American Pharoah Adds Another Bullet Work

As impressive as American Pharoah's workouts have been—his most recent was a bullet 1:10 2/5 on Friday, March 6, going six furlongs from the gate at Santa Anita Park—trainer Bob Baffert seems most concerned about the weather going east for the 2-year-old champion male's 3-year-old debut.



Heading to the $750,000 Rebel Stakes (gr. II) March 14 at Oaklawn Park, the rash of winter storms recently hitting the east half of the country is a legitimate concern for the trainer.



"We just can't afford to miss a race," Baffert said of the Pioneerof the Nile   colt, who is scheduled to return for his first race since winning the FrontRunner Stakes (gr. I) Sept. 27. "He got a lot out of (the workout). Now I'm feeling confident, because he's going on a challenging track. Oaklawn is a deep track. We just hope it's not snowing."



With jockey Martin Garcia aboard, Baffert said the Zayat Stables' homebred colt went on to complete seven furlongs in 1:23 1/5 and galloped out a mile in 1:36.



"He's coming off a layoff, so we have to get him ready," Baffert said. "It's a big race and it's going to be tough. It's my style of preparing and it's not for everyone. He did it the right way, though. He wasn't being whipped or pushed."

Last week, the Kentucky-bred ran a bullet seven-furlong work in 1:23 4/5.