By Bloodhorse.com
Triple Crown hopeful California Chrome looked sharp in his final workout May 31 in preparation for the upcoming Belmont Stakes (gr. I), breezing a half-mile under regular rider Victor Espinoza in a quick :47.69 at Belmont Park.
“It was great,” Espinoza said. “I started not too fast…and I picked it up a little bit at the end. When we crossed the wire, I kind of dropped the reins a little bit and he did what he always does: his job.”
Steve Coburn and Perry Martin’s homebred son of Lucky Pulpit is seeking to become the 12th horse in history to sweep the Kentucky Derby (gr. I), Preakness Stakes (gr. I) and Belmont and the first Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978. He impressed on-lookers with his presence over a track playing fast after being sealed overnight because of light rain in the New York area.
“The horse worked great,” assistant trainer Alan Sherman said. “(The track) seems to be fast today. A little moisture last night, I think, tightened it up a bit.”
California Chrome galloped out five furlongs in :59.93, six panels in 1:12.95, and seven-eighths in 1:26.28.
“I couldn’t ask for anything more, it was a perfect work. He’s ready,” Sherman said in anticipation of the June 7 Belmont Stakes. “He galloped out great, exactly what we wanted today.”
The hands-on assistant oversaw the move for his father, trainer Art Sherman, who will come in from their home base in Southern California later in the week. Following the work, Alan Sherman, who timed California Chrome in :47.50, said he “got the chills” watching their contender skim over the track.
California Chrome drilled without the blinkers he usually wears on race day “so he wouldn’t go too fast,” Sherman said. Plans call for the the chestnut colt to walk June 1, jog the track June 2, and gallop from June 3-6. A jog is also planned for the morning of June 7 prior to the 1 1/2-mile Belmont.