Paradise Woods Has Penultimate Oaks Move

By Tere Albanese

Paradise Woods, the whirlwind winner of the Santa Anita Oaks (G1), breezed a half-mile April 21 at her Santa Anita Park home in her penultimate work ahead of a planned start in the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) May 5 at Churchill Downs.

Trainer Richard Mandella caught the Union Rags   filly in :47 2/5, galloping out to five furlongs in 1:00 3/5. The clockers gave Steven Sarkowsky and Pam and Marty Wygod's Paradise Woods a handy :47 3/5 for the half, which ranked second of 21 moves at the distance Friday. Mandella said he was pleased with the work.

"Yep, very happy. I wanted :48 or :49, but in the back of your mind, you know good horses—they might go a little quick just because they're good horses," Mandella said.

The Hall of Fame trainer joked with regular rider Flavien Prat, who was aboard for the work, that he let her go too fast.

"I know. She's too good," Prat responded.

Prat said the 11 3/4-length winner of the Santa Anita Oaks April 8 felt fine after going with the pony and breaking off behind a pair of workers.

"She tried to catch the horses in front," Prat said.

"I could see her looking at them," Mandella said. "She had her ears pricked looking at them."

Paradise Woods will have one more breeze April 27 or April 28 before she ships to Kentucky. Mandella has not decided if the Kentucky-bred out of Wild Forest, by Forest Wildcat will work in company or alone in her final serious move before the Oaks.

"I'm going to just see how the week goes. I'll see if she's stressed or not. If she's uptight, I'll probably work her alone," Mandella said. "Or I might give her something to go at."

Before her runaway Santa Anita Oaks win, Paradise Woods was cantankerous in the saddling paddock, which could be a concern going forward considering the large crowds at Churchill Downs during the first week in May.

"She was bad for a moment," Mandella said. "I went to saddle her and she was mad. She was giving us a nasty time. She got a little too serious about it. It was her third race and they start to learn. I just took her down to the end and she was fine.

"I don't anticipate that it's going to be a problem. I'm going to do everything I can to prevent it next time. But she's not a nasty filly. (She) just had a bad moment."

Paradise Woods will travel to Kentucky with stablemate Bal a Bali  , who is scheduled to run in the Wooford Reserve Turf  Classic Stakes (G1T). Bal A Bali will likely work April 23 at Santa Anita.