Secret Circle posted his first work after the Rebel Stakes win
Karl Watson, Mike Pegram, and Paul Weitman owned, Secret Circle is sitting pretty in terms of graded earnings to be eligible to run in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby with $470,000 already in the bag for this year with a second place in the Grade 3 Sham Stakes
to winner, Out of Bounds, a win in the fastest division of the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes at about a mile at Oaklawn Park, and now he is exiting another victory in the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes at 1 1/16 miles when he edged out Optimizer by three quarters of a length.
The Bob Baffert trained 3-year-old has shot up his combined earnings to a whopping $818,990, and as a juvenile he earned all this by winning the Jack Goodman Stakes at Santa Anita after breaking his maiden at five and a half furlongs at Del Mar at first
asking, but the biggest win of his career at that point came in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Sprint.
Though, graded earnings not being the issue here, Secret Circle still needs a tough race before the Grade `1 Kentucky Derby, and his connections are still focused on a run in the Grade 1, $1 million Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park over a distance of 1 1/8
miles on 14 April, 2012, where he will meet Optimizer again.
He still remains on edge for a start in the $1 million event, as he turned in a work out of five furlongs, which turned out to be his first published work since his win in the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes. He drilled five furlongs in 58 2/5 seconds over at Santa
Anita Park’s dirt course on 29 March, 2012.
The move was recorded as the fastest out of 37 at the distance. Trainer Bob Baffert, who suffered a heart attack in Dubai and got hospitalised on 26 March, 2012, is looking at his other 3-year-old colts as well, and to give them a decent run in a decent
race right before the Kentucky Derby.
Grade 2 Vicente Stakes winner, Drill is pointed toward the Grade 1 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland on 14 April, while Bodemeister will run against his stable mate Secret Circle in the Arkansas Derby.
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