Whitmore targets fourth try

There may be little certainty about whether division leaders Vekoma and Complexity will run in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint or the Dirt Mile, but there has never been any doubt over the past several years as to exactly what Whitmore will be doing on Breeders’ Cup Day.

Whitmore will in all likelihood make his fourth consecutive appearance in the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Sprint on Nov. 7 at Keeneland. Whitmore finished eighth in his first appearance, which came at Del Mar in 2017, second behind defending champ Roy H the following season at Churchill Downs, and third a year ago at Santa Anita behind only the two heavy favorites, Mitole and Shancelot.

“I’ll talk it over with the partners, but we’re definitely leaning in the direction of going back to the Sprint one more time,” trainer Ron Moquett said Wednesday.

Whitmore is coming off a wide-running fourth-place finish in the Grade 2 Phoenix at Keeneland, the same race he has used as a final prep for the Sprint each of the last three seasons.

“I wish we had a better trip in the Phoenix, but I’m pleased with the way he came out of the race and how fresh he is,” Moquett said. “Obviously, there are some nice horses in the Sprint, but ultimately the only question we ask when deciding on whether to run or not is how he’s doing, and right now he’s doing very well.”

Whitmore began the campaign as he usually does, with several strong efforts at Oaklawn Park before heading north for the second half of the season. His only poor performance this year was a distant seventh-place finish in the Grade 1 Forego at Saratoga, a race run in a driving rainstorm over a sloppy track and won with a last-to-first run by Win Win Win.

“That was one of the weirdest outcomes to a Grade 1 race I’ve ever seen, and I wish we could have taken that one back,” Moquett said. “We never had any intention to run over a surface like that, but we were in the paddock and the next thing you know they took us straight to the gate trying to get the race in before the rain. I don’t believe anyone ran their true race that day. Throw that race out, and I feel very well about how he is coming into the Breeders’ Cup.”

Moquett said the decision to try the Sprint again with the 7-year-old Whitmore has been made easier by the fact it will be run in his own backyard at Keeneland.

“He’s right here in Barn 20, and it sure makes a big difference rather than having to go clear across the country again, as he’s had to in two of his three other Breeders’ Cup starts,”

Moquett said. “It’s always been my dream to win a Breeders’ Cup race, especially with a horse like him, who has been so special and meant so much to my career and our barn.”

Currently, it appears the connections of Vekoma are leaning toward running in the Sprint, with Complexity more likely to compete in the Dirt Mile.

“Right now, I’d say it will be the Sprint, but it’s a really close call,” said George Weaver, who trains Vekoma, idled by a foot injury since his impressive victory in the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap on July 4. “A lot will depend on how the fields come up. The reality is he is unbeaten around one turn, although he hasn’t run six furlongs since he was a 2-yearold. Being off four months is really not that significant, and in no way impacts our decision. I just think I feel a little more confident about him in the Sprint.”