Amoss Prepping Graded Winners at Fair Grounds

Blessed with a trio of graded stakes winners in 2018, Tom Amoss knew when it was time to take his foot off the gas. 

After brief freshenings, Twinspires.com Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) winner Chocolate Martini, Pocahontas Stakes (G2) winner Serengeti Empress, and Oklahoma Derby (G3) winner Lone Sailor all recently returned to the trainer's winter base, Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, to prepare for their 2019 campaigns.

According to Amoss, Lone Sailor will be pointed towards the $400,000 New Orleans Handicap (G2) March 23, and Serengeti Empress has her sights set on the $400,000 Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) on the same day. Chocolate Martini is likely to make her 4-year-old debut at Oaklawn Park.

"They're doing great," Amoss said. "They're probably anywhere from a month to a month and a half away from running. None of them had time off for any problems, they had time off because they had a hard campaign in 2018 and we're counting on them to have a big campaign in 2019 so we gave them a little rest."

Both Lone Sailor and Serengeti Empress got their freshening at GoldMark Farm in Ocala, Fla.

"It's the Ritz-Carlton over there," Amoss said. "Todd Quast runs the place and his assistant Lee (Guerrero) raised those horses. When I bought them at the sale, particularly Lone Sailor, they were in their care after the sale and they broke those horses, so they have a special place in their heart. We're happy to have them there for vacationing. As far as Chocolate Martini goes, she spent her time at Crestwood Farm in Kentucky, so she had to keep her winter coat on while the other two got to put some sun tan oil on."

A daughter of Broken Vow , Chocolate Martini was claimed by Amoss for $25,000 in February, two starts before her victory in the Fair Grounds Oaks. She acquired more black type later on in the year with two third-place efforts in the Summertime Oaks (G2) at Santa Anita Park and the Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) at Saratoga Race Course. 

Owned by G M B Racing, Lone Sailor placed four times this year against graded stakes company and was a participant in the first two legs of the Triple Crown, running eighth in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), then fifth in the Preakness Stakes (G1). After seconds in the Ohio Derby (G3) and Super Derby (G3) and a third in the Betfair.com Haskell Invitational Stakes (G1), the son of Majestic Warrior won the Sept. 30 Oklahoma Derby and closed his 2018 season with a sixth in the Nov. 3 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Churchill Downs.

Amoss believes Lone Sailor is showing a vast amount of improvement since the beginning of his sophomore campaign, and expects more out of the horse in the New Year.

"I think his development is more of what you see on paper than what you see physically," Amoss said. "He's always been a good-looking horse and a physically imposing horse. We'd like to think that mentally he's catching up to that. I think the Oklahoma Derby was the first step. Obviously, running sixth against the greatest horses in the world in the Breeders' Cup Classic was another step forward. We think that 2019 is his year."