After being away from the races for more than 240 days, no one knew what to expect when Country Grammer resurfaced in the Group 1 Saudi Cup. But the 5-year-old entire son of Tonalist showed up in a big way finishing a bang-up second.
Now, Country Grammer seems to be thriving at Meydan racecourse as he looks to give Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert a fourth victory in this Saturday's Dubai World Cup. After spending Monday jogging quietly in the confines of the International Quarantine track, Country Grammer was on the muscle Tuesday as he passed the wire with great energy under the watchful eye of longtime Baffert assistant Jimmy Barnes.
“Country Grammer is a horse who will run all day and will definitely appreciate the two turns and the 1 1/4-mile distance of this race,” Barnes said. “He has always been a straightforward horse to train and nothing has changed with him here.”
Conditioner Doug O'Neill's fan favorite Hot Rod Charlie has had everything go his way since shipping out to Meydan racecourse on Jan. 19. A winner of the Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2 (G2) in his lone local start, he has strengthened up and certainly looked the part Tuesday coming onto the track around 7:15am accompanied as usual by the outrider pony.
'Chuck,' as he is affectionally called by his owners, had a very happy gallop Tuesday morning as he continues to tout himself around the track on a daily basis.
“We were so happy to be able to run him as a 4-year-old and glad we came over here when we did,” assistant trainer Leandro Mora said. “He is doing so good right now, he loves this track. He is very calm and quiet when making the walk to the track in the mornings but as soon as he steps on the track and the rider sits on his back he knows it is go-time and can get a little excited, but in a good way. Although he did give us a little scare last week when he and the pony were bucking and feeling too good by the wire launching himself in the air.”
After a 13-hour flight from Miami, Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher and the ownership connections of China Horse Club and WinStar Farm got a chance to see the presumptive World Cup favorite Life Is Good train for the first time at 5am on Tuesday. After backing up to the eighth pole the 4-year-old galloped 1 1/2 miles and, as has been the case all week, he got stronger as the gallop went along.
Amelia Green, the only rider who sits on Life Is Good's back, had to use all her strength to pull him up as he desperately wanted to continue on with his morning trackwork.
“I would be surprised if he wasn't like that to be honest,” Pletcher said. “Our flight was good and as soon as we arrived last night we went to the stables and saw Life Is Good and we were very happy with what we saw of him. He really looks like he has settled in well. I've learned some things over the years of coming here and one of them I think is to do all your work at home. I've breezed horses here in the past and I think maybe its been a little counter-productive so we will just have some gallops with him and participate in the night schooling session tonight and go from there.”
Aero Trem's trainer Antonio Cintra Pereira was happy to let his charge merely canter around the track and has no plans for any kind of serious work this week for the 6-year-old Shanghai Bobby entire, who was fifth in the Group 1 Saudi Cup at Riyadh on Feb. 26.
“Aero Trem is fit and is doing very well. He returned very well from the Saudi Cup and has continued his preparation for the Dubai World Cup and so far everything is going according to plan. So we are looking forward to him running in the big one in five days' time,” Cintra said.
The Bhupat Seemar-trained Remorse has been one of the more consistent names on the domestic circuit with a win and four runner-up placings in his five starts this term, the last of which was behind fellow Dubai World Cup hope Hypothetical, trained by Salem bin Ghadayer, in the Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 (G1), which is contested over the same track and trip as the Dubai World Cup.
“Remorse is a lovely horse and has gone up from handicaps to Group Ones,” Seemar said. “He's a very honest horse and with a bit of luck and a good draw anything could happen really. He did a half mile gallop worked in company worked well and looks fit and healthy and is good to go.”
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