Donegal Racing's Keen Ice (Curlin) and Twin Creeks Racing and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners's Destin (Giant's Causeway) turned in a company work Saturday morning over the Belmont training track, covering a half-mile in :48.60. Each is slated to make his next appearance in the GI Jockey Club Gold Cup at the Long Island oval Oct. 7.
Keen Ice, who had Jose Ortiz in the irons Saturday, upset Shaman Ghost (Ghostzapper) in the GII Suburban H. over the Gold Cup course and distance July 8 and was most recently the distant runner-up to Gun Runner (Candy Ride {Arg}) in Saratoga's GI Whitney S. Aug. 5. Trainer Todd Pletcher was duly pleased with the 5-year-old's breeze.
“It's kind of what we've been accustomed to seeing from him”, Pletcher told the NYRA press office. “Good, solid work and a very strong gallop out. It seemed like he was into it from the beginning to the end.
“I had 12 flat, 23 3/5, 48 1/5, 1:01 2/5, 1:14 4/5, and 1:28 4/5,” he added. “Like a lot of horses, I think that second eighth on the training track is always a little bit fast, and I think the second eighth on the gallop-out is always a little faster, I'm not sure, but I think it's a little bit downhill from the three eighths pole to the quarter pole. It seems a lot of horses go eleven and change around that turn.”
Destin, who came within a nose of winning the 2016 GI Belmont S., has just two previous appearances this season, a useful third-place effort in a May 28 Belmont allowance ahead of a nose defeat of Donegal Moon (Malibu Moon) in a similar event at Saratoga Aug. 23. The victory was his first since annexing the GII Tampa Bay Derby last March.
“He's not an over-zealous workhorse, kind of does what he has to do,” said Pletcher. “He isn't as powerful of a gallop-out horse as Keen Ice is, but he's trained well enough, and hopefully we'll put a few races under his belt, and he'll rally back into top form.”
Also working toward the Gold Cup was 'TDN Rising Star' Diversify (Bellamy Road), who went five-eighths of a mile in :59.78 under the watchful eye of trainer Rick Violette, Jr. The 4-year-old gelding exits an 11 1/2-length romp in the state-bred restricted Evan Shipman S. at Saratoga Aug. 21.
“He went terrific this morning,” Violette said. “He was so impressive in his last start and he seems to be gaining confidence as his career has progressed so we feel he's deserved an opportunity to see what he can do against open company.”
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