Strong Gallop Out for Life Is Good Ahead of BC Classic

One week ahead of the Nov. 5 Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Keeneland, exercise rider Amelia Green best summed up the final timed workout for multiple grade 1 winner Life Is Good   Oct. 29 at the Lexington track.

"He galloped out in 1:39 and change, which is normal for him," Green said. "It's not normal for other horses, but it's normal for him."

With fans crowding toward the rail to get the best view of the 9 a.m. ET breeze, Life Is Good quickly accelerated to begin his work then steadied into that devastating cruising speed he has used to win three grade 1 stakes races at three different tracks this season as he completed five furlongs in 1:00 3/5. While that would be the final time for the official move, Life Is Good would continue well through six furlongs in 1:13 1/5, seven furlongs in 1:25 4/5, and a mile in 1:39 4/5.

His five-furlong clocking ranked fourth of 62 works at the distance Saturday at Keeneland. The time matched that of undefeated multiple grade 1 winner Flightline , who worked earlier in the morning. Connections and fans are looking forward to a showdown between the accomplished 4-year-olds in the Breeders' Cup.

LIFE IS GOOD works @keenelandracing for @PletcherRacing. He will run in the @BreedersCup Classic pic.twitter.com/zNBsPdyEiJ

— TVG (@TVG) October 29, 2022

Trainer Todd Pletcher said strong gallop outs are routine with Life Is Good. That trait helped convince Pletcher that Life Is Good, who rolled to a 5 3/4-length victory in last year's Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) could stretch out to 1 1/4 miles for the Nov. 5 Classic.

"That gallop out is very standard for him," Pletcher said. "Everyone asks why we're going the mile and a quarter, and it's because we're accustomed to seeing the gallop outs like he had this morning. It gives you confidence that he'll stay a little further."

Campaigned by China Horse Club and WinStar Farm, Life Is Good opened this season with a victory in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes presented by 1/ST BET (G1) at Gulfstream Park. That start marked the first try at 1 1/8 miles for the son of Into Mischief,   and he was pointed to the 1 1/4-mile Dubai World Cup Sponsored by Emirates Airline (G1).

While Life Is Good faded to fourth in that race, Pletcher blames Life Is Good's defeat on him not liking the tiring surface at Meydan as opposed to the added distance. He has followed with three straight clear victories in which he led at every point of call. He won the seven-furlong John A. Nerud Stakes (G2) in his July 2 return at Belmont Park followed by back-to-back grade 1 scores at 1 1/8 miles in the Whitney Stakes at Saratoga Race Course and the Woodward Stakes at the Belmont at the Big A meeting at Aqueduct Racetrack.

With that string of impressive wins and a couple of nice works since that Oct. 1 Woodward, Pletcher is looking forward to another try at the classic distance.

"It was a standard Life Is Good breeze, very impressive," Pletcher said of Saturday's move. "I'm very happy with the way he finished, the way he galloped out. He's doing super."

Pletcher also sent out his powerful Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) duo of multiple grade 1 winners Malathaat  and Nest . Malathaat, a 4-year-old daughter of Curlin  , completed four furlongs in :49 3/5 while Nest, a 3-year-old daughter of Curlin, completed the half-mile distance in :50 2/5.

Both horses enter the Distaff off Oct. 9 victories as Malathaat captured the Juddmonte Spinster Stakes (G1) at Keeneland and Nest won the Beldame Stakes (G2) at the Belmont at the Big A meeting. Malathaat is the champion 3-year-old filly of 2021, and classic-placed Nest leads that division this year.

"I thought they were both super breezes. Both of them are running back on 27 days, so we were hoping to leave a little something in the tank, and I think we were able to accomplish that," Pletcher said. "They both came to the wire in hand and on the bridle and looking to do more so that's what we were shooting for. Last week was a little stronger because they went together, and we could have gone together again today, and they probably would have been fine, but I just didn't want to risk them overdoing it today."

The other horse pre-entered in the Breeders' Cup Classic by Pletcher, grade 1 winner Happy Saver  , galloped strongly Saturday. He'll enter the Classic with his official breeze being his Oct. 21 work at Keeneland of a half-mile in :48 2/5. 

Pletcher noted that Happy Saver ran well in Hill 'n' Dale Metropolitan Handicap (G1) with his last official workout—four furlongs in :48.75 on the Belmont training track—coming 15 days before that June 11 race. Happy Saver finished second to Flightline in the Met Mile.