**To see video of Stay Put at his
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Contact: NYRA Press Office
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- Fly Downs drills a half-mile for
- Stay Put tunes up for
- Proviso fires bullet for Just a Game
- Gio Ponti on track for Woodford Reserve Manhattan
ELMONT, N.Y. – Hall of Fame trainer Nick Zito put the finishing touches on the second of his two Belmont Stakes candidates Sunday morning, sending Grade 2 Dwyer winner Fly Down out for a bullet half-mile work over the Oklahoma Training Track at Saratoga Race Course.
Under exercise rider Maxine Correa and working in company with 3-year-old maiden Kerouac, Fly Down covered the four furlongs in 47.50, galloping out in 1:01.15 in preparation for Saturday's 142nd running of the Grade 1, $1 million Belmont Stakes. The move was the fastest of 25 at the distance.
"He looked pretty good to me this morning, so I was happy about that," said Zito, a two-time winner of the
In addition to Fly Down, Zito will also send out Kentucky Derby runner-up Ice Box –
who breezed a bullet 46.65 on Thursday – in the 1 ½ mile
Zito, who has sent out 22
"I think you have to put everything in proper perspective," said Zito. "As long as they look good, as long as they run good, come back good, hit the board, whatever. And if they win, obviously, if they win, you have to thank your lucky stars."
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At
"I liked the way he breezed this morning,' said Diego, who is supervising Stay Put's Belmont preparations until trainer Steve Margolis arrives Monday evening. "The main thing is to keep him happy, keep him fresh. I think he's been handling the track well since he's been here."
Winner of an optional claimer at Churchill Downs on Derby Day, Stay Put arrived at
"I think a mile-and-a-half suits him," said Diego. "It's going to help him because he comes from off the pace."
Two other
"It's a change of scenery," said Barba. "I think he's had enough of getting used to the main track."
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Trainer Bill Mott issued an upbeat bulletin following Proviso's breeze over
"It was very nice," said Mott. "She was on her own today, breezing on the bridle."
Proviso covered four furlongs in 47.45 in the fastest of eight moves over the course and distance. A winner over males in the Grade 1 Frank E. Kilroe Handicap in March, the Juddmonte homebred is targeting next Saturday's Grade 1 Just a Game for fillies and mares on the Belmont Stakes undercard.
Mott was similarly impressed with Proviso's five furlong workout on the turf a week ago, and once again noted how the 5-year-old daughter of Dansili is more tractable than she was earlier in her career.
"She was very good today, too," said Mott. "She seemed comfortable and relaxed. I'm very pleased with her."
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Four-time Grade 1 winner on turf Gio Ponti worked five furlongs over Belmont Park's inner turf course Sunday morning in preparation for an expected start in the Grade 1, $400,000 Woodford Reserve Manhattan Handicap on the Belmont Stakes undercard, which will be his first race since a fourth-place finish in the Group 1, $10 million Dubai World Cup on March 27.
NYRA clockers caught the son of Tale of the Cat covering the distance in 59.67, the fastest of eight works at the distance.
"So far he seems to have come out of it in good order and the plan is to run him the
Gio Ponti will attempt to win the Woodford Reserve Manhattan for the second year in a row, last year using the race as a springboard to wins in the Grade 1 Man o'War and Arlington Million before finishing second in the Grade 1 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic and second to Zenyatta in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic over the Pro-Ride surface at Santa Anita. Gio Ponti was named champion Older Male and Male Turf Horse at the 2009 Eclipse Awards.
"If I hadn't liked the work today, I would pass on the race to run him another spot. The Man o'War is in one month," Clement said. "As of now though, I'm very happy with the way he worked and the way he looked. He scoped completely clean after the work and seems to be over that cough that he had two weeks ago."
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