Carpe Diem Solid in Final Pre-Derby Work
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Toyota Blue Grass (gr. I) winner Carpe Diem turned in the second of two maintenance works April 25 between victory in that April 4 event and a planned run in the May 2 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), cruising four furlongs in :48 3/5 under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez at Keeneland.
Keeneland clockers caught the 3-year-old Giant's Causeway colt in early splits of :13 and :25, out in 1:01 1/5, 1:14 4/5, and 1:29 2/5 as he worked in the dark around 5:45 a.m. ET. WinStar Farm president Elliott Walden and Stonestreet Stables bloodstock adviser John Moynihan were both on hand to watch their contender's move along with trainer Todd Pletcher, who supervised sets at Keeneland before heading up to Churchill Downs to check in with the rest of his Derby contingent, all runners he breezed April 24.
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"I thought he breezed great," Pletcher said. "There's very little I would change about the work. Sometimes in the dark they'll be a little more settled and last time we were out there around 10:15 a.m. or whatever it was, there was a little bit of a crowd there and he was probably just a little excited about that.
"But (today) he was very settled, (in a) very good, progressive breeze. He picked it up each eighth, finished very well, galloped out good, and got it in over a perfect surface, so we're happy with it."
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"Very good," Velazquez said. "Not much to say other than he allowed me to work him the way I like. We took it little by little in the first part of the work and then finished up really good."
Carpe Diem will van to Churchill April 26. Bred in Kentucky by Coffee Pot Stable out of the Unbridled's Song mare Rebridled Dreams, he is the first grade I winner produced by that outfit. He was a $1.6 million purchase by WinStar and Stonestreet from the Northwest Stud consignment to the 2014 Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. selected sale of 2-year-olds in training. The Blue Grass brought his career record to four wins and a second (in the grade I Sentient Jet Breeders' Cup Juvenile) from five starts, for earnings of $1,519,800.