Preston Stables’ Flat Out , who could be one of the favorites for the Nov. 5 Breeders’ Cup Classic (gr. I), zipped a half-mile in an impressive :46 3/5 in the pre-dawn cold at Churchill Downs Oct. 30.
“It was just what we wanted, what I was expecting him to do,” trainer Scooter Dickey said. “Ever since we got his feet squared away he has been turning in better and better times. He just loves to go out there and work. We’re ready for next Saturday.
"Really, none of (the workouts) are hard for (Flat Out); we just let him do what he wants to do. He’s something, isn’t he?”
With jockey Greta Kuntzweiler aboard, Flat Out posted fractional splits of :12 1/5, :23 4/5, and :35 1/5. He galloped out five eighths of a mile in :58 4/5.
Flat Out walked onto the track at 7:05 a.m. EDT and quietly backed up to the eighth-pole, where he stood before beginning his gallop. There was very little run-up to the work, but the 5-year-old horse got going quickly when he hit the half-mile pole and clearly picked up speed as he went around the turn.
With a compact, efficient stride, Flat Out got over the surface well and kept a straight line in the stretch without much visible urging from Kuntzweiler. The colt galloped out strongly past the wire.
Flat Out (Flatter --Cresta Lil, by Cresta Rider) won the Oct.1 Jockey Club Gold Cup (gr. I) at Belmont Park in his most recent start for Preston Stables.
As expected, the morning work tab at Churchill geared up early, with the temperature a brisk 34 degrees when the track opened for training. Among the other early workers were To Honor and Serve , five-eighths in 1:00; Royal Delta, a half-mile in :47 2/5; and Aikenite , a half mile in :47 3/5.
Ian Tapp contributed to this story