Charles Lopresti points Successful Dan to the Cornhusker and Wise Dan to the Whitney
A game second place finish to winner, Ron the Greek, in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs 16 June, 2012, where he was beaten by a mere head in the final strides – has come out of the race like he didn’t even run said trainer Charles Lopresti.
Lopresti has put Morton Fink’s 5-year-old gelding, Wise Dan, back to on the work tab at Keeneland for the first time since the Stephen Foster Handicap.
“He had the bloodwork of a horse that never exerted himself,” Lopresti said. “He came out of the race doing as well as you could possibly imagine.”
Bred in Kentucky by Morton Fink, Wise Dan was coming into the Stephen Foster Handicap on the back of three straight victories.
His three race win started back in 29 October, 2011, when pummelled the Grade 2 Fayette Handicap rivals over at Keeneland’s synthetic surface, and topped the 1 1/8 mile distance in 1 minute and 48.72 seconds.
And to top off a reasonably good campaign, Wise Dan was out of a star studded lineup’s reach in the Grade 1 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs’ dirt footing, where he got the better of Mission Impazible and Flat Out in the stretch.
Wise Dan continued his winning form this season as well, as he downed the opener, Grade 3 Ben Ali Stakes again at Keeneland’s synthetic surface, but failed to make it 4 in a row in his following start, the Stephen Foster Handicap.
Now, the son of Wiseman’s Ferry, out of Wolf Power mare Lisa Danielle, is pointed toward the Grade 1 Whitney Handicap on 4 August, 2012, at the Saratoga Race Course over a distance of 1 1/8 miles.
“I’ll probably take him and some other horses up there two or three weeks out, let him get a breeze over the track,” Lopresti said.
Lopresti is looking to enter the 6-year-old gelded son of Successful Appeal, Successful Dan, to the Grade 3, $300,000 Cornhusker Handicap at Prairie Meadows on 30 June, 2012.
Also a Morton Fink’s homebred. Successful Dan is exiting a victory in the Grade 2 Alysheba Handicap at Churchill Downs.
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