(Vasilika winning the Buena Vista Stakes at Santa Anita / Photo Courtesy of Santa Anita)

Every day, we scour the work tabs at racetracks all over the country.  We are looking for workouts that may be of interest and helpful to you — as both race fans and handicappers.  Some of the horses we will be tracking, you will know.  Some of them, you may not know — as of yet.  We will keep a keen eye and stopwatch to see who may be working well:

  1. Strike Power, a 4YO son of Speightstown and trained by Mark Hennig, is working his way back to you. This striking colt ran second to Promises Fulfilled in a speed duel in the 2018 Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream Park. Unlike the speedsters this past weekend, though, Promises Fulfilled kept running. After that race, though, Strike Power feel on some hard times. Best finish after that was a fourth in the G3 Amsterdam Stakes at Saratoga in July. Put on the shelf after a 9th in the Better Talk Now Stakes at Saratoga in August. Today, he got his 5th published work since Jan. 29. Went a half mile in :50.55. That was 7th of 7 to go the distance. Don’t know what’s up here, but sure would love to see this one return to his former self.
  2. Strong Will, a 3YO son of Strong Mandate and trained by Larry Rivelli, may be one to keep a close eye on. In his only start to date, Strong Will won a MSW event at Arlington Park on June 17, 2018. Ran off to win by over 2 lengths in that 4.5-furlong event. Went to the sidelines after that, though, and just returned to serious training on Jan. 16. Got his 7th published work today at the Palm Meadows Training Center. Went 5 furlongs in 1:01.80. That was 3rd best out of 5 to go this morning. Looks about ready to aim and fire.
  3. Vasilika, the one-time claimer who has turned into a Stakes-winning machine for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, worked this morning at Santa Anita. She went an easy half-mile in :50.20, which was 17th best of 23 to go the distance. In her last 11 races, this Skipshot mare has won 10 times. Five of those races were Graded Stakes events. Won the G2 Buena Vista at Santa Anita on Feb. 23 in her last out. America’s version of Winx? Amazing, any way you cut it.
  4. More Ice, a 3YO More Than Ready colt trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, ran third in the El Camino Real Derby at Golden Gate Fields last time out. The time before that, the colt ran third in the Eddie Logan Stakes over the grass at Santa Anita. Today, the colt worked 5 furlongs in 1:03.80 over the synthetic surface at Golden Gate. It was the 4th best time out of 8 to go the distance. Will be interesting to see where “the master” trainer spots this one next.
  5. King of Speed, a 3YO Jimmy Creed colt trained by Jeff Bonde, is coming off a 10th place finish in the El Camino Real. May not have liked the new surface type. Was back at Santa Anita today, and he went a half mile in :51.40. That was the 40th best time out of 50 to go the distance. This one may drop back and try allowance company again soon.
  6. Dessman, a very talented son of Union Rags and another mucho talented colt in the barn of Bob Baffert, worked this morning at Santa Anita, as well. This one, who won on career debut and then returned to finish second in the G2 San Vicente Stakes in the next out, went 6 furlongs in a time of 1:13.80. That was the bullet move out of 6 to go the distance. With such a deep bench, Team Baffert may have to travel soon to get all of his top contenders a race in soon. This one may be headed out of town. Keep tabs. He is a raw talent.
  7. Galilean, a Cal-bred son of Uncle Mo and impressive winner of the California Cup in his last time out, worked at Santa Anita this morning, as well. Went 5 furlongs in 1:01.20. That was the 8th best time out of 19 to go that far. Will be interesting to watch where this one goes next, and how he will handle the transition to “open company.” Not too many Cal-breds winning the KY Derby.
  8. Mucho Gusto, a talented 3YO son of Mucho Macho Man and a significant part of the Team Baffert assault on the Triple Crown trail this year, worked at Santa Anita this morning. Impressively. Went 5 furlongs in 1:00.20. That was the 4th best time out of 19 to go the distance. Should be primed and ready to fire next time out, as well.