In an otherwise chaotic 2017 road to the May 6 GI Kentucky Derby, trainer Todd Pletcher has arguably provided the greatest stability, with five runners currently in the top 20 on the qualifying points leaderboard. His final step towards the Run for the Roses comes in this Saturday's GI Arkansas Derby, where Sumaya U.S. Stables' Malagacy (Shackleford) squares off with 2016 champion 2-year-old colt Classic Empire (Pioneerof the Nile), among others. On Tuesday's NTRA Teleconference, Pletcher offered his thoughts on his top Kentucky Derby Prospects.
MALAGACY (Shackleford)
Owner: Sumaya U.S. Stables
Jockey: Javier Castellano
Last Start: 1st, GII Rebel S. Mar. 18
Next Start: GI Arkansas Derby, Apr. 15
“He's trained well. He's a very kind horse to train. He's a pretty laid back colt who doesn't necessarily tip his hand in the morning. He's pretty push-button and he kind of does what you ask him to do. He does what his workmate does, and doesn't really overachieve unless you ask him to–then he works very well. It's been a steady string of maintenance works since [the Rebel], trying to emphasize stretching him out in distance a little bit. He seems to handle everything we've asked of him so far.”
“We felt that another race was very important for his preparation, possibly, for the Kentucky Derby. He handled the stretch-out the first time very well, and now we need to handle a little more distance again and continue to prove that a mile and an eighth and beyond is in his range. We feel like it is.”
ALWAYS DREAMING (Bodemeister)
Owner: Brooklyn Boyz Stables, Teresa Viola Racing Stables, et al.
Jockey: John Velazquez
Last Start: 1st, GI Xpressbet.com Florida Derby, Apr. 1
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, May 6
“We're very, very pleased with the way Always Dreaming has progressed all winter and spring. We were very excited about running him in the Florida Derby, and we were even more excited after the race and equally pleased with the way he's come out of it and the way he's trained since then. We're hoping we're in the position [as the favorite]…We hope we can continue to have another 3 1/2 weeks as good as the last 3 1/2 months have been for him.”
Owner: Bridlewood Farm, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Robert LaPenta
Jockey: Jose Ortiz
Last Start: 5th, GII Toyota Blue Grass S., Apr. 8
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, May 6
“We're disappointed in his effort in the Blue Grass. I think [he had] a couple minor excuses, he didn't get away from the gate well and kind of put himself in a difficult position going into the first turn. He was hung out a little bit wide on both turns at Keeneland, which generally is not an effective way to run over the surface there. He came away basically last going into the first turn in behind some pretty moderate fractions. I think it was an off race for him, an off day, a dull performance. Maybe he didn't love the track at Keeneland…The good news is that, physically, he came out of it well. We'll try to work on a few things and hope he likes the surface at Churchill. We're still confident that he has more ability than he showed the other day.”
“We've also seen over the years that sometimes having a poor race in your final prep doesn't always mean you're not going to run well on the big day. I go back to Thunder Gulch when I worked for [D. Wayne Lukas]. I think he was fourth in the Blue Grass and came back and ran great in the Derby, obviously. For us, Bluegrass Cat had an off race in the Blue Grass and rebounded with a really good second to Barbaro that was probably good enough to win a lot of Derbies.”
BATTALION RUNNER (Unbridled's Song)
Owner: St. Elias Stable
Jockey: John Velazquez
Last Start: 2nd, GII Wood Memorial S. Apr. 8
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, May 6
“The Wood Memorial was his first time at a mile and an eighth distance. He was coming off a 64-day layoff. That was by design, but it's also a reason to believe he could potentially improve with that race under his belt. I think he ran a credible race, he had no excuse. Irish War Cry was better on the day. We're thinking that if he comes back and trains well–and takes to the Churchill surface–you can make a reasonable argument that he could improve off that.”
Owner: Calumet Farm
Last Start: 2nd, GII Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby, Apr. 1
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, May 6
Pletcher confirmed that the lightly raced Patch would ship to Churchill Downs with an eye to the First Saturday in May.
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