Exaggerator Gallops at Pimlico Race Course

After two days of walking, Preakness Stakes (gr. I) winner Exaggerator returned to the track with an easy gallop May 28 morning at Pimlico Race Course.

Julie Clark, assistant to California-based trainer Keith Desormeaux, said the multiple grade I winner went just more than a mile on the main track, where a week earlier, he upset previously undefeated Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner Nyquist.

"He's fabulous. He's his usual self. He was actually very relaxed on the track," Clark said. "He's gotten a little more comfortable out there and galloped around easy, came back and came out here to graze after he cooled out. He's pretty happy. It's nice and quiet, so I think he really enjoys it here. It's a nice break before we hit Belmont and gear back up."

Morning temperatures were in the 70s in Baltimore, where the high was expected to approach 90 degrees Saturday. Clark said Exaggerator has handled the heat well.

"He was maybe blowing a little more than normal but wasn't sweaty. It was just starting to get warm," Clark said. "The horses before and after him came back a little more sweaty than he was, but I think he's a lot more fit than them, so it doesn't affect him as much."

Clark said the plan is for Exaggerator to walk May 29 before leaving around 7 a.m. for Belmont Park, where he is scheduled to make his next start in the last and longest leg of the Triple Crown, the 1 1/2-mile Belmont Stakes (gr. I) June 11.

While in New York, Exaggerator will be stabled with trainer Mark Casse's horses.

"I went and checked it out while I was over there and it's great. They've redone all those barns and there's a jogging track in there," Clark said. "It's secluded and quiet, so I think he'll like it."

Meanwhile, Reddam Racing's Nyquist walked the shedrow at Pimlico's Barn D Saturday morning and will continue to do so until his June 5 scheduled return to California.

Nyquist exited a third-place finish in the Preakness, his first loss in nine starts, with an elevated white blood cell count that has forced him to miss a planned run in the Belmont.