Fiona’s Magic
A Florida home-bred for Marilyn Campbell’s Stonehedge LLC and a graduate of the early training at her Stonehedge Farm South in Williston, Fla., Fiona’s Magic galloped a mile and three-eighths and visited the starting gate shortly after 9 a.m. Monday morning under exercise rider Alejandro Mariano.
“She did well at the gate,” trainer Michael Yates said.
In her most recent start, the Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2), Fiona’s Magic finished eighth.
“We learned absolutely nothing from that race,” Yates said. “We breezed her eight days before the race and scoped her. She scoped clean. Everything looked to be on ‘go.’ She had no nasal discharge. Everything was normal, but after the race, we scoped her, and she was loaded with mucus.”
Yates knew his filly was in trouble on the backstretch.
“When Chad [Brown’s] filly [Ways and Means] ran right by us between the half-mile pole and the three-eighths,” Yates said of when he knew something was wrong.
Last Tuesday at Gulfstream Park, Fiona’s Magic worked six furlongs in 1:15.16.
“The day after she worked, she scoped clean and everything looked good and that’s when we made the decision to come here,” said Yates, who has 28 horses stabled at Gulfstream Park and another 25 in training at his farm in Ocala, Florida.
Leslie’s Rose
Owned by Mandy Pope’s Whisper Hill Farm in Ocala, Fla., where she also received her early education, Leslie’s Rose had a mile and three-eighths gallop during the 7:30-7:45 a.m. special Oaks/Derby training period that Churchill Downs provides for those runners aiming for the two classics.
Ways and Means
A graduate of the early training program at de Meric Thoroughbred Sales in Ocala, Fla., Ways and Means was back galloping for the first time since her blazing half-mile breeze on April 26.
Thorpedo Anna
A graduate of Kenny McPeek’s Silverleaf Training Center in Summerfield, Fla., went out in the second set of workers for trainer Kenny McPeek on Monday with Martin Reyes.
“She went out a for a mile-and-three-eighths gallop,” McPeek said.
