Nyquist Jogs on Keeneland Training Track

A day after galloping over the main track at Keeneland, Reddam Racing's Nyquist had an easier day April 12, jogging three times around the training track under exercise rider Jonny Garcia.



"That's his schedule back home: he'll jog one day, gallop the next," said assistant trainer Jack Sisterson from Barn 24 as Nyquist cooled out. "He was happy out there; he loved it. He'll gallop again tomorrow."



The game plan is for trainer Doug O'Neill to fly in from California on Thursday, and on Friday Nyquist will get his first recorded work in since winning the April 2 Xpressbet.com Florida Derby (gr. I).



Overnight rains left the main track very wet, so the call was made to send the son of Uncle Mo   to the five-eighths mile Polytrack training track.



"He went to the training track several times when he was here last fall," Sisterson said. "Doug wanted that option, with the weather and things like that. The main track looked pretty wet this morning, so we thought we'd change it up a little. He seemed to love it out there."



Nyquist, the champion 2-year-old male of 2015, won the Sentient Jet Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I) over the Keeneland main track last fall. Unbeaten in seven starts, Nyquist he's won the Feb. 15 San Vicente Stakes (gr. II) and the Florida Derby in 2016.



O'Neill has a small but very deep barn at Keeneland this spring. Also in the shedrow is Land Over Sea, winner of the Twinspires.com Fair Grounds Oaks (gr. II) who is being pointed toward the May 6 Longines Kentucky Oaks (gr. I). The daughter of Bellamy Road   is slated to work Friday for O'Neill as well.



Ralis, last year's Hopeful Stakes (gr. I) winner, is also at Keeneland for O'Neill, along with Frank Conversation, winner of the California Derby and El Camino Real Derby (gr. III). Seventh in the UAE Derby (UAE-II) in Dubai March 26, Frank Conversation is being pointed toward the American Turf Stakes (gr. IIT) on Derby day at Churchill Downs.