Tri-Bone Stable's Effinex (Mineshaft) tuned up for next Saturday's GI Whitney S. with a five-furlong work over the main Saratoga track Saturday in 1:00.65.
“Beautiful–a great work today, and we were very happy,” Shirley Jerkens, wife of trainer Jimmy Jerkens, said after the drill.
The work was Effinex's first since he outbattled Samraat (Noble Causeway) to take the GII Surburan H. by a neck July 9 at Belmont Park. My Meadowview's Samraat also worked at Saratoga Saturday, going five furlongs over the main track in 1:02.39, and remains on the fence for the Whitney.
“He certainly worked well enough to run, but he didn't push me either way today–yet he did enough to keep me in limbo,” laughed trainer Rick Violette. “I'm very concerned coming back in four weeks off a lifetime race. [Owner] Mr. [Leonard] Riggio is of the same mind, so I will talk to him and see what his thoughts are, and go from there.”
Violette is expected to be represented in the Whitney by Ralph Evans and WinStar Farm's Upstart (Flatter), who is coming off a third-place effort in the June 11 GI Metropolitan H.
Other Whitney contenders on the work tab Saturday at Saratoga were El Kabeir (Scat Daddy) and Noble Bird (Birdstone).
Zayat Stable's El Kabeir, coming off a fourth-place effort in the June 18 GI Stephen Foster H., went five furlongs over the main track in company in :59.66. “They went off nice, finished nice, galloped out nice–everything is good to go,” reported trainer John Terranova.
“He ran a great race in the Stephen Foster,” Terranova continued. “He was coming at the end, and he blew by them all galloping out. He was full of run. He came out of that race fantastic, and he has been training really, really well since. I've been looking forward to the Whitney since then.”
John Oxley's Noble Bird went a half-mile in :48.20 for trainer Mark Casse.
“He went super, he went beautiful,” said Casse. “I had him [galloping] out in a minute and four-fifths.”
Noble Bird was a dominant 11 1/4-length winner of the May 20 GIII Pimlico Special, but tired to sixth after setting the pace last time out in the Met Mile.
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