Hoosier Philly training for the first time since returning to trainer Tom Amoss’ shed on January 28 at Fair Grounds Racecourse & Slots. The perfect 3 to 3 phenomenon continued its impressive ways, firing the :47 2/5 bullet in half a mile, the fastest bullet of the 102 to reach that distance on Saturday.
Looks good! wind 1/2 mile. @TomAmossRacing #teamamoss @fairgroundsnola #hoosierphilly pic.twitter.com/oFRPLBUG44
– HoosierPhillyOfficial (@hoosier_philly1) January 28, 2023
“There are a few important things to keep in mind,” Amoss said. “The job is designed to be an easy request, and that’s exactly how she works, even though the work last seemed very fast. You have to consider that because she has speed. It’s very, very similar to how she worked when she was 2 years old before we gave her a break, so we’re happy with that.”
Amoss and Fair Grounds timekeeper, Mike Diliberto, timed the Hoosier Philly at five seconds at 1:00. The into naughty The girl has her regular racer Edgar Morales on board.
“She lives well within herself and makes it look easy,” says Diliberto. “It looks like she’s hanging out, and then you look at the time and it’s like, ‘Wow.'”
Owned by Gold Standard Racing Stable and bred by Candy Meadows of Kentucky, Hoosier Philly earned ten points ahead of the Kentucky Oaks (G1) with her Golden Rod Stakes (G2) race at Churchill Downs in November. Before that, she won the Rags to Riches Stakes there by 7 1/2. She is currently at number ten in the Oaks rankings.
“I really enjoyed her enthusiasm during training this past week,” Amoss said. “It’s always been her way in the past. When she first arrived, it probably took her a little while to get used to the track and what her job was, but she did a great job. It’s worth noting that she wore four bandages today for her job, and we’ll probably do that for the next time she works, but it’s purely a precaution, and I doubt we do it for the race. We’re just taking a lot of precautions with her.”
Amoss has another outstanding 3-year-old in her cage, Curly Jack . The winner of the Iroquois Stakes (G3) made 17 points against the Kentucky Derby (G1).
Curly Jack to receive Iroquois shares in 2022 at Churchill Downs
“He’s doing super,” Amoss said. “(Curly Jack and Hoosier Philly) are different horses in how you train them. Hoosier Philly won’t need as much as Curly Jack will need to get ready to run. And you saw that today with her at gallop. That’s very strong over the rope Curly Jack is likely to be back in the middle of next week and we’ll put him in the race. We’ll put him up against another horse and we’ll see him. We’re going to ask him to finish (vigorously) the job, and I’m looking forward to doing that.”
In his second run since returning to the shed, Curly Jack overtook four stretches on: 50 2/5 on January 26 (36th fastest out of 48 at distance).
Hoosier Philly targeted Rachel Alexandra Stakes (G2) and Curly Jack, the Risen Star Stakes (G2). But Amoss reported Saturday that it’s not fixed.
“We’re not married to either of those points,” Amoss said. “But based on how they’re doing and where they’ve progressed in training, it’s very likely (they start in those races).”
Both February 18 at the Fair Grounds, the $400,000 Easter Star and $300,000 Rachel Alexandra deliver qualifying scores on a 50-20-15-10-5 basis for the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks, respectively.
This press release has been edited by BloodHorse Staff for content and style.
