Churchill Downs: Burnham Square faces 4 others in Matt Winn

Burnham Square, winner of the Blue Grass (G1) in early April, will return to action Sunday in the $400,000 Matt Winn Stakes at Churchill Downs, looking to rebound from a tough trip in the Kentucky Derby.

He is slated to face four others in the Matt Winn, as two of the horses entered are likely to be scratched. Gaming is cross-entered in Sunday’s $100,000 Affirmed Stakes at Santa Anita and shipped back to California on Tuesday. Trainer Ethan West reported Chunk of Gold is likely to scratch from the Matt Winn and enter the June 21 Ohio Derby (G3) at Thistledown.

Trained by Ian Wilkes, Burnham Square finished sixth in the Kentucky Derby after encountering traffic trouble throughout the stretch, ultimately crossing the wire 10 1/2 lengths behind Sovereignty.

“It was disappointing what happened in the Derby but we’re moving on now with him,” Wilkes said. “He’s put on some weight after the Derby and had a really good work leading into this race. We’re looking forward to getting him back to the races.”

After the Derby, Wilkes sent Burnham Square to his string at the Skylight Training Center, located about 40 minutes from Churchill Downs. The gelded son of Liam’s Map had three works over its all-weather track, breezing a half-mile in 48.8 seconds on May 18, five furlongs in 1:00.4 on May 25 and a half-mile in 48.4 seconds Sunday.

Brian Hernandez Jr. will retain the mount. Burnham Square drew post 5, though will shift into post 3 with the expected scratches.

“It’s a good field,” Hernandez said. “The horses in there are all accomplished in their own right, and so are we.”

The Matt Winn will go as race 8 on Sunday at 4:22 p.m. EDT with the first post scheduled for 12:45 p.m.