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Fire At Will Tunes Up in Advance of Fountain of Youth

Breeders' Cup winner Fire At Will (Declaration of War) tuned up for his 3-year-old debut Saturday at Gulfstream Park with a five-furlong move in 1:02.75. He is slated to start in the Feb. 27 GII Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth S.

“Everything went smooth,” said trainer Michael Maker of the Three Diamonds Farm's runner's work. “He's ready to go.”

Fire At Will broke his maiden over a sealed but sloppy main track at Saratoga in the With Anticipation S. in September, then captured the GII Pilgrim S. over the Belmont lawn the next month. He was a three-length victor of the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf in November in Keeneland, but connections are aiming toward a return to the dirt in the Fountain of Youth. It will be his first start on a fast main track.

“It's a tough task, whether he's a dirt horse or a turf horse, but he's earned the chance,” said Maker.

The Fountain of Youth is to be contested at 1 1/16 miles, a half-furlong further than Fire At Will's Breeders' Cup score but the same distance as his Pilgrim win.

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Derby Points On the Line In Hyacinth

Sunday's live program at Tokyo Racecourse features the return of Group 1 action in the one-mile February S., but about 90 minutes earlier, the nation's 3-year-old set will compete for a Kentucky Derby points that are up for grabs in the $347,257 Listed Hyacinth S. over the same distance.

Nobutaka Tada's La Perouse (Jpn) (Pelusa {Jpn}) is the only member of the 11-strong field that was given an entry into the Triple Crown series at its first closing stage in late January. The homebred was well beaten trying the turf on his career debut last June, but won two of his first three starts on dirt against easier competition at Mombetsu on the National Association of Racing circuit. He proved that he could handle JRA company in his last start, a 2 1/2-length victory in a nine-furlong allowance at Nakayama Dec. 13. Leading rider Christophe Lemaire sees fit to take the call.

The Frenchman partnered with Takeru Pegasus (Jpn) (Dunkirk) in his three juvenile appearances, including a nine-length graduation over Sunday's course and trip Nov. 7 ahead of a runner-up effort to Lemon Pop (Lemon Drop Kid) in the first leg of the Japan Road to the Derby, the Nov. 28 Cattleya Sho (allowance). Yuga Kawada takes over from Lemaire.

Bakushin (Jpn) (Henny Hughes) was a 10-length maiden winner going seven furlongs over this strip Oct. 17 and added a Nov. 14 allowance before finishing fifth to Triple Crown nominee Alain Barows (Jpn) (Henny Hughes) in the second leg of the series, the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun at Kawasaki Dec. 16.

Ladybug (Jpn) (Hokko Tarumae {Jpn}), one of three fillies in the Hyacinth, belied debut odds of 50-1 to score by five at Hanshin Nov. 14 and was a latest second in the Hyogo Junior Grand Prix at NAR track Sonoda Dec. 2.

The Hyacinth offers Derby points on a 30-12-6-3 scale.

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Rising Star Roman Centurian Works for San Felipe

'TDN Rising Star' Roman Centurian (Empire Maker), last seen finishing a neck second to Medina Spirit (Protonico) in the Jan. 30 GIII Robert B. Lewis S. at Santa Anita, worked Saturday at the Los Angeles-area track, getting five panels in 1:00.40 for trainer Simon Callaghan. The sophomore colt is scheduled to take on fellow 'Rising Star' and subsequent GIII Sham S. winner Life Is Good (Into Mischief), who bested him in their Nov. 22 debut at Del Mar.

A $550,000 Keeneland September yearling, Roman Centurian is being pointed to the GII San Felipe S., which is to be held Mar. 6 at Santa Anita. Regular rider Juan Hernandez rode the Don Alberto Stable and Qatar Racing Limited colorbearer in Saturday's work and will be aboard in the San Felipe.

“I was very happy,” Callaghan said. “It was a typical breeze for him. He moved good and finished up really well.”

Continued the trainer, “I think the San Felipe will reveal a lot, but again, Roman Centurian is a very good horse. I'm happy with him and looking forward to the race. It's five weeks from the Lewis to the San Felipe, so we're going to see some progression in our horse. There's lots of blue sky ahead of him.”

The San Felipe leads into the GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby Apr. 3 and offers 50 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the winner, 20 to the runner-up, 10 to the third-place finisher, and five to the fourth.

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Sunday’s Insights: Deep Msw of Grassy Sophomore Sprinters On Tap at Santa Anita

5th-SA, $61K, Msw, 3yo, 6fT, 5:42 p.m. ET

NAISMITH (Medaglia d'Oro) will lace them up for the first time for MyRacehorse and Hall of Famer Richard Mandella. The half-brother to GISW and young Darby Dan stallion Klimt (Quality Road) and GSP West Coast Chick (Malibu Moon) was a $385,000 KEENOV weanling and $150,000 OBS July 2-year-old.

The rail-drawn Epidemic (Orb) has some bullets in the holster for his unveiling as well. Ryan Hanson trains the half-brother to millionaire Stanford (Malibu Moon), who most recently brought $165,000 as an OBS March 2-year-old.

A very strong third in his lone prior attempt on grass in the Del Mar Juvenile Turf S. Sept. 7, the maiden of six starts Ambivalent (Constitution) gets some major class relief. He makes his first attempt since finishing a well-beaten third in the GIII Bob Hope S. Nov. 15.

TJCIS PPs

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