Jim Dandy winner Tax to breeze Friday; Breeders' Cup unlikely
Tax, who scratched out of the Sept. 29 Oklahoma Derby after spiking a temperature, will breeze Friday for the first time since shipping back to Belmont Park, trainer Danny Gargan said Thursday.
“We had to get his white cell count perfect,” Gargan said of Tax, a 3-year-old Arch gelding. “He spiked a temp, so we had to make sure everything was good before we started pushing on with him.”
Gargan said he’ll “start evaluating where our next spot is” after Tax’s Friday morning work.
The trainer indicated the most likely option is the Grade 3, $200,000 Discovery set for Nov. 30 at Aqueduct. That 3-year-old dirt feature goes 1 1/8 miles.
“He’ll run one more time this year and then we’re going to freshen him for next year,” Gargan said.
Is there any chance Tax’s final 2019 start could come at the Breeders’ Cup?
“If he works crazy good, there’s always a chance,” Gargan said. “But I don’t think so.”
Tax sports graded stakes victories this season in Aqueduct’s Withers (G3) and Saratoga’s Jim Dandy (G2) and was second in the Wood Memorial (G2).
He’s run three times in Grade 1 spots, coming up 14th in the Kentucky Derby, fourth in the Belmont Stakes and seventh last out Aug. 24 in the Travers.
R.A. Hill Stable, Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Hugh Lynch and Corms Racing Stable campaign Tax, a former claimer who’s earned $786,300 over nine lifetime starts.