(from Gulfstream Park)
The connections for Spectacular Bid Stakes winner Notonthesamepage will point the colt to the $250,000 Fountain of Youth Stakes (gr. II) on Feb. 28 at Gulstream Park.
Trainer Wesley Ward gave a ‘thumbs up’ sign Jan. 4, the morning after Notonthesamepage rolled to a near record-setting victory in the six-furlong Spectacular Bid, a $100,000 event for 3-year-olds.
The next step for the Kentucky homebred son of Catienus will be two months away in the Fountain of Youth, which will be contested as a one-turn mile in 2009.
“He’s doing great this morning,” said Ward at his Gulfstream. “I always like to give horses some time after a big run. That was a big run yesterday. The Fountain of Youth will be great for him at a mile.”
Notonthesamepage had lost three straight stakes to close his 2-year-old campaign. Respiratory bleeding problems became progressively worse as Ward tried the colt at longer distances, culminating in a last-place finish in the 1 1/1- mile Breeders’ Futurity (gr. I) at Keeneland on Oct. 4.
He showed no signs of those problems in the Spectacular Bid, rolling to an 81/4-length victory under jockey Elvis Trujillo. The time, 1:08.48, missing the track record for six furlongs by .02 of a second.
“I’d always thought of him as a really good sprinter,” said Ward, “but once he got those problems behind him, he’s just started training so well. The Fountain of Youth lets us stretch him out and see how far he wants to go.”