Jerkens Back at Santa Anita with Shaman Ghost

Trainer Jimmy Jerkens is hoping for a second chance at a first impression this weekend at Santa Anita Park with Shaman Ghost (Ghostzapper) entered in Saturday's GI Santa Anita H. The veteran conditioner is preparing the GI Woodward S. winner for a 10-furlong, Grade I event in Arcadia for the second time in just over four months after scratching Shaman Ghost from the GI Breeders' Cup Classic in November when the bay spiked a fever in the 24 hours leading up to the race.

“He's really doing well right now,” Jerkens reported from Santa Anita while waiting for his GI Pegasus World Cup runner-up to arrive. “He has not missed a beat and just had a nice work in company [five furlongs in 1:00 flat at Palm Meadows Saturday]. I wasn't really tempted to run in the [G1] Dubai World Cup. Everybody does it and it seems a bit nerve-racking. Mr. Stronach wasn't crazy about the idea and didn't really give it much thought. Our goal was the Pegasus and to go from there. You kind of want to keep them in some kind of rhythm. We didn't want to wait until the [GII] Oaklawn [H.] and didn't want to go to Dubai. With Arrogate (Unbridled's Song) going to Dubai, that made [the Big 'Cap] more appetizing.”

“I really liked his race [in the Pegasus],” Jerkens continued. “He really came out of the gate running and that's a great sign. They ran away from him and he idled a little down the back and then when he was asked, he ran very willingly. He usually throws a good run in and I think even in his bad races he's had legitimate excuses.”

The 11-time Grade I-winning trainer has conditioned the Canadian champion for his last six starts, originally getting him in December 2015 after the earner of $3,089,311 had made eight starts for Brian Lynch. So far, Jerkens and Shaman Ghost have won the GII Brooklyn going 12 furlongs and placed in both the Pegasus and GI Clark H. in addition to his Woodward win. As a sophomore, he ran in the first two legs of the Canadian Triple Crown, taking the prestigious Queen's Plate S. and running second in the Prince of Wales S.

“I think he showed a lot of class when Brian had him and he ran hard in the Canadian Triple Crown,” Jerkens said. “He's a pretty hardy animal, especially as far as horses go these days. He came out of those races with some rough ankles and had some time. We got going again right before New York last year and he hasn't looked back since. He's a horse who needs a little tender loving care, but he's good once you get him in the gate.

The conditioner added, “Santa Anita can be very speed-favoring and he is going to have to be lucky. Hopefully there's a little pace. It all depends on how fast they're going. He wasn't too far behind in the Woodward and will like the distance. Hopefully we get a little luckier this time around.”

With stable star Effinex (Mineshaft)–who was third in last year's 'Big Cap' as the 7-5 chalk–retired to stud, Jerkens hopes Shaman Ghost can pick up the mantle in 2017. He also has a pair of 4-year-olds with positive trajectories in Unified (Candy Ride {Arg}) and Delta Prince (Street Cry {Ire}) among his 40 horses in training.

Centennial Farms' “TDN Rising Star” Unified returned from an eight-month layoff to hold off Grade I winner Mind Your Biscuits (Posse) Feb. 25 in the GIII Gulfstream Park Sprint S., winning his fourth race from five career outings and annexing his third graded stakes.

“Unified came back big,” Jerkens said. “I think we'll go to the [GI] Carter [H. Apr. 8] with him. I really like the way he is training and think he'll have enough time between races. If they're fresh and have to run hard when they weren't ready for it, you worry about a bounce, but we had him good and prepared.”

Fellow “TDN Rising Star” Delta Prince, a Stronach homebred and half-brother to champion Royal Delta (Empire Maker), came into Jerkens' care last year and won like a good thing in a first-level Gulfstream Park turf allowance Feb. 18. The victory was his second in a row following a Dec. 26 graduation.

“Delta Prince has a lot of talent,” Jerkens commented. “We will likely go through the conditions with him and if he wins well in a two-other-than, maybe we will look for a stakes with him. He was very close to running for [previous trainer] Christophe [Clement] at the end of the Gulfstream meet last year, but something came up. We got him and he's done very well and I think he has a future. Like with all the horses, you still have to lead them over there. It's incredible how bad, good or lucky things can go all at once with a barn. You just try to stay upbeat and do what you know and keep the horses happy.”