Steve Asmussen trainee Curlin, winner of this year's Preakness Stakes (gr. I), began his serious preparations for an expected engagement in the $5-million Breeders' Cup Classic - Powered by Dodge (gr. I) by working a half-mile in :51.60 on Keeneland’s Polytrack surface Oct. 9.
With regular exercise rider Carmen Rosas up, Curlin went to the track shortly after 6:30 a.m. EDT. Clockers recorded fractions of :13.20, :26.40, and :39.60 for the work, the colt’s first since winning the Sept. 30 Jockey Club Gold Cup (gr. I) at Belmont Park.
“He did it nice and comfortable,” Asmussen said. “We pushed the work back a day because the (Jockey Club Gold Cup) was on a Sunday. He'll be back on a Monday schedule next week.”
Owned by George Bolton, Stonestreet Stables, Padua Stables, and Midnight Cry Stable, Curlin is expected to have his final Breeders’ Cup work at Keeneland Oct. 22 and is scheduled to ship to Monmouth Park the following day.
Also working for Asmussen was Vinery Stables and Fox Hill Farm’s Kodiak Kowboy. Pointed toward the $2-million Bessemer Trust Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (gr. I), Kodiak Kowboy breezed five furlongs in 1:02.
A two-time graded stakes winner, Kodiak Kowboy finished second in his most recent start, the Sept. 15 Futurity (gr. I) at Belmont Park.
