Prepping for Juvenile, Rattle N Roll Tops BC Worktab

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Prepping for Juvenile, Rattle N Roll Tops BC Worktab
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Photo: Coady Photography
Rattle N Roll breezes five furlongs under Danny Ramsey at Churchill Downs

With workouts from Essential Quality  , Knicks Go  , and Shedaresthedevil  postponed a day due to sloppy conditions at Churchill Downs Oct. 30, Rattle N Roll headlined Saturday workouts from Breeders' Cup horses beneath the Twin Spires.

Breezing under exercise rider Danny Ramsey at about 5:40 a.m. ET, shortly after Churchill Downs opened for training, the grade 1-winning 2-year-old comfortably traveled five furlongs in 1:02 2/5. Clockers caught him with splits of :13, :25 2/5, :37 1/5 and timed him galloping out six furlongs in 1:16.

"I just sat on him, let him run, run off on his own, and he did it all by himself," Ramsey said.

The Lucky Seven Stable-owned and Kenny McPeek trained runner has won two straight races under jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. since stretched out to race 1 1/16 miles. He won a maiden race at Churchill Downs Sept. 23 followed by the Claiborne Breeders' Futurity (G1) at Keeneland Oct. 9.

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1 1/16 miles is also the distance of the TVG Breeder's Cup Juvenile Presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare (G1), where he will make his next start Nov. 5 at Del Mar. 

Ramsey feels good about the Breeders' Cup chances of Rattle N Roll and Phoenix Thoroughbreds' Tiz the Bomb , McPeek's other Breeders' Cup starter this year. Tiz the Bomb goes in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Presented by Coolmore America (G1T), also Friday.

Both 2-year-olds are contenders as McPeek looks to pick up an elusive Breeders' Cup victory. Though 16 of the trainer's 36 Breeders' Cup starters have hit the board, none have won.

"Second, third, second, third, second, third," Ramsey said, describing the near misses. "I think this is the year for us."

He sees development from Rattle N Roll, a Connect   colt who lost his first two starts. In one of those defeats, coming this summer at Saratoga Race Course, jockey Jose Ortiz pulled him up after the colt raced erratically with an eye injury that has since healed. 

Ramsey said in terms of the colt putting things together on a scale to 10, Rattle N Roll is a "9" coming into the Breeders' Cup.

"But I'm afraid when he gets number 10, oh my God, he can be dangerous," Ramsey said. "He can be very, very dangerous."

Watch: Ramsey Says Rattle N Roll a '9' Going into BC Juvenile

Tiz the Bomb, winner of the Castle & Key Bourbon Stakes (G2T), had a scheduled workout pushed back until Sunday due to wet track conditions at Keeneland, McPeek tweeted.

Though trainer Brad Cox similarly delayed workouts from Essential Quality, Knicks Go, and Shedaresthedevil at Churchill Downs, he did opt to work Turnerloose  and Ready to Purrform  five furlongs late Saturday morning. They breezed in company in the slop in 1:02 1/5.

Ready to Purrform (Inside) - Turnerloose (Outside) - Churchrill Downs - Work - 103021
Photo: Coady Photography
Ready to Purrform (inside) and Turnerloose work in the slop at Churchill Downs

Cox felt they did not need as demanding of a workout, as turf horses, and with their intended starts coming on Friday, he chose not to postpone their drills.

Watch: Cox Postpones Works for Essential Quality, Knicks Go, Shedaresthedevil

Ike and Dawn Thrash's Turnerloose is a Breeder's Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) prospect, while Donegal Racing's Ready to Pufform could go in the Breeder's Cup Juvenile Turf. As of Saturday morning, he needed a defection to gain entrance into the field from the list of alternates.

Cox said the preparation of his older horses is largely unchanged by delaying workouts a day. Essential Quality and Knicks Go run in the Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), Shedaresthedevil in the Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1). Both races are on the second of the two Breeders' Cup days, Nov. 6

"We'll still look to get a good move out of them," Cox said. "But we'll see how the track is tomorrow. I think it will be a little better and go from there."