Tacitus, Country House Joined by Win Win Win in Work

It's not officially Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) week without some early morning drama, and that came April 28 at Churchill Downs as the Bill Mott-trained Tacitus and Country House were joined during their in-company workout by Live Oak Plantation's Win Win Win and his workmate.

In the end, it all worked out as Juddmonte Farms' homebred Tacitus and Mrs. Joseph V. Shields Jr., E.J.M McFadden Jr., and LNJ Foxwoods' Country House worked five furlongs together in 1:00 flat, while Win Win Win got in a half-mile in :47 3/5. But there were some anxious moments at the head of the lane when four horses joined up across the track.

The extracurricular activity was the buzz of the backstretch on a chilly, overcast morning, less than a week before the Run for the Roses, but once the horses were back at their respective barns, everyone appeared to have exhaled.

"When Win Win Win jumped in there, there was about five seconds where we held our breaths," said Juddmonte manager Garrett O'Rourke. "But in all fairness, the rider on Win Win Win (Julian Pimentel) stayed wide, and our horses are not horses that are going to run off and be speed-crazy, so in the end it made a good, solid work for everyone concerned. We all got out of it what we needed, and the horses appear happy and healthy."

"When you first see that, you hope they don't drop in in front of you," Mott said. "We had already started our work before the five-furlong pole. The other team did a very good job. They were very courteous. They stayed out and let us continue the work. They swung wide and one horse joined up with us. It turned out great. It didn't do us any harm.

"I want to commend Julian Pimentel. He did a really good job. I think it worked out good for everybody. It might have worked out just as well for him, and it was for us."

The works were put in right after the horses went out at 7:30 a.m., a time designated for Kentucky Derby and Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) horses only.

"You generally would see something like that where they would hook up with another group of horses when they don't have just a 15-minute break for just Derby and Oaks horses," Mott said. "During normal training sessions, you'll see that happen occasionally.

"I actually thought about that this morning. I knew there were going to be some other workers, and I was wondering how far they were going. But you just can't anticipate it. It worked out that way."

For the record, Tacitus and Country House were clocked in identical fractional times of :12 1/5, :24 1/15, :35 4/5, and :48 through a half-mile. They both galloped out to six furlongs in 1:12 4/5 and to seven furlongs in 1:26. Tacitus' mile time was 1:39, and Country House's time was 1:39 4/5.

Mott said the work was what he expected and what he wanted.

"It was useful. It was a good tightener," he said. "I really wouldn't want them doing any more. I thought it was enough conditioning-wise, and the fact we saw them work well gives you a good feeling that they are coming into it the right way.

"The gallop out was very good," he added. "They galloped out in 1:26; that's racehorse time. It takes a good horse to do that.

"I was thinking they might go in 1:01, just knowing the two horses. They are not generally the brilliant-type workers that some of the others are. Their works are sometimes just workmanlike. It was a sharp work for them. We have a week to go to the Derby, and that put them in good shape."

Mott, the second-leading trainer of all time at Churchill Downs with 711 wins, has run eight horses in the Kentucky Derby. His first, Taylor's Special, was 13th in 1984. Mott was seventh last year with Juddmonte's Hofburg. This will be his third Derby with multiple starters—he had Favorite Trick (eighth) and Rock and Roll (14th) in 1998 and Court Vision  (13th) and Z Humor (14th) in 2008.

Tacitus (Tapit —Close Hatches, by First Defence) has won three of four starts, including a 1 1/4-length score in the April 6 Wood Memorial Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G2) in which he encountered some trouble heading into the first turn.

"Going into the first turn, a horse that was in an outside post position angled right over to the rail and took out about four horses, with us being one of them," Mott explained. "Tacitus was kind of sideways, but he recovered well, went down the backside with a clear trip. He had three horses in front of him, so he had to time his ride to get by them, and he did.

"He's a big, tough horse; a good eater. Both of these horses have good appetites, which, from a trainer's perspective, you like to see. If they put in these kind of works and you are going through the drills you have do in order to get ready for the Derby, you want to see them looking for their feed when you put in there. If they don't, you say, 'Uh-oh, we might have done too much.' Both horses have handled everything so far.

Country House (Lookin At Lucky —Quake Lake, by War Chant) makes his way to the Derby off a runner-up effort in the Risen Star Stakes Presented by Lamarque Ford (G2), a fourth-place effort in the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2), and a third-place finish in the April 13 Arkansas Derby (G1). He was bred in Kentucky by the late Joseph V. Shields Jr.