ARCADIA, Calif. – Crude Velocity will take an unbeaten record to the Grade 2 Pat Day Mile at Churchill Downs on May 2.
On Saturday at Santa Anita, Crude Velocity ($3) won an allowance race at 6 1/2 furlongs by 6 3/4 lengths without urging from jockey Florent Geroux. Crude Velocity was timed in 1:14.32 and earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 100.
Owned by CSLR Racing Partners and trained by Bob Baffert, Crude Velocity won a maiden race in his first start at Santa Anita on March 7. On Sunday, Baffert regretted that Crude Velocity had a late start to his career.
“He’s progressing,” Baffert said. “I’d like to have gotten him started a little earlier.”
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On Sunday morning, Baffert had two notable workouts with Imagination and Greenwich Village.
Imagination, who won the Group 2 Riyadh Dirt Sprint in Saudi Arabia on Feb. 14 in his last start, worked a half-mile in 47.20 seconds. Grade 1, $1 million races such as the Churchill Downs Stakes at seven furlongs on May 2 or the Metropolitan Handicap at a mile at Saratoga on June 6 are possible objectives for Imagination.
Greenwich Village worked five furlongs in 59.20. He was entered in the $100,000 John Shear Stakes at about 6 1/2 furlongs on the hillside turf course at Santa Anita on Sunday, but the race failed to draw sufficient entries. The Shear has been tentatively rescheduled for April 17.
Greenwich Village has won two stakes for 3-year-olds on turf at Santa Anita this year – the Baffle Stakes on the hillside turf course on Jan. 25 and the Pasadena Stakes at a mile on Feb. 22.
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