Life Is Good Faces Speaker's Corner in Nerud Stakes

In theory, comeback races are supposed to be relative easy tests to prepare for bigger races on the horizon.

That's not the case with WinStar Farm and China Horse Club's Life Is Good .

When he returned from ankle surgery last year after nearly six months on the sidelines, he ran into a buzzsaw by the name of Jackie's Warrior  in the seven-furlong H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes (G1). Though he ran courageously after the layoff, the talented son of Into Mischief   suffered his first defeat when he was second by a neck to a rival who was ultimately named 2021's champion sprinter.

Now, in his first start in a little more than three months since finishing fourth at 1 1/4 miles in the $12 million Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airline (G1), the 4-year-old colt is facing another formidable challenger.

In the July 2 seven-furlong $250,000 John A. Nerud Stakes (G2) at Belmont Park, Life Is Good will face four rivals, topped by Godolphin's Speaker's Corner , who is undefeated in three tries at the distance, including a decisive 4 1/2-length score in the Carter Handicap (G1) earlier this year.

"We're looking forward to running Life Is Good, but Speaker's Corner is a very good horse; a grade 1 winner," said Elliott Walden, CEO, president, and racing manager of WinStar Farm. "I wish they'd double the purse."

For Life Is Good, who has enjoyed his greatest success around two turns, the Nerud is indeed being viewed as a springboard to longer and richer races, namely the $1 million Whitney Stakes (G1) at a two-turn, 1 1/8-mile distance Aug. 6 at Saratoga Race Course.

"We're looking for a way to bridge the gap between Dubai and the Whitney and we felt it was better to come into a race like that with a race under his belt," trainer Todd Pletcher said. "So far he's training every bit as well as he did before the World Cup." 

Life Is Good came into the Dubai World Cup as America's top older horse following back-to-back wins in the Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) and the $2.94 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes Presented by 1/ST BET (G1) by a combined margin of nine lengths. While traveling a mile-and-a-quarter for the first time in the March 26 international test, he set the pace but tired late and finished fourth on a track that did not complement his keen early speed.

"It's kind of unfortunate the track he caught in Dubai. It was a really deep, demanding track. It wasn't the best for a horse with speed like him," Pletcher said.

Bred by Gary & Mary West Stables out of the Distorted Humor mare Beach Walk, Life Is Good was purchased for $525,000 by China Horse Club and Maverick Racing from the Paramount Sales consignment at the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. He won his first three starts for trainer Bob Baffert and then was sent to Pletcher following the surgery that knocked him off last year's Triple Crown trail. Overall, he has won six of eight starts with earnings of $3,414,200 heading into Saturday's sprint stakes.

"There's always some apprehension after a long trip but this horse has showed us the same signs that he always has in his workouts and enthusiasm," Walden said. "So, we wouldn't anticipate any effort that's different from what he's given us before."

Life Is Good is the second of five foals and first stakes winner for Beach Walk, who also has a yearling Candy Ride   colt and a full brother to Life Is Good born this year.

At the very least, Godolphin and trainer Bill Mott deserve a medal of valor for running Speaker's Corner in successive races against high-profile foes. At a time when tracks are struggling to fill stakes and numerous horsemen are opting for the easiest possible race, the homebred Street Sense   4-year-old comes into his showdown with Life Is Good, who is third in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association Top 10 poll, after running in the prestigious Hill 'n' Dale Metropolitan Handicap (G1) and finishing third behind the unbeaten Flightline , who is number one by a wide margin in the NTRA poll.

While it may not be case of going from the frying pan to the fire, it's definitely worthy of a fire to the frying pan comparison.

"It's not by choice that we're facing two horses like Flightline and Life Is Good, but that's who is turning up," said Michael Banahan, director of bloodstock for Godolphin USA. "We'll take a chance and see how he does."

The Met Mile was billed as an exciting duel between the heavily favored Flightline and 5-2 second choice Speaker's Corner, who had three straight graded stakes wins coming into the June 11 stakes, but it turned into a mismatch. Even though jockey Junior Alvarado and Speaker's Corner broke quicker than Flightline and tightened things up for the 2-5 favorite along the rail, Flightline moved outside of the Godolphin homebred to take the lead on the turn and then motored to a six-length win in 1:33.59 with Speaker's Corner winding up third, 8 3/4 lengths behind.

Though it seemed as if Speaker's Corner might need some time to regroup afterwards, the way he's bounced back from that loss convinced Mott and Banahan to target the Nerud.

"He's been tearing down the barn and worked very well last Saturday (five furlongs in :59.60). He's been telling us he wants to run. Bill is very happy with him. It's a quick turnaround, but as well as the horse is doing, we felt this is a good opportunity for him. The distance is perfect and it's one turn," Banahan said.

The lack of another suitable seven-furlong stakes until late August also came into play.

"The way the stakes program is set up, there's nothing for him until the Forego (G1) at the end of the Saratoga meet (Aug. 27) and that came into consideration in deciding to run Saturday. It didn't make sense to keep him in the barn without racing for another two months," Banahan said about the first of four foals out of the Bernardini mare Tyburn Brook and the lone winner from her two starters.

Tactics should play a key factor in the outcome with both colts possessing sharp early speed, creating an interesting dynamic in the early stages of the race for Alvarado and Flavien Prat, who will ride Life Is Good for the first time while subbing for the suspended Irad Ortiz Jr.

"We thought we would be sitting off Flightline but (Alvarado) gave himself every opportunity to win the race. We were fine with him being in front," Banahan said. "Hopefully we'll see an improved version of Speaker's Corner Saturday."

A bitter speed duel will be sweet music to the other three entrants: grade 3-placed Repo Rocks , WinStar and China Horse Club's Harvard , who was seventh in an allowance optional claimer last time, and War Tocsin , who was a distant third behind Jackie's Warrior in the True North Stakes (G2) at 69-1 odds.

Due to the small field, the Nerud will be contested as the fourth race on Saturday's card.

Entries: John A. Nerud S. (G2)

Belmont Park, Saturday, July 02, 2022, Race 4

• Grade II
• 7f
• Dirt
• $250,000
• 4 yo's & up
• 2:34 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Life Is Good (KY)	Flavien Prat	124	Todd A. Pletcher	1/2
2	2Repo Rocks (VA)	Javier Castellano	118	Gregory DiPrima	12/1
3	3Harvard (KY)	Kendrick Carmouche	118	Rodolphe Brisset	20/1
4	4War Tocsin (KY)	Dexter Haddock	118	Uriah St. Lewis	30/1
5	5Speaker's Corner (KY)	Jose L. Ortiz	124	William I. Mott	6/5