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Courses Charted For Classic Runners-Up Mandaloun, Midnight Bourbon

Neither Mandaloun, second behind Medina Spirit in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby, nor G1 Preakness runner-up Midnight Bourbon are bound for Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., on June 5 for the Belmont Stakes or undercard races.

Daily Racing Form reports that Juddmonte Farms' Mandaloun will be pointed by trainer Brad Cox toward the June 13 TVG.com Pegasus Stakes at Monmouth Park, a prep for the G1, $1-million Haskell Invitational at the Oceanport, N.J., track on July 17. Winner of the G2 Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds, the Into Mischief colt could wind up as the official Kentucky Derby winner if a split sample confirms the presence of a corticosteroid and stewards disqualify Medina Spirit from the victory.

Trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, Winchell Thoroughbreds' Midnight Bourbon, a son of Tiznow, finished sixth after a rough start in the Kentucky Derby and then second in the Preakness. Winchell Thoroughbreds racing and bloodstock advisor David Fiske said Midnight Bourbon could also wind up in the Haskell or in the G2, $600,000 Jim Dandy on July 30 at Saratoga.

Midnight Bourbon defeated Mandaloun winning the G3 Lecomte, then finished third behind that colt in the Risen Star.

“He came out of the Preakness great, but he may have put the groundskeepers out of a job he was eating so much grass,” Fiske told the New York Racing Association media office. “He shipped back to Churchill and has been jogging great. There aren't any big target races after the Belmont prior to the Jim Dandy or Haskell, so we'll focus on those races for now.”

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Essential Quality Readies for Belmont

Godolphin's Essential Quality (Tapit) breezed a sharp five furlongs in :59.80 at Churchill Downs Saturday morning. The move was the fifth fastest of 40 horses at the distance. The grey worked in company with 5-year-old graded stakes winner Night Ops (Warrior's Reward) through early fractions of :24.20 and :47.60, according to Churchill Downs clocker John Nichols.

Named the juvenile champion colt following a victory in last fall's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Keeneland, trained by Brad Cox-trained colt won the GIII Southwest S. and GII Toyota Blue Grass S. before finishing fourth as the 5-2 favorite in the May 1 Kentucky Derby.

A total of 169 horses registered works at Churchill Downs Saturday morning, including GII Risen Star S. winner Mandaloun (Into Mischief), who cruised an easy half-mile in :48.20. Runner-up in the Kentucky Derby, the Juddmonte homebred next start is still to be determined, according to Cox.

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Essential Quality Sharp In Belmont Stakes Breeze At Churchill Downs

Godolphin's Essential Quality, the Kentucky Derby (Grade 1) favorite and likely top betting choice for the June 7 Belmont Stakes (G1), breezed a sharp five furlongs in :59.80 Saturday morning at Churchill Downs, the fifth fastest of 40 horses at the distance at the Louisville, Ky., track.

Trained by Brad Cox, Essential Quality was the 5-2 favorite in the May 1 Kentucky Derby and crossed the wire fourth behind Medina Spirit, Mandaloun and Hot Rod Charlie.

The Tapit colt worked Saturday in company with 5-year-old graded stakes winner Night Ops through early fractions of :24.20 and :47.60, according to Churchill Downs clocker John Nichols.

There were 169 horses that donned the Saturday work tab at Churchill Downs including Juddmonte's Mandaloun who cruised an easy half-mile in :48.20. His next start is still to be determined, according to Cox.

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Haskell The Primary Summer Target For Kentucky Derby Runner-Up Mandaloun

The Paulick Report stopped by reigning champion trainer Brad Cox's barn just minutes after Bob Baffert's press conference announcing the positive test of Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit, wondering if Cox would reconsider his stance on starting Derby runner-up Mandaloun in the Preakness Stakes. Cox laughed, and said he'd have to double check with owner Juddmonte Farm, but would most likely stick to his plans to target big summer races with the talented, quirky son of Into Mischief.

On Thursday, Cox told the Daily Racing Form that he plans to point Mandaloun to the G1 Haskell Invitational on July 17 at Monmouth Park, skipping the rest of the Triple Crown series altogether.

Mandaloun worked for the first time since his half-length defeat in the Kentucky Derby on May 15 at Churchill Downs, covering a half-mile in 48 2/5 seconds. It's possible the colt could run before the Haskell, Cox said, but he'll wait to develop a plan until Mandaloun shows he's ready for the next step.

Should Medina Spirit be disqualified from first in the Kentucky Derby, it would mark Cox's first victory in the Run for the Roses, as well as the first Derby win for a Louisville-born trainer.

“Everybody is asking me, 'What's it feel like?' ” Cox told DRF. “Well, I don't know. It's a feeling I've never had before. It'd be cool . . . I guess? It'd be something you'd mark off your bucket list, but something you'd want to do again, maybe in a different way. It's certainly not the way you'd expect to win a race, especially as something as special as the Kentucky Derby.”