By Ben Massam
Once-beaten champion and GI Kentucky Derby hero Nyquist (Uncle Mo) continues to show signs of excellent health since arriving back to his Santa Anita base, trainer Doug O'Neill reported Monday afternoon. The bay spiked a fever following a third-place finish–his first career defeat–in the GI Preakness S. May 21 and made his belated return to Southern California June 5. The Reddam Racing colorbearer recently breezed four furlongs in :48.60 at Santa Anita June 17.
“He's been great,” O'Neill said of Nyquist. “His stride is back, his health is back, his weight and coat looks great. He's doing really well. I'm looking forward to getting another work into him and then we'll kind of zero in on a specific plan.”
Champion 2-year-old colt of 2015, Nyquist returned to action with wins in the GII San Vicente S. Feb. 15 and the GI Xpressbet.com Florida Derby Apr. 2 prior to his triumph in the Kentucky Derby May 7. In the Preakness, he disputed a blistering pace in the slop and leveled off to be third behind Exaggerator (Curlin).
While O'Neill is waiting to make plans for the brightest star of his stable, he also has a promising juvenile prospect for the latter half of 2016 in Milton Freewater (Creative Cause). The gray rallied to victory in his 4 1/2-furlong debut at Los Alamitos Apr. 22 in a track record time of :51.37 and was subsequently purchased for $250,000 by Dennis O'Neill on behalf of Sol Kumin's Head of Plains Partners and Danny Kramer at the Barretts May Sale.
O'Neill said that his initial impressions of Milton Freewater are positive. The colt drilled five furlongs in 1:02.20 Sunday at Santa Anita and is under strong consideration for Del Mar's 5 1/2-furlong Graduation S. for California-breds Aug. 3, with a possible interim appearance in Pleasanton's Everett Nevin S. July 3.
“He's a runner,” the trainer observed. “He's a big, good-looking son of Creative Cause. He's doing well and I'm going to talk to Sol Kumin, but we're probably looking at a Cal-bred stakes with him really soon… There's one early at Del Mar, so we have to see if we want to go up [to Pleasanton] or keep him in our own backyard.”
Milton Freewater hails from the extended family of 2009 GI Breeders' Cup Sprint hero Dancing in Silks (Black Minnaloushe), as well as graded stakes-winning 'TDN Rising Star' Super Majesty (Super Saver).
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