes out of this well, which so far she has."
Revolutionary, Overanalyze and Midnight Taboo returned from their respective fifth-, seventh- and 12th-place efforts in good order, said Pletcher, as did Forty Tales, winner of the Grade 2 Woody Stephens earlier on the Belmont card.
"We'd probably look at the (Grade 2, $200,000) Amsterdam (on July 28 at Saratoga) for Forty Tales," he said.
While Pletcher said he did not get to sleep until midnight Saturday, he was up at 4 a.m. (EDT) to get back to the barn and work a number of horses for upcoming races.
The horseman's Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks winner Princess of Sylmar was caught in :49 2/5 for four furlongs over the fast training track at Belmont, while Grade 1 victress Dreaming of Julia clocked :48 1/5 for the same distance. Dreaming of Julia finished fourth in the Kentucky Oaks and will likely get a rematch with her stablemate as both are pointing to the CCA Oaks.
Grade 1 hero Verrazano, who suffered his first career loss when 14th in the Kentucky Derby last out, blazed a bullet, best of 51, half-mile in :47 2/5 in advance of the Grade 3, $150,000 Pegasus on June 16 at Monmouth Park.
Also on the worktab for Pletcher were Grade 2 scorer Discreet Dancer, who went four panels in :48 3/5; multiple Grade 2 diva Kauai Katie, who logged a half in :49 2/5; and easy stakes winner Dark Thunder, who was awarded the bullet for going five furlongs in 1:01 2/5.
Brisnet
The good news is all 5 of Pletcher's are doing well after the long mile and a half.
Palace Malice feeling good following Belmont win
Both Dogwood Stable's Palace Malice and trainer Todd Pletcher were feeling good Sunday morning following the colt's 3 1/4-length victory over Preakness winner Oxbow and Kentucky Derby victor Orb in the Belmont Stakes Saturday at Belmont Park.
"He is a remarkable horse," said Pletcher, who was celebrating his second Belmont victory. "He bounces out of his races really well. It was a tough race, a demanding race, and he surprises me how resilient he is. He was feeling very good this morning."
With three different horses having won the Triple Crown races, the three-year-old division remains a work in progress, said the trainer.
"It's not coincidental at all that the horse who won the Belmont ran in the Derby and skipped the Preakness," said Pletcher, who won the 2007 Belmont with the filly Rags to Riches. "If you want to win the Belmont, it makes a lot of sense to sit out the middle one. The fresh horse is always going to have an edge, in my opinion.
"I think (Palace Malice) did more to leave the division wide open," he added. "Everyone kind of goes into the rest of the summer and the fall of the year with similar resumes. I don't think there's a clear-cut leader. Largely it will depend on what happens in the fall of the year. It will be interesting to see how they stack up when that happens."
For Palace Malice, that path likely will run through Saratoga Race Course and the Grade 2, $600,000 Jim Dandy on July 27, followed by the Grade 1, $1 million Travers on August 24.
"Honestly, the way he's feeling this morning, I don't know that I am going to be able to give him much time off," Pletcher admitted. "He's just that kind of horse. He's a high-energy, good-feeling horse. He'll go back to the track four days from now. We'll probably carry forward to the Jim Dandy."
While Pletcher made history by saddling a record five starters in the Belmont, he does not think that will happen in the Mid-Summer Derby.
"There's a lot of nice races around so I'm sure we'll find spots for them," he said of his large contingent of talented sophomores. "We'll try to spread them out as best as we can, but the Travers is kind of the next big coveted prize.
"Unlimited Budget (who finished sixth in the Belmont) will most likely go to the (Grade 1, $300,000) Coaching Club American Oaks (at Saratoga) on July 20 if she comes out of this well, which so far she has."
Revolutionary, Overanalyze and Midnight Taboo returned from their respective fifth-, seventh- and 12th-place efforts in good order, said Pletcher, as did Forty Tales, winner of the Grade 2 Woody Stephens earlier on the Belmont card.
"We'd probably look at the (Grade 2, $200,000) Amsterdam (on July 28 at Saratoga) for Forty Tales," he said.
While Pletcher said he did not get to sleep until midnight Saturday, he was up at 4 a.m. (EDT) to get back to the barn and work a number of horses for upcoming races.
The horseman's Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks winner Princess of Sylmar was caught in :49 2/5 for four furlongs over the fast training track at Belmont, while Grade 1 victress Dreaming of Julia clocked :48 1/5 for the same distance. Dreaming of Julia finished fourth in the Kentucky Oaks and will likely get a rematch with her stablemate as both are pointing to the CCA Oaks.
Grade 1 hero Verrazano, who suffered his first career loss when 14th in the Kentucky Derby last out, blazed a bullet, best of 51, half-mile in :47 2/5 in advance of the Grade 3, $150,000 Pegasus on June 16 at Monmouth Park.
Also on the worktab for Pletcher were Grade 2 scorer Discreet Dancer, who went four panels in :48 3/5; multiple Grade 2 diva Kauai Katie, who logged a half in :49 2/5; and easy stakes winner Dark Thunder, who was awarded the bullet for going five furlongs in 1:01 2/5.
Brisnet
