Fort Larned's Half-Brother Lent Debuts at Churchill Downs

Janis Whitham’s homebred Lent, a half-brother to 2012 Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) winner Fort Larned, will make his career debut in Friday’s seventh race at Churchill Downs.

 

“We’ll get him started and let him improve,” trainer Ian Wilkes said. “He’s a different horse than his brother – different conformation and different type of horse. I hope he can run as fast.”

 

Wilkes, who has saddled two winners at the 2013 Spring Meet, has won with six of 250 first-time starters in his career. But Wilkes is more concerned with races down the line than with getting a horse to win at first asking.

 

“It’s all about developing the horse to me and not putting everything into the horse’s first race,” Wilkes said. “I like to build some asset value in the horse and let him develop and let him be as good as he can be when he matures.”

 

A 3-year-old bay son of Pulpit, Lent also is a half-brother to Izarra, who finished second in the Oak Leaf (GI) and third in the Del Mar Debutante (GI) in 2007.

 

“He was very close to starting late in his 2-year-old year,” Wilkes said. “He had a little issue in an ankle, so we stopped on him and gave him some time. Now he’s ready to go.”

 

Lent’s older brother Fort Larned, who is being pointed toward the Stephen Foster Handicap (GI) on June 15, is scheduled to breeze five furlongs Friday morning prior to the renovation break.