Trainer Ward Holds Strong Hand in Indian Summer

Headed by Ranlo Investments' Golden Pal, trainer Wesley Ward holds a strong hand in the Oct. 4 $150,000 Indian Summer Stakes Presented by Keeneland Select, a 5 1/2-furlong turf test that is a Breeders' Cup Challenge "Win and You're In" race for the $1 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2T) to be run at Keeneland Nov. 6.

With a 4 p.m. ET post time as the sixth race on Keeneland's Sunday card, the Indian Summer drew a field of eight 2-year-olds, including a trio from the barn of Ward, who won the Indian Summer last year with Kimari. The three Ward entrants—Wink, Roderick, and Golden Pal—drew alongside each other in the 3, 4, and 5 posts, respectively.

Unless the course is hit by rain, Ward said he expects to run all three of his entrants.

Golden Pal, who will be ridden by Tyler Gaffalione as the 8-5 morning-line favorite, was second on dirt in his debut at Gulfstream Park in April and was then sent to Royal Ascot in England, where he finished second, a neck behind the winner, in the five-furlong Norfolk Stakes (G2) contested on good to soft going.

Back in the U.S., the son of Uncle Mo  bred in Florida by Randall Lowe posted a 3 1/2-length victory at 2-5 odds in the Skidmore Stakes at Saratoga Race Course.

Golden Pal's dam, the hard-knocking grade 3-winning mare Lady Shipman, was a turf specialist bred and raced by Lowe who won 13 of 22 starts and finished second in the Twinspires Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T).

"He's a neat horse," Ward said of the speedy Golden Pal.

"The original plan was to train him into the Breeders' Cup," Ward said of the plans after the Skidmore. "In talking with the owner, this being a 'Win and You're In' with all expenses paid, we decided to go here."

Ward also holds Wink and Roderick in high regard, even after the latter's disappointing effort in the Best Pal Stakes (G2) Aug. 8 at Del Mar when he quickly retreated to run seventh, beaten 26 lengths, as the favorite. He checked out well out of the race, and Ward is hopeful that veteran jockey Julio Garcia climbing aboard will result in racing improvement, just as it has in his morning workouts. He has four straight bullet workouts on the Keeneland main track, giving Ward hope that he may return to the form he showed when he broke his maiden easily at Belmont Park in June.

"The big question is going to be the grass, but he had a couple of nice breezes early on at Palm Meadows," he said of the son of Into Mischief . "Down there early on, that wasn't an issue, but this being a surface switch, that's a bit of a question."

Wink, a daughter of Midshipman , returns stateside after running second in the Prix d' Arenburg (G3) at Longchamp Sept. 3 for Barbara Banke's Stronestreet Stable. Two previous starts resulted in victories, including the Colleen Stakes at Monmouth Aug. 3.

"She came back in good order and she's had a couple good works since and this race is here at my home track at Keeneland, so we put her in," Ward said. Gerardo Corrales has the mount.

Two other stakes winners in the field are Bodenheimer, the winner of the Prairie Gold Juvenile Stakes at Prairie Meadows, and Good With People, who took the I'm Smokin Stakes at Del Mar after finishing second in that track's Graduation Stakes.

Cowan, who breaks from the rail under Ricardo Santana Jr., is coming off a third-place finish in the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Turf Sprint Stakes.