Champ Returns in Aristides

Last year’s champion male sprinter Work All Week (City Zip) gets his season off to a somewhat belated start in Churchill’s GIII Aristides S. under the Twin Spires Saturday. The Midwest Thoroughbreds homebred reeled off three straight victories to kick off his Eclipse-winning season before his lone runner-up effort in Arlington’s Addison Cammack H. for Illinois-breds in July. Freshened by Roger Brueggemann after that, he returned to snatch Keeneland’s GIII Phoenix S. Oct. 3 before defying 19-1 odds and a wide draw in the GI Breeders’ Cup Sprint Nov. 1 over the likes of Secret Circle (Eddington) and Private Zone (Macho Uno). Work All Week certainly looms large based on his resume, but he is far from a lock in here. 

Black Hawk Stable’s Alsvid (Officer) was last seen taking Oaklawn’s GIII Count Fleet Sprint H. Apr. 9 with a 105 Beyer Speed Figure–the same mark Work All Week earned for his Breeders’ Cup win. The Chris Hartman pupil has been working very quickly over the local strip in the interim for what will be his afternoon debut at Churchill. 

Windy Hill Farm’s Nate’s Mineshaft (Mineshaft), a multiple graded winner going long in 2012, appeared to be on the form decline recently, but outran 29-1 odds last time to finish second to the aforementioned Private Zone in the GII Churchill Downs S. on the GI Kentucky Derby undercard May 2. 

Marylou Whitney Stables homebred Viva Majorca (Tiago) is relatively lightly raced in this field of hard knockers with just 10 prior outings at the age of four. He snapped a five-race winless skein with a solid track-and-trip allowance effort Apr. 30, and has been gelded since that race.