Omaha Beach Settling In Nicely for Pegasus

East Coast or West Coast, it doesn't seem to matter to Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes Presented by Runhappy (G1) favorite Omaha Beach , who is settling in at Gulfstream Park as comfortably as he does at his home base of Santa Anita Park.

"He's handling the racetrack fine," trainer Richard Mandella said after the multiple grade 1-winning son of War Front  had a leisurely gallop around Gulfstream Jan. 22 in preparation for the Jan. 25 Pegasus. "He seems to handle everything fine, wherever we take him. Dry, slop, fast track, deep track—I don't think it matters to him."

As for the unusually cold South Florida weather, Mandella said it's fine ... for Omaha Beach.

"It's terrible," Mandella about temperatures that were in the low 40's Wednesday morning. "The horses love it. It's the people that hide from it."

Omaha Beach, a winner in five of 10 starts, three grade 1s, will break from post 5 in Saturday's $3 million Pegasus, which will serve as his final race before becoming a stallion at Spendthrift Farm.

Stronach Looks Ahead to Medication-Free Pegasus

Speaking at Wednesday's post draw for both Pegasus races, Belinda Stronach, the president and chairman of The Stronach Group, which operates Gulfstream Park, said the timing was right to change the conditions of the Pegasus and ban the use of medications, including the race-day, anti-bleeding medication Lasix.

"We are always looking to see how we can evolve and point toward the future in terms of medication-free racing, so we put our heads together and decided this was the year to do it," Stronach said. "I think Saturday is going to be a phenomenal race day."

Stronach was appreciative of her staff's work in putting together the two races, which absorbed a combined purse reduction in mid-December of $12 million with the Pegasus falling to $3 million and the Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational Stakes Presented by Runhappy (G1T) to $1 million. She was also thankful for the sponsorship of both races by the stallion Runhappy , who is owned in part by furniture titan Jim McIngvale and stands at Claiborne Farm.

"I want to thank (Gulfstream vice president of racing operations) Mike Lakow and the racing office here and the team. When I first floated the concept, Mike and Billy Badgett (Gulfstream's former head of racing) were the first ones to say we can do it and everyone has been working extraordinarily hard to pull the card together. I'm proud of that team," Stronach said. "I'm also proud of the event team. It's not only going to be an exciting day of racing but it's going to be a fun experience and we hope to encourage new people to be guests of our sport and become racing fans throughout the year. I'd also like to thank Runhappy. I can't think of a more befitting sponsor and befitting name for this year's Pegasus World Cup Series than Runhappy, and I know Saturday is going to be an amazing day and everyone will be running happy."

Henley's Joy Seeks Firmer Ground in Pegasus Turf

Bloom Racing Stable's leading mare Midnight Bisou, co-owned with Madaket Stables and Allen Racing, is missing the Pegasus for the Feb. 29 Saudi Cup, but the operation will still be involved in the series through Henley's Joy, who drew post 8 for the Pegasus World Cup Turf.

The 4-year-old son of Kitten's Joy  has not raced since Nov. 30 when he was eighth on "good" turf in the Hollywood Derby (G1T) at Del Mar. His last victory came six starts ago when he captured the Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T), the first leg of the New York Racing Association's Turf Trinity series for 3-year-olds.

In his last start at Gulfstream, Henley's Joy was second by a neck a year ago in the Kitten's Joy Stakes.

"He's caught some wet tracks and he's definitely a horse that prefers firm going, so hopefully the rain stays away and he once again gets a chance to showcase his abilities," said Jeff Bloom, managing director of Bloom Racing Stable. "He's run well here and we're expecting to see the Henley's Joy we saw at Belmont Park."