Afleet Alex, the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) and Preakness (gr. I) champion, recorded his first official workout in more than a month Sunday morning when he breezed five furlongs over Belmont Park's fast main track in 1:00 4/5. New York Racing Association clockers caught the colt in fractions of :25 3/5, :37 3/5 and :49 2/5. He galloped out six furlongs in 1:14 2/5 and seven furlongs in 1:29 1/5.Afleet Alex's regular rider, Jeremy Rose, was in town to work the colt. Although Afleet Alex has galloped and jogged regularly since his powerful seven-length win in the June 11th Belmont Stakes, this was his first timed workout since June 1st at Pimlico.
"That was exactly what we were looking for," trainer Tim Ritchey said of today's work. "It was just a maintenance breeze and he did it nice and easy. The horse looks great. Jeremy never really asked him for much, but let him finish down the stretch. He cooled out fine."
As expected, Ritchey said Afleet Alex would start next in Monmouth Park's Haskell Invitational (gr. I) on Aug. 7. From there, fans may get to see the superstar in Saratoga's grade I, $1 million Travers, the "Mid-Summer Derby" for 3-year-olds at a mile and a quarter on Saturday, Aug. 27.
"That's the race we've got next on our radar screen," said Ritchey of the Haskell.