Classic Causeway all set for Kentucky Jockey Club after swift drill

Kentucky West Racing and Clark Cooper’s eye-catching 6 1/2-length debut winner Classic Causeway is on target to be one of the headliners in the $400,000 Kentucky Jockey Club (G2) at Churchill Downs following his swift five-furlong breeze in :59.4 seconds Saturday.

Trained by Brian Lynch, Classic Causeway cruised to a front-running victory on debut at Saratoga at odds of 13-1. The chestnut son of the late Giant’s Causeway finished a tough-luck third in the $500,000 Breeders’ Futurity (GI) last out as the 9-5 favorite.

“He’s always been a horse that breaks sharp from the gate,” Lynch said. “We knew that going into the debut so it didn’t really surprise us he broke on top like he did but it’s always a pleasant surprise to see them win that impressively.

“Last out in the Breeders’ Futurity, he was hung wide from the gate and he battled pretty hard on the lead through fast fractions. I thought he gamely held on for third after the field closed in on him.

“Going into this start I’ve been trying to get him to relax a little bit in his training. I’ve worked him behind horses and in company so he doesn’t have to be on the engine.”

Classic Causeway is scheduled to be ridden by Joel Rosario.

Next Saturday’s Kentucky Jockey Club will offer the top four finishers points (10-4-2-1) on the Road to the Kentucky Derby. The 1 1/16-mile race will be drawn Wednesday. Its counterpart, the $400,000 Golden Rod (G2) also will be drawn on the same day for 2-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles. The Golden Rod will award the same scale of points on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks.