Among Todd Pletcher’s workers at Saratoga on Monday were two notables
starting out on the comeback trail, Shanghai Bobby and Graydar.
Shanghai Bobby, last year’s champion two-year-old colt who has been sidelined
for nearly four months, returned to the worktab by strolling three furlongs in
:38.95 on the fast main track.
Owned by Starlight Racing and the Coolmore partners, Shanghai Bobby has been out of action since
being diagnosed with a slight pelvic stress fracture following his fifth-place
finish in the Florida Derby on March 30. He returned to light training
after a June 4 ultrasound exam of the area came back clean.
“It was his first work back, and it went very well,” Pletcher said. “It was
just an easy three-eighths. It was nice to get him back on the work tab. He went
just nice and easy by himself, just getting him back into a routine. He did
exactly what we were hoping he would do, and seemed to handle it well.”
Shanghai Bobby won all five of his starts in 2012, including the Hopeful at
Saratoga, the Champagne at Belmont Park and the Breeders’ Cup
Juvenile at Santa Anita. He is 0-for-2 this year, also finishing second in the
January 26 Holy Bull.
“Now, we’ll kind of start to pick it up gradually as we go along,” Pletcher
said. “Basically, he’ll be on a weekly work schedule from here, but I don’t see
him making a race here at Saratoga.”
Once-beaten Graydar, the Donn Handicap winner who was last seen landing the
March 30 New Orleans Handicap, stretched his legs in :38.80.
The Twin Creeks Racing Stables colorbearer underwent surgery to remove an
ankle chip this spring, and spent time at WinStar Farm near Versailles,
Kentucky, before rejoining the Pletcher team. Connections had previously
announced plans to point toward the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
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