NEWS
Visionaire headed to Blue Grass, Pyro breezes six furlongs
Posted: Monday, March 31, 2008 3:18 PM
VISIONAIRE
Brandon Benson/NYRA photo
by Jeff Lowe
Gotham Stakes (G3) winner Visionaire will use the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G1) on April 12 at Keeneland Race Course as his final prep for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1), which is three weeks later at Churchill Downs.
Owners Team Valor International and Vision Racing and trainer Michael Matz finalized their plan over the weekend after also considering the Illinois Derby (G2) on Saturday at Hawthorne Race Course.
Visionaire arrived at Keeneland from Palm Meadows Training Center on Sunday, and Matz preferred to keep him in Lexington for the Blue Grass rather than ship him back and forth from Hawthorne. Visionaire already made a roundtrip from Palm Meadows to Aqueduct for the Gotham.
“My big worry was having the extra week between this start and the Derby, and I won’t have that now, but he won’t have to ship again,” Matz said Monday outside his barn on a crisp and windy morning at Keeneland. “Considering the whole thing, I’d rather keep him here until he goes to Churchill [for the Derby].”
Matz won the Derby with his only previous starter, Barbaro, in 2006. He elected to pass the Derby last year with Chelokee, who went on to win the Barbaro Stakes at Pimlico Race Course and Northern Dancer Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs. Chelokee returned from a long layoff to win a one-mile allowance/optional claiming race on Saturday at Gulfstream Park.
The Cherokee Run colt also arrived at Keeneland on Sunday, although Matz is not sure whether he will race during the spring meet that starts Friday.
Chelokee’s younger half brother, Salute the Sarge, also scored on Saturday in the San Miguel Stakes at Santa Anita Park, and the Forest Wildcat colt has apparently joined the Derby mix. Trained by Eric Guillot, he is scheduled to use the Coolmore Lexington Stakes (G2) on April 19 at Keeneland as a final prep for the Derby.
Salute the Sarge made his first start of the year in the six-furlong San Miguel, but he has $258,940 in graded earnings from his two-year-old season, which would likely be more than enough to crack the Derby field, which is limited to the top 20 horses by graded stakes earnings.
Louisiana Derby (G2) winner Pyro and Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) winner Cool Coal Man are scheduled to join Visionaire as the Blue Grass headliners. The cast probably also will include Cowboy Cal and Monba from trainer Todd Pletcher’s barn and Shediak (Fr) for Southern California trainer Doug O’Neill.
Pyro breezed six furlongs in 1:14.60 on Monday morning at Keeneland.
Scott Blasi, chief assistant to trainer Steve Asmussen, supervised the workout after a long journey on Sunday from Dubai, where he had spent the last six weeks with Horse of the Year Curlin.
The trip took 22 hours, including a layover in Houston, Blasi said. He left Nad al Sheba around midnight on Saturday night following Curlin’s overpowering win in the Emirates Airline Dubai World Cup (UAE-G1). Blasi checked up on the colt on Sunday morning before catching his flight.
“It was a long, long day, one of the longest Sundays of my life,” Blasi said. “When you win a $6-million race, it makes it pretty easy.”
After looking over just the one horse for six weeks, Blasi jumped right back into the sea of responsibilities that come with overseeing a full string. Asmussen has 40 stalls at Keeneland.
Pyro breezed in company with Sonoma Cat, a four-year-old maiden winner who is a full brother to Grade 1 winner Bluegrass Cat. Pyro galloped out seven furlongs in 1:27.60.
“They went off a little slow but they finished the last five [furlongs] in 1:00.80,” Blasi said. “[Pyro] worked great and he galloped out huge. He’s just a talented horse.”
Jeff Lowe is a Thoroughbred Times staff writer
