By Steve Sherack
Rigney Racing's 'TDN Rising Star' Jonathan's Way (Vekoma), seventh at a well-backed 5-1 in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Del Mar, is being aimed at the GII Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs Nov. 30. The previously unbeaten GIII Iroquois Stakes winner returned to trainer Phil Bauer's Louisville base with a five-furlong bullet in :58.80 (1/76) Nov. 16.
“Hopefully, we'll put that behind us and run well in the Jockey Club,” Bauer said. “He's shown great energy since he shipped home. That's the main reason why we even considered it. This last breeze didn't seem to take anything out of him. He's indicating to us that he's in good shape and ready to go.”
The $290,000 Keeneland November weanling purchase kicked off his career with an eye-catching, come-from-behind debut victory going six furlongs at Saratoga Aug. 17, then wired 10 rivals in the one-turn mile Iroquois beneath the Twin Spires Sept. 14.
Headstrong beneath Joel Rosario in the early stages of the Juvenile, Jonathan's Way raced in between horses in fifth through fractions of :23.44 and :47.89 and never really got going while finishing seven lengths behind front-running winner Citizen Bull (Into Mischief). The Juvenile was Jonathan's Way's first try around two turns.
“Overall, pretty disappointed in the whole trip out there,” Bauer said. “Definitely think he's way better than that. Turn the page. We talked long and hard after the Breeders' Cup–the goal is the (Kentucky) Derby–so we felt like sitting on him until the end of January for the first Fair Grounds prep might not be in his favor coming off a race like that.”
Bauer continued, “We tried to educate him a little more the other morning getting him behind some horses and he seemed to handle it better than he did in the race. I think everything is natural progression with racing and young horses. Hopefully, he'll learn from it and both our team and Joel learned a little more about him, too.”
Bauer concluded, “We're gonna run in the Jockey Club and hopefully end the year on a better note than the Breeders' Cup.”
One of five stakes winners from the first crop of Vekoma, Jonathan's Way was produced by the stakes-winning Indian Charlie mare Female Drama.
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