Dialed In goes for a jog; Soldat stays inside

Dialed In (outside) stamped his ticket to Churchill when just taking the Florida Derby (Adam Coglianese Photography)

Trainer Nick Zito sent DIALED IN (Mineshaft) to the track for a light jog
Sunday morning to re-familiarize himself with Churchill Downs, where he broke
his maiden in his debut last November. The Hall of Fame trainer liked what he
saw in Robert LaPenta’s Florida Derby (G1) winner, who shipped in Saturday from
his winter base at Palm Meadows in Boynton Beach, Florida.

“He jogged, and I loped him a little bit the right way because I had the
feeling that he wanted to do a little bit more,” Zito said. “He just shipped in,
so I didn’t want to do too much with him, but he bounced off the track.”

Zito was just happy that the heavy early morning rain gave way to cloudy
skies long enough to get Dialed In to the racetrack.

“I wasn’t going to take him out in torrential rain. I wasn’t going to take
the chance of getting him sick,” said Zito, who saddled Strike the Gold (1991)
and Go for Gin (1994) for Kentucky Derby (G1) victories.

Dialed In’s familiarity with Churchill Downs only heightens his trainer’s
confidence in him.

“I think it’s very important,” said Zito, noting Derby rival Uncle Mo (Indian
Charlie) won over the Churchill track in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1).

“Dialed In was here for 40 days almost. He was on this track all of November.
He knew where he was when he got off the van. He came bouncing off the van. He’s
happy.”

Soldat captured the Fountain of Youth before suffering his first unplaced finish in the Florida Derby (Adam Coglianese Photography)

Henry Clarke and partners’ SOLDAT (War Front), who also arrived from South
Florida on Saturday afternoon, walked the shedrow Sunday morning. The Kiaran
McLaughlin charge had his final workout in preparation for the Kentucky Derby —
five furlongs in 1:01 2/5 — before leaving the Palm Meadows training facility
and will only gallop and school at Churchill.

Before deciding on his shipping and training plans, McLaughlin reached out to
trainer D. Wayne Lukas, the four-time Derby-winning trainer for whom he worked
as an assistant for several years.

“He’s my mentor and coach over the years. I had in my mind what I wanted to
do, but I just wanted to check with the master and professor of the game,”
McLaughlin said.

“He told me to either come in early and work three times or stay in Florida
and don’t work here at all. That’s what I wanted to do — stay in Florida.

“It’s probably the best track to train on — Palm Meadows — and the
weather’s great. He was doing so well, and I didn’t want to change,” he added.
“Any change from any surface to any surface is a negative sometimes, more often
than not. He’s been training there for six months, and I didn’t want to change.”