Kid Cruz and other Travers prospects work

Kid Cruz and other Travers

prospects work

"I was pretty aggressive with him, going from the Preakness to the Easy Goer

to a month later going to the Dwyer to three weeks later in the Jim Dandy," she

said. "I don't think I'm going to give him a strong breeze schedule. I've run

him enough. So, my choice before was to either not run in the Jim Dandy and

train seven weeks into the Travers, and I chose to run. I think he's coming in

quite well."

In his career, Kid Cruz has gained the reputation of a one-run closer; it

started in his fourth race, the 1 1/8-mile Private Terms at Laurel, when he

dropped back 18 lengths after six furlongs in 1:14 4/5 and gobbled up ground to

win by four lengths.

In his past two starts, however, things have been changing with Kid Cruz. He

ran just three lengths off the pace of Captain Serious in the Dwyer and then

actually broke on top in the Jim Dandy before being surrounded by horses and

backing off, only to rally well in the stretch.

Asked if breaking on top, dropping back and rallying was a designed strategy

to prep for the Travers, Rice said, "Actually, I think that when (jockey) Irad

(Ortiz Jr.) and I discussed the race, there wasn't a strong speed in the race,

and we felt that Legend might jump away from there and go to the lead. I think

that Irad felt he didn't want to let Legend get loose. So he jumped him away and

was a little aggressive early with him to get him underway and was hoping to lap

onto Legend and run him down in the stretch. I think that's what the goal was.

"He was being asked to be there, but he didn't want to be there," she said of

Kid Cruz racing up with the leaders. "He just got sandwiched and pinched out of

there. The next thing you know, he's off the bridle and scrambling. It looked

ugly after that for a while, but he gathered himself back up and made a nice run

at the end of it. In Irad's defense, he was taking the same approach that worked

nicely in the Dwyer. It just turned out very ugly in the Jim Dandy."

Rice said her goal in the 1 1/4-mile Travers, on August 23, is to let the

speed horses do their thing, and she believes it will be easier than in the Jim

Dandy, now that gate-to-wire Haskell Invitational winner Bayern is expected to

run and Wicked Strong will remain in blinkers.

"I'd rather have him relax and lay back and let them do all the work and

capitalize on a fast pace," she said. "If that doesn't happen, he's shown he can

be used differently. In the Dwyer, we had to use him very early in the race, and

he still showed up with a finishing kick, and that's to his credit."

Viva Majorca and Ulanbator, both being pointed to the Travers, also had

five-furlong works over the main track for trainer Ian Wilkes.

Owned by Saratoga socialite Marylou Whitney, whose Birdstone won a memorable

edition of the Travers 10 years ago, Viva Majorca went out just after the

renovation break and was clocked in 1:00 3/5 under jockey Julien Leparoux,

third-fastest of 22 horses at the distance.

"It was a great breeze," Wilkes said. "It was a very crisp work. I did a

little longer work with him. I let him stride into the pole a little more today,

and he still finished up strong and galloped out strong. It was just what I

thought he needed. He's a good horse, and he's moving forward."

Monday's work was the second for the Tiago colt since closing to be fourth,

beaten a length, in the 1 1/8-mile Curlin on July 25, where he lost inside

position at the top of the stretch and had to steady before swinging wide for a

belated run. V.E. Day won by a head over Charge Now, who was neck in front of

Protonico. It was three-quarters of a length back to Viva Majorca.

"It was just a little bad racing luck there, but that's racing. He finished

real strong," Wilkes said. "Distance isn't going to be an issue for this horse;

he ran awfully well in the Curlin. He ran a tremendous race and got beat a

length. He justified looking at (the Travers). At the moment, I'm looking at

that. We'll see how he trains and moves forward. If something's not quite right,

we won't go.

"He just lacks a little seasoning, that's the biggest thing. He's had one

stakes race, one two-turn race. Now I'm looking at stepping into the real deep

end. I'm a little behind in seasoning, but sometimes talent overcomes that."

The Travers would be the fourth straight graded stakes for Ulanbator, most

recently fifth in the Jim Dandy. He was also third in the Dwyer and second in

the Matt Winn since breaking his maiden at Gulfstream Park in March.

Ulanbator went five furlongs in 1:03 1/5 at 6 a.m. (EDT). It was his second

work since the Jim Dandy, following a half-mile in :49 2/5 on August 5.

"I didn't feel like he needed a harder work today. He's run a little more

than (Viva Majorca) and I just did a longer, lighter work with him today,"

Wilkes said. "We'll look at the Travers, as well, for him. If he's doing well,

we might take a shot. He's got to step his game up. Both horses have to, to have

any shot.

"With this horse, you're looking at a case where the owners are from around

here, they have one horse and a chance to run in the Travers. You have to give

them every opportunity. If the horse tells me he's not doing good and not

training good, no, I won't go."

Kid Cruz, Viva Majorca, and Ulanbator are among 15 horses nominated to the

$1.25 million showpiece of the Saratoga meet. Also nominated are Tonalist,

Wicked Strong, Bayern, Mr Speaker, Wildcat Ret, Coltimus Prime, Irish You Well,

V.E. Day, Charge Now, Commanding Curve, Noble Moon and C J's Awesome.

Jerome winner Noble Moon is unlikely to start in the Travers, however. The

colt hit the track on Monday morning for trainer Leah Gyarmati, working six

furlongs in 1:15 1/5 in preparation for a possible start later in the meet.

"He worked good," Gyarmati said. "He worked three-quarters from the

five-eighths pole and didn't really go on that last eighth. He got a little

tired, or maybe he just wasn't wanting to go past the wire.

"(His next start) depends on when he's ready and what's there. He was ready,

and then we lost about a week's worth of training right around the time I had

him entered in the Amsterdam (on July 26). The King's Bishop (on August 23) is a

possibility, other than that I don't see any options for him. There's (the

Better Talk Now on August 20) on the turf that we could run in if it comes off,

or maybe try him on the turf."

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