Hall of Famer Bob Baffert will not point GII Pat Day Mile victor Crude Velocity (Beau Liam) to the GI Preakness Stakes next Saturday, and will instead target the GI Woody Stephens Stakes with an eye on the GI Haskell Stakes later in the summer, the trainer confirmed to Agentes 305.
According to a post on X from the aforementioned page, Baffert was 'very tempted' but ultimately decided against the entry as it was coming up too quickly for the 'TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard'. The Stephens runs at Saratoga and is set to go during the Belmont Stakes festival June 6. Haskell Day is July 18 in Oceanport and carries a 'Win and You're In' berth to the GI Breeders' Cup Classic.
The conditioner did not have any other horses in his barn that were under consideration for the race. Crude Velocity initially came onto the radar after a sensational effort in the Pat Day, where he defeated Kentucky Derby winning trainer Cherie DeVaux's 'Rising Star' Englishman (Maxfield) by 3 3/4 lengths.
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