Bound for Nowhere eyes Belmont's Jaipur Stakes next

Bound for Nowhere, owned and trained by Wesley Ward, could be headed to the Grade 1, $250,000 Jaipur at Belmont Park. The six-furlong turf sprint, which offers a berth in the Breeders' Cup Sprint at Keeneland, is set for Belmont Stakes Day on June 20.

The 6-year-old son of The Factor has won 6-of-13 starts, including scores in the 2018 Shakertown (G2) at Keeneland that garnered a career-best 107 Beyer Speed Figure and a sizzling 4¼-length score in an optional-claiming sprint in October 2019 on the Belmont turf that earned a 106 Beyer.

"I'm training him for the Jaipur,” Ward said. “He's training outstanding right now.

"We were going to go to Ascot, but with the Breeders' Cup being in Keeneland this fall I don't want to keep moving him around too much."

The Belmont romp, in which Bound for Nowhere overcame a stumbled start, was on the back of a four-month layoff after an off-the-board effort in the 2019 Group 1 Diamond Jubilee at Ascot.

"He pulled a muscle in England,” Ward said. “It took me all summer to get him back right until the fall when he ran a big race at Belmont, but it was just too quick back to the Breeders' Cup.”

Instead, Ward pointed Bound for Nowhere to the San Simeone (G3) on March 21 at Santa Anita where he was a game second, beaten a head, to possible Jaipur rival Cistron.

"He got beat on the line with some trip excuses in the race,” Ward said. “He's working really good right now.”

Ten Broeck Farm's Kimari breezed five eighths in 1:00.60 on Saturday on the Keeneland turf.

"She worked well yesterday on the grass at Keeneland and I have her scheduled for the Commonwealth at Ascot," Ward said.

Breeze Easy's Four Wheel Drive, winner of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint at Santa Anita in November, was undefeated in three starts heading into his seasonal debut in a Churchill Downs allowance May 17. Off a step slowly in the 5½-furlong turf sprint, Four Wheel Drive failed to fire when seventh.

"He has me scratching my head,” Ward said. “He came out of the race with no issues. Other than his stutter step at the start, it's hard to find an excuse.

“You'd think an undefeated Breeders' Cup winner would be able to sit back and make a run, but he didn't. We'll breeze him Saturday on the grass and see if maybe that race tightened him down to where it was a lack of fitness that he didn't have that punch in the last part."