Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott was all smiles the morning of April 10 after James S. Karp’s homebred Newsdad turned in an impressive work at Keeneland, covering six furlongs in 1:13 with exercise rider Rodolphe Brissett aboard. The Arch colt is scheduled to make his next start in the April 16 Toyota Blue Grass (gr. I), which will mark his Polytrack debut after three consecutive starts on turf.
“He worked very well,” said Mott in a release about the colt, whose last breeze was at Gulfstream Park on March 31. “He seems like he’s handling the Polytrack just fine.”
Clockers caught Newsdad in splits of :14 1/5, :26 3/5,: 38 3/5, :50 1/5, and 1:01 2/5 with out times of 1:25 1/5 and 1:39 4/5.
Newsdad is coming into the Toyota Blue Grass off a third-place finish in the Palm Beach (gr. III) at Gulfstream March 12. The winner of that race, Joes Blazing Aaron, and runner-up, Queen'splatekitten, also are expected in the Toyota Blue Grass.
Jesus Castanon, who rode Newsdad in the Palm Beach and has ridden the colt in three of his four races, will again be aboard the colt in the Toyota Blue Grass, Mott said. Newsdad has one victory, a maiden special weight score at 1 1/8 miles at Gulfstream Jan. 28. He has earned $45,794.
Mott’s first Blue Grass starter was Taylor's Special, who won the race in 1984. His second came 25 years later with Hold Me Back , who finished second, 1 1/2 lengths behind General Quarters.
In other Keeneland work news, All In Stable’s Willcox Inn had the morning off April 10 after working six furlongs in 1:12 2/5 the morning of April 9. “He is fine this morning and he will go back to the track Monday (April 11),” trainer Mike Stidham said.