Jersey Town works half-mile ahead of the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile
The 6-year-old Charles E. Fipke’s Jersey Town finally posted a victory, and it was surprise for everyone because the older horse hasn’t registered a victory since 27 November, 2010, when he downed the Grade 1 Cigar Mile that followed a 7-race drought until the Speightstown horse became the upset winner of the Grade 2 Kelso Handicap on 29 September, 2012, at Belmont Park.
Now, the Barclay Tagg trained horse has started turning in workouts for his next start, the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, and his most recent was on 11 October, when he worked half-mile 50.52 seconds at Belmont Park’s main dirt track.
It was something what Barclay Tagg wanted to see in Jersey Town’s first workout for the Dirt Mile. Under exercise rider Simon Harris, Jersey Town clocked first quarter in 25.83 seconds, and the second quarter in 24.69 seconds.
“That’s all I wanted,” said trainer Barclay Tagg, who watched the breeze atop his stable pony positioned at the wire. “He came out of the race really good, better than he went into it.”
Out of Belong to Me mare Jersey Girl, Jersey Town finished his 2010 season with the Cigar Mile win, and on the back of that victory, his connections expected solid runs in the 2011 season.
Though, Jersey Town started the 2011 season brightly with two back-to-back runner-up finishes Teddy Drone Stakes over 6 furlongs at Monmouth Park and then in the Grade 1 Forego Stakes to winner Jackson Bend over a distance of seven furlongs at Saratoga.
Last season, Jersey Town finished a strong third to winner Uncle Mo, in the Kelso Handicap, and then capped off the season with a 6th place finish in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile to winner, Caleb’s Posse, at Churchill Downs.
His career has been plagued with foot problems, and thus for someone with an injury troubled career, he has done remarkably well to hit the board pretty consistently.
“Knock on wood, his quarter cracks haven’t started up,” Tagg said. Although, his Thursday workout suggested that he is injury free and feeling nothing in his foot.
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