Sadler Hopes Rock Your World Can ‘Right The Ship’ In Belmont Stakes

Santa Anita Derby winner Rock Your World worked five furlongs in 1:01.20 Friday at Santa Anita in his penultimate drill for the 153rd Belmont Stakes at a mile and a half on June 5.

“He went (five furlongs) in a minute and change, out (three-quarters) in (one) 13 and we're very happy,” said John Sadler, trainer of the Candy Ride colt that was unbeaten until the May 1 Kentucky Derby, in which he finished 17th after being eliminated at the start when sandwiched between two horses from post position 15 in a field of 19.

Rock Your World was ridden in today's breeze by exercise rider Geovanni Grant and went in company with Campaign, who was clocked in 1:01.40.

“His schedule calls for him to work one more time a week from today and ship to New York on Memorial Day weekend,” Sadler said of Rock Your World.

“The Kentucky Derby was over at the start for him,” Sadler rightfully reasoned in recounting the Run for the Roses debacle. “Hopefully we have a good chance to right the ship.”

Rock Your World led throughout the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby, winning by 4 ¼ lengths in his debut on the main track. His first two triumphs came on turf and was ridden by Umberto Rispoli in all three races, but in the Kentucky Derby, Joel Rosario was aboard and he retains the mount in the Belmont.

Hot Rod Charlie, third in both the Runhappy Santa Anita Derby and the Kentucky Derby, is scheduled to work at 7:45 a.m. Saturday in preparation for the Belmont Stakes on June 5.

Santa Anita's runaway riding leader Flavien Prat, who rode Hot Rod Charlie in the Run for the Roses, also piloted Belmont Stakes-bound Rombauer to an upset victory in the Preakness, but remains on Hot Rod Charlie for the third jewel in the Triple Crown, Doug O'Neill said.

“Flavien will breeze 'Chuck' Saturday,” the two-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer said. “If all goes well, the horse will work again the following Friday, then leave for New York a week before the race (on Saturday, May 29).”

Michael McCarthy was contemplating his riding options in the Belmont Stakes for Preakness winner Rombauer, since Flavien Prat, who piloted the Twirling Candy colt to an impressive victory in the second jewel of the Triple Crown on May 15, will ride Hot Rod Charlie in the third and final jewel on June 5.

“Rombauer will work one time before the Belmont, but I don't have a day (in mind),” McCarthy said Thursday by phone from New York, where recent clime has been intermittently inclement.

As to a jockey, with Prat committed to Hot Rod Charlie according to O'Neill, McCarthy said, “I don't have a decision, don't know what the situation is, don't know what the status is yet.”

Post position draw for the Belmont is scheduled for Wednesday, June 2.

Stay tuned.

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Army Wife Completes Big Day For Maker With Black-Eyed Susan Victory

A half-hour after Last Judgment gave him his first victory in the Grade 3 Pimlico Special, trainer Michael Maker was standing in Pimlico's winner's circle alongside Three Diamonds Farm's Army Wife following the Declaration of War filly's off-the-pace triumph in Friday's 97th running of the Grade 2 George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan Stakes.

The Black-Eyed Susan, highlight of a 14-race card that kicked off Preakness weekend, was renamed to honor the legacy of George E. Mitchell, a community organizer in the Park Heights neighborhood surrounding Pimlico. Mitchell, who died in July 2020, was instrumental in efforts to keep the Preakness at the Baltimore, Md., track.

Ridden by Joel Rosario, Army Wife finished 2 3/4 lengths ahead of Willful Woman, with Lady Traveler another 1 1/4 lengths back in third. It was 10 lengths back to the fourth-place finisher, Forever Boss, who was followed across the line by Miss Leslie, The Grass Is Blue, 2-1 favorite Beautiful Gift, 3-1 second choice Adventuring, Iced Latte and Spritz.

Army Wife paid $11 and earned $150,000 from the winner's share of the $250,000 purse. She covered 1 1/8 miles on a fast track in 1:49.63.

Breaking from the inside post position, Rosario kept Army Wife close to the rail in sixth position early as Lady Traveler raced off to the lead while being pursued by the two horses with the outside post positions in the field of 10 3-year-old fillies, Adventuring and Beautiful Gift. Fractions were :23.71 for the opening quarter mile and :46.71 for the half.

Approaching the far turn, with the first six furlongs clocked in 1:10.92, Rosario asked Army Wife to close the gap on the leader, but then had to take ahold of the filly while lacking room around the turn.

Adventuring and Beautiful Gift gave up the chase at the top of the stretch, and Rosario swung Army Wife off the rail, drawing alongside Lady Traveler. After a mile split of 1:36.79, Army Wife drew off to win going away.

The victory was the first in a stakes for Army Wife, a $190,000 purchase at the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s spring sale of 2-year-olds in training in 2020. Bred in Kentucky by J.D. Stuart and AR Enterprises, Inc., the filly out of  the Arch mare, Tread, races for the Three Diamonds Farm of Kirk and Debra Wycoff.

Army Wife needed four starts to break her maiden, winning for the first time at Churchill Downs last Oct. 25 in a seven-furlong maiden race. After a second-place finish versus allowance company at Churchill the following month, Army Wife was given a break, returning three and a half months later to win a one-turn mile allowance contest at Gulfsteam Park on March 13. She finished third behind Search Results in her stakes debut in the Grade 3 Gazelle at Aqueduct on April 3 in her most recent start.

“She's been a hard-luck horse her whole career,” Maker said. “She's been a filly I've been excited about since she was 2.”

The victory improved Army Wife's record to three wins, one second and two thirds from eight starts.

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Victim Of Love Goes Back-To-Back In Vagrancy Handicap

Tommy Town Thoroughbreds' Victim of Love  made it back-to-back victories in the Grade 3 Vagrancy Handicap on Saturday at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., sitting just off pacemaker Sadie Lady and wearing that rival down in the final furlong to win the 71st running of the 6 1/2-furlong sprint for older fillies and mares by 2 1/4 lengths.

Sadie Lady nosed out  3-2 favorite Pacific Gale for second, with Piedi Bianchi and Honor Way completing the order of finish.

A 5-year-old Kentucky-bred mare by Speightstown trained by Todd Beattie, Victim of Love was ridden to victory by Joel Rosario, who was scoring his fourth win of the day. She ran 6 1/2 furlongs on a fast track in 1:17.27 after chasing Sadie Lady through fractions of :23.01, :45.64 and 1:10.50.

Victim of Love paid $6.30 as the second choice in the wagering. She carried 121 pounds, one less than Honor Way and Pacific Gale. The latter, coming off back-to-back graded stakes victories this winter at Gulfstream Park,  hopped in the air at the start under John Velazquez, breaking behind the field and then rushing up to each contention in the run down the backstretch.

“She came home really nicely and exploded at the end and I was really proud of that effort,” said Rosario. “She put in a really nice race. She's fast and it was a very good performance.”

Victim of Love began her career for Tommy Town and trainer Henry Dominguez as a 2-year-old in New Mexico, racing first at Zia Park and then at Sunland Park where she broke her maiden in her third start and earned black type next out in the Island Fashion Stakes.

Sent east to Beattie after her sixth start, Victim of Love added the What A Summer Stakes in January 2020 at Laurel, finished second in the G3 Barbara Fritchie and then took the Vagrancy in a 27-1 shocker over odds-on favorite Come Dancing.

She's now won six of 18 starts at seven different racetracks.

“Last year when she came here, she was a big price because she ran badly in the Nellie Morse [going one mile in March 2020 at Laurel Park] when we tried her going longer,” said Beattie. “I tried to rate her, but she wasn't happy about that. She wants to be up there and involved early. That's her number. The distance is perfect. Six and a half or seven furlongs is ideal. She can go a mile, but not at this level.”

Beattie said the Grade 3 Bed O' Roses on June 4 was a possibility but noted that Victim of Love was running without Lasix for the first time in the Vagrancy. “This was new territory for us,” said Beattie. “We're going to figure it out together.”

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Rosario To Ride Japan’s France Go de Ina In Preakness

Joel Rosario, who guided Japan's France Go de Ina (Will Take Charge) to a troubled sixth-place effort in the G2 UAE Derby when last seen Mar. 27, will retain the ride aboard the colt for the GI Preakness S. at Pimlico May 15, his agent Ron Anderson confirmed Wednesday. France Go de Ina landed at Los Angeles International Airport early Wednesday morning, the first leg of his journey to Old Hilltop for the second leg of the Triple Crown.

According to Kate Hunter, a Triple Crown recruiter who frequently accompanies Japanese horses on their international travels, the chestnut colt was quickly unloaded from his container and whisked off to the on-site USDA quarantine station, but appeared to take the trip from Japan well. Often times, foreign shippers do their quarantine in Chicago, but coronavirus-related restrictions would have added an extra stop, making that route unmanageable.

A $100,000 Keeneland September yearling, France Go de Ina was a debut fourth to Godolphin Japan's Lemon Pop (Lemon Drop Kid) on his six-furlong debut at Tokyo last November, but broke his maiden by four lengths going a mile and an eighth at Hanshin Nov. 28 and added an allowance tally over that course and trip Dec. 19. France Go de Ina had the services of Joel Rosario for the UAE Derby, but he was slowly into stride and raced far back early on. He made steady inside progress and ran on late to finish sixth, a bit more than 10 lengths behind Rebel's Romance (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) (video). Should all go according to plan, those two rivals could meet again in the GI Belmont S. June 5.

France Go de Ina will be the second Japanese-based horse to face the starter in the Preakness since 2016, when Lani (Tapit) was beaten five lengths into fifth behind Exaggerator (Curlin), having finished ninth in the GI Kentucky Derby. He was subsequently third, 1 1/2 lengths behind Creator (Tapit), in that year's GI Belmont S. Master Fencer (Jpn) (Just a Way {Jpn}) was seventh (placed sixth) in the 2019 Derby, but skipped the Preakness and was fifth, beaten under three lengths, in the GI Belmont S.

France Go de Ina is set to depart Los Angeles for Newark this Saturday, May 8, following which he will make the four-hour trip by van down Interstate 95 to Pimlico.

 

WATCH: France Go de Ina wins his maiden first time long in November

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