Fountain of Youth Contenders Turn in Final Tune-Ups

WinStar Farm and Siena Farm's Emmanuel  produced the fastest half-mile breeze of 32 recorded at the distance Feb. 26 at Palm Beach Downs, covering a half-mile in :48:05 in preparation for a planned start in the $400,000 Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) at Gulfstream Park March 5. 

"He worked great. I was very pleased with it," Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher said.

The undefeated son of More Than Ready   handily won his debut by 6 3/4 lengths at a mile Dec. 11 at Gulfstream Park. He came right back to win a two-turn allowance at Tampa Bay Downs by 4 1/2 lengths Jan. 30.

Donegal Racing's Mo Donegal , who surged late to finish third in the Feb. 5 Holy Bull Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream, and WinStar Farm and Siena Farm's Major General , who captured the Iroquois Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs last season, are also under consideration for the Fountain of Youth, Pletcher said.

"I don't know for sure. I have to talk to Jerry Crawford about Mo Donegal tomorrow. I talked to (WinStar's) Elliott (Walden) a little bit this morning," Pletcher said. "One of my concerns is that it looks like it's going to be a big field. You might enter and draw a bad post. We might take a look at entering both Mo Donegal and Major General. All things being equal, Major General will probably go to the Tampa Bay Derby."

Mo Donegal breezed a half-mile in :49.37, while Major General breezed five furlongs in 1:02.29 Saturday morning at Palm Beach Downs.

Lucky Seven Stable's Rattle N Roll  breezed five furlongs in :58.67 Saturday morning at Gulfstream Park in preparation for a start in the Fountain of Youth.

The Kenny McPeek-trained grade 1 stakes winner produced the second fastest clocking of 41 workouts recorded at the distance in advance of his scheduled 2022 debut in the 1 1/16-mile Triple Crown prep.

"It went really well. The horse worked super," McPeek said. "He worked fantastic and came out of it good. We're going to do a little gate work Wednesday, and he's all set."

Rattle N Roll has had a series of six workouts at Gulfstream for his return to action after closing out his juvenile campaign with a victory in the Oct. 9 Claiborne Breeders' Futurity (G1) at Keeneland.

Albaugh Family Stable's Howling Time  earned the fastest-worker honor Saturday morning while breezing five furlongs in :58.54 in preparation for the Fountain of Youth. The son of Not This Time   has been idle since finishing fifth behind Smile Happy  in the Nov. 27 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (G2) at Churchill Downs. The Dale Romans trainee had been victorious in his two previous races, including the Street Sense Stakes at Churchill.

"He went really good. He's training super," Romans said. "He's ready. We'll put him in there and see what happens."

West Point Thoroughbreds' Giant Game  breezed five furlongs in :59.04 for a possible start in the Fountain of Youth. The Romans-trained son of Giant's Causeway  finished third in the TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (G1) at Del Mar before disappointing in his 2022 debut in the Holy Bull.

Tami Bobo's Simplification , a game second in the Feb. 5 Holy Bull Stakes (G3), worked five furlongs in 1:02.66 for his final tune-up for the Fountain of Youth. The maintenance work came a week after the Not This Time colt turned in a bullet five-furlong breeze in :58.62 seconds. Antonio Sano-trained Simplification, who was a front-running winner of the Jan. 1 Mucho Macho Man Stakes.

"He worked very good. He breezed nice and relaxed," Sano said.