(Edited NYRA report)
Mr. Hot Stuff worked a bullet five furlongs over Polytrack at Keeneland Race Course on May 26 in preparation for a start in the 141st running of the 1 million Belmont Stakes (gr. I) June 6 at Belmont Park.
The son of Tiznow was caught in 1:01, the fastest of 12 at the distance. It was Mr. Hot Stuff’s third work at Keeneland since finishing 15th in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), which was his first start on dirt.
“He went very well, easy enough, and there was plenty left in the tank” said trainer Eoin Harty from California. “He’s fit and ready to go.”
Mr. Hot Stuff, owned by WinStar Farm, will have the services of Hall of Fame jockey Edgar Prado in the 1½-mile Belmont . Prado won the Belmont in 2002 aboard Sarava and again in 2004 on Birdstone.
Harty said he and Mr. Hot Stuff will most likely arrive in New York on June 3.
Meanwhile, Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas said Flying Private, fourth in the BlackBerry Preakness Stakes (gr. I), and Luv Gov, who was eighth at Pimlico, will work at Churchill Downs this week before a final decision is made whether to run in the Belmont.
“I haven’t decided yet whether they will go in the race,” said Lukas from Louisville. “They’ll work midweek and then we’ll decide.”
Lukas has saddled 19 Belmont Stakes starters, with four wins – Tabasco Cat (1994), Thunder Gulch (1995), Editor’s Note (1996) and Commendable (2000). Lukas has not had a Belmont Stakes starter since A.P. Arrow ran fifth in 2005.