Lord Miles surges and scores in the Wood Memorial at a huge price (Amira Chichakly)
NYRA Press Office
OZONE PARK, N.Y.— Vegso Racing Stable’s Kentucky homebred Lord Miles is training forwardly for the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby slated for May 6 at Churchill Downs following his 59-1 upset score on April 8 in the Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial presented by Resorts World Casino, at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Trained by Saffie Joseph, Jr., the Curlin colt returned to his Gulfstream Park base the day after the Wood Memorial. He worked a half-mile in 47.05 seconds Friday in company with stakes-placed Florida-bred sophomore colt Apocalypso.
“He went well. It was his first breeze back since the Wood and he worked a half-mile in good order,” Joseph, Jr. said. “He’ll come back with one more breeze this week before shipping to Kentucky.”
Lord Miles was a game Wood Memorial winner, prevailing in a dramatic battle to the wire while racing to the outside of runner-up Hit Show with regally-bred maiden Dreamlike staying on gamely at the rail for third. The improving bay, piloted to victory by Paco Lopez, survived both a claim of foul from Manny Franco, aboard Hit Show, and a stewards’ inquiry to retain the nose victory.
Joseph, Jr. said the Wood Memorial effort was a marked improvement on Lord Miles’ fifth-place finish in the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Derby on March 11.
“He was obviously more into the race earlier. He didn’t really come off the bridle,” Joseph, Jr. said. “Paco was able to break and get a pretty good spot throughout the race, so that helped a lot. He showed a lot of grit to fend off those horses. He got bumped a couple times and he still kept finding more.”
Lord Miles earned a career-best 93 Beyer for his Wood Memorial win, but Joseph, Jr. said the bay will need to reach another level in Louisville.
“Hopefully, that win will give him some confidence,” Joseph, Jr. said. “He’s going to need to improve again in the Derby, but he’s by Curlin and they tend to get better as time goes on.”
Joseph, Jr. has saddled two previous Derby runners, including Ny Traffic [8th, 2020] and last year’s Grade 1 Florida Derby-winner, White Abarrio, who finished 16th in a race won by 80-1 shot Rich Strike.
Lopez, whose best Derby result was aboard Ny Traffic, retains the mount.
Joseph, Jr. said Arindel’s Florida homebred Knox, who finished eighth in the Wood Memorial, will target a starter allowance event at Belmont.
C2 Racing Stable and La Milagrosa Stable’s White Abarrio was scratched from the Grade 1 Carter Handicap presented by NYRA Bets on Wood Memorial Day after spiking a temperature upon shipping up from Florida.
The 4-year-old Race Day colt breezed a half-mile in 50.58 Thursday over the Belmont dirt training track.
Joseph Jr. said White Abarrio will target the one-turn mile Grade 3, $175,000 Westchester on May 5 as a prep for the Grade 1, $1 million Hill ‘n’ Dale Metropolitan Handicap on June 10 at Belmont Park.
“He’s doing well. He’s going to work back one more time this week,” Joseph, Jr. said. “He’s been fine and in good order. He’s on target for the Westchester, which looks like it will be a competitive race.”
The Westchester is likely to attract a salty field with graded-stakes winners Repo Rocks [Jamie Ness], Weyburn [Jimmy Jerkens] and Zandon [Chad Brown] among the possible contenders along with the graded stakes-placed Expressman [Todd Pletcher] and stakes-winner Dr Ardito [Brown].
Joseph, Jr. said that impressive maiden winner Violet Gibson, who is nominated to the $100,000 Memories of Silver on April 29 at the Big A, will instead stay in Florida and point to the $75,000 Honey Ryder, a one-mile turf test for sophomore fillies on May 6 at Gulfstream.
An Irish homebred for Michael J. Ryan’s St. Croix Bloodstock, the Expert Eye bay scored a head victory in a 7 1/2-furlong maiden special weight over firm Gulfstream turf on March 11. She worked a half-mile Saturday in 50.50 over dirt at the Palm Meadows Training Center.
“She won quite nicely first time out. She really kicked in the last sixteenth and just got there at the wire, but we’ll likely stick at Gulfstream for now,” Joseph, Jr. said.
Violet Gibson is out of the Perfect Soul mare Soul of Houdini, who is a half-sister to 2010 Grade 3 Gotham-winner Awesome Act and stakes-winner Fastest Magician.
