Photo: NYRA
Trainer Michele Nihei reported that Artest,
who rallied from sixth to win Thursday’s 5 ½-furlong Quick Call by 1 ½
lengths on one week’s rest, emerged from his quick turnaround in fine
form.
“Most of the credit has to go to [owner] Dennis Narlinger,”
she said. “I’m not the type of person to wheel horses back like that.
We really wanted to see if this horse wants to be a closing sprinter. It’s
been a little frustrating, because he’s the type of horse that screams
talent in the mornings. This morning, the horse was like ‘See? I told you
this is what I wanted to do!’”
Nihei said the 3-year-old Hard Spun colt possibly could face older
horses in the 5 ½-furlong Troy
on August 15.
“At the moment we need to see if we can keep him on a progressive
racing schedule,” said Nihei. “The Troy is three times as far away as the Quick
Call was from his last race; we’ll look at anything short on the grass.”
Nihei added that Upgrade,
winner of the Grade 3, seven-furlong Jaipur at Belmont Park on June 8, was
under serious consideration for the Grade 2, $500,000 Fourstardave Handicap on
August 11.
“It’s a mile, but I like the way he’s been training
the past few days,” she said. “It’s a challenging spot for
him. But he’s on schedule for it if that’s where we decide to go.”
Grade 1 Jamaica
winner Prince Will I Am, unraced
since the 2011 Woodford Reserve Manhattan Handicap, continues to train well for
a return to racing, said the trainer. A third workout is upcoming for the
5-year-old Victory Gallop ridgling, who last Sunday went a half-mile in 49.58.
“We had been looking at the [August 3] John’s Call, but
that may be a little bit ahead of his schedule,” said Nihei. “If
not, then we’ll look at something for when we get back to Belmont, or maybe at
Keeneland.”