Pletcher Plans to Separate Shadwell Fillies at the Spa

Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher enjoyed a great day on and off the track June 26, celebrating his 54th birthday with a win as Shadwell Stables' Zaajel  captured the Mother Goose Stakes (G2) at Belmont Park.

Assistant Byron Hughes saddled the winner while Pletcher spent the day with family.

"It was my daughter Hannah's high school graduation, so it made for quite a nice day," said Pletcher.

Sent to post at odds of 18-1 as the longest shot on the board in a compact field of five, Zaajel tracked the pace of previously undefeated 4-5 mutuel favorite Always Carina  before making the lead at the stretch call and powering home a 1 1/4-length winner.

The 3-year-old Street Sense   bay made her first two starts at Gulfstream Park, including a score in the Jan. 30 Forward Gal Stakes (G3).

Following a troubled sixth when stretching out to two turns in the 1 1/16-mile Twinspires.com Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) March 20, Zaajel failed to fire when seventh in her turf debut in the April 30 Edgewood Stakes presented by Newport Racing & Gaming (G2T) at Churchill Downs.

Pletcher said he was pleased to see Zaajel return to form, who now gives the conditioner a strong one-two punch in the sophomore filly division along with Malathaat , her undefeated Shadwell stablemate and winner of the April 30 Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1).

"Zaajel started off very well and won her first two, including the Forward Gal, and we kind of got sidetracked when we went to the Fair Grounds," said Pletcher. "She didn't break well that day and misbehaved in the gate and got in a little bit of trouble in the first turn.

"We were trying to keep her and Malathaat separated, so that's why we gave her an experiment on the turf," Pletcher continued. "We thought she breezed well on it, but she didn't run the way we hoped. We had our minds on the Mother Goose for a while and she trained accordingly. We had maybe a little more confidence in her than the betting public did."

Pletcher said with Malathaat on target for the July 24 $500,000 Coaching Club American Oaks (G1), a nine-furlong test for sophomore fillies at Saratoga Race Course while Zaajel could point to the seven-furlong $500,000 Longines Test Stakes (G1) Aug. 7.

"I'll talk to Rick Nicholls at Shadwell and come up with a plan," said Pletcher. "She's versatile enough that she's won graded stakes at a mile and a sixteenth and seven furlongs. I don't anticipate we'd want to run her in the Coaching Club with Malathaat on target for that, so we could look at something like the Test or even try two turns out of town. We'll play it by year. We won't rush back off of that effort."

Pletcher said the relationship with Shadwell has proven to be a fruitful one.

"We've been blessed. It's terrific to have two high-quality fillies like that," said Pletcher.

Happy Saver Puts in Final Work Before Suburban

Pletcher worked a number of his top horses over the weekend, including undefeated Happy Saver  who breezed the morning of June 27 in preparation for the July 3 $400,000 Suburban Handicap (G2) at Belmont.

Wertheimer and Frere's Happy Saver, a 4-year-old Super Saver   chestnut, completed his sophomore season by making the grade in the Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) with a three-quarter length win over Suburban-rival Mystic Guide  last October.

Happy Saver made his seasonal debut a winning one last out with a one-length score in an optional-claiming mile May 28 at Big Sandy. At 7:45 a.m. Sunday, a rail-riding Happy Saver worked a half-mile in company with fellow Suburban contender Country Grammer  in :49.26 seconds on the Belmont dirt training track.

"I thought it was a good work from both. Happy Saver was just a little bit better at the end of the gallop out, but they both worked well," said Pletcher. "We'll see how they bounce out of it. I'll talk to Elliott (Walden) at WinStar and talk about the Suburban potentially for Country Grammer. We'll firm that up tomorrow."

Country Grammer captured the Hollywood Gold Cup (G1) last out on May 31 at Santa Anita Park for trainer Bob Baffert. He was recently transferred to Pletcher's barn.

Pletcher said Happy Saver's previous work—five-eighths in :59.40 on the dirt training track in company with Repole Stable and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Moretti —was also impressive.

"We gave him a really solid five-eighths work last week with a big gallop out; that was the one we were looking for," said Pletcher. "He is coming off just the one start and we're stretching him out to a mile and a quarter, so we wanted to get a good one into him last week."

Moretti, who is also targeting the Suburban, worked a half-mile in :48.75 Saturday on the Belmont dirt training track.

"We breezed Moretti yesterday, and I think we're on target with him, so we could have as many as three in there," said Pletcher.

Red Oak Stable and Madaket Stables' multiple grade 1-winning 5-year-old Mind Control , also recently transferred to Pletcher and worked a half-mile in :48.06 Sunday on the Belmont dirt training track for his new trainer.

Mind Control is targeting the July 4 John A. Nerud Stakes (G2) at Belmont.

"He's been a terrific work horse since he came in," said Pletcher. "We've been targeting this race for a while and he looks good. He's proven he's a really nice horse and he's trained the way you'd expect for a horse with his credentials. He seems like he's doing really well."

Mind Control, a five-time graded-stakes winner for his former trainer Gregg Sacco, posted both his grade 1 wins at the Spa, capturing the 2018 Hopeful as a juvenile and added the H. Allen Jerkens to conclude his sophomore season.

Pletcher said a good result in the Nerud could propel Mind Control to another grade 1 engagement at the Spa, with the $600,000 Forego Stakes, a seven-furlong test for older horses Aug. 28, a possibility.

"We'll see how he does in here, but something like the Forego could be on the radar," said Pletcher.