BELMONT Catholic Boy sharp in five-furlong workout

ELMONT, N.Y. – Catholic Boy, who missed a workout last weekend due to a temperature, got back on schedule for the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Sunday morning by working a sharp five furlongs in 1:01.08 over the Belmont Park main track.

With regular rider Javier Castellano aboard, Catholic Boy worked in company with the graded stakes winner March. Catholic Boy started about two lengths behind, was within three-quarters of a length of March after an opening eighth in 12.70 seconds. Catholic Boy was actually in front of March approaching the quarter pole before Castellano allowed March to come through his inside and gain a narrow advantage.

Catholic Boy, with Castellano still not asking, had a head in front coming to the wire, getting a final quarter in 24.48 seconds. After the wire, Castellano did ask Catholic Boy a little bit and the horse responded with a sixfurlong gallop-out in 1:13.59 seconds and seven furlongs in 1:26.53.

“I thought it was a really well-executed work by Javier,” trainer Jonathan Thomas said. “I wanted him to sit right off March’s hip, relax, then by the quarter really join in and then hit the wire in front and go ahead and gallop out. I thought it was good.”

This was Catholic Boy’s third work since he won the Travers on Aug. 26. Thomas said he doesn’t think the missed work set Catholic Boy back.

“When you’re preparing for the Breeders’ Cup, you don’t want anything to go wrong, but I don’t know that it cost us anything,” Thomas said. “I was happy seeing that breeze today. This will move him up quite a lot going into his next breeze.”

That next breeze will take place next weekend at Churchill Downs, Thomas said.

Thomas planned to van Catholic Boy to Churchill Downs on Tuesday with the horse expected to arrive early Wednesday morning. He should be able to get two works over Churchill’s main track before the Nov. 3 Classic.

Brown takes to main track

Due to the spate of wet weather that has taken its toll on Belmont Park’s turf courses this fall, the New York Racing Association canceled turf works scheduled for Sunday. That forced trainer Chad Brown to make some adjustments when it came to preparing horses for their upcoming Breeders’ Cup engagements.

Brown sent expected Breeders’ Cup starters Sistercharlie, Robert Bruce, and Newspaper of record out over Belmont Park’s main track for workouts Sunday morning.

Sistercharlie, the three-time Grade 1-winning turf filly, worked a half-mile in 48.56 seconds in preparation for the Filly and Mare Turf.

Sistercharlie worked on the outside of Uni, who has won all three of her starts this year and is pointing to the Matriarch at Del Mar on Dec. 2. The team went their first quarter in 24.57 seconds and got their second quarter in 23.99. They galloped out five furlongs in 1:01.57.

Sistercharlie hasn’t run since winning the Grade 1 Beverly D. on Aug. 11. Brown missed a little time with her due to a bruised foot, but this is her third work since she missed one at the end of September.

“She’s maintained her fitness well from all the racing she had this year,” Brown said. “She might have gotten more out of that on the dirt going shorter than a lengthy turf work.”

Right after that team finished, Newspaper of record, winner of the Grade 2 Miss Grillo Stakes, worked a half-mile in 48.54 seconds. She worked in company with Significant Form, the winner of last year’s Miss Grillo Stakes who was scratched from Saturday’ s Pebbles Stakes. Newspaper of record is pointing to the Juvenile Fillies Turf, in which she will be the probable favorite.

“She’s breezed on the dirt several times in Saratoga, she did fine,” Brown said. “She was well in hand, he had a lot of horse underneath him. She’s impressive.”

Brown said Significant Form could run in the $150,000 Winter Memories at Aqueduct on Nov. 22.

Robert Bruce, the Arlington Million winner and runner-up in the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic, worked four furlongs in 49.15 seconds in company with Projected. The team went in quarter splits of 24.31 seconds and 24.84.

Brown said he hopes to get all three horses back on the turf next week.

Miss Technicality injured

Miss Technicality, winner of the Juvenile Fillies Turf at Kentucky Downs on Sept. 1, suffered a condylar fracture to her right foreleg at the conclusion of a half-mile workout Sunday over Belmont Park’s main track.

Miss Technicality, who finished fifth in the Miss Grillo and who was not being considered for the Breeders’ Cup, had a boot placed on her right foreleg and was vanned off the track. She was later transferred to the Cornell Ruffian Equine clinic across the street from Belmont where she was expected to undergo surgery on Monday, trainer Christophe Clement said.

Miss Technicality, a daughter of Gio Ponti owned by John McCormack and Namcook Stables, has won 2 of 3 starts and earned $283,460.