Oskar Blues ready for stakes debut in Hopeful

Fern Circle Stables' impressive maiden winner Oskar Blues is ready for his close-up in the Grade 1, $350,000 Hopeful Monday, Closing Day of Saratoga's summer meet, trainer Ken McPeek said Friday.

The chestnut son of champion sprinter Speightstown drew post 2 in the field of eight juveniles and will carry 118 pounds including jockey Dylan Davis, who was aboard for Oskar Blues' debut victory August 12 at Saratoga.

"He's doing good. He's an easy horse to be around," McPeek said. "His first race was a good, solid race. I actually was pleasantly surprised. I thought maybe he would need the race. He fought on and ran big. I expect some improvement first to second start, and I think he's going to want to go longer than this."

Oskar Blues dueled for the lead from the start in his unveiling, contested at the Hopeful's seven-furlong distance, giving it up in the stretch before fighting back for a gutsy nose victory over well-regarded Airtouch.

"His last work before that race he got pretty tired and we thought maybe he'd need another one but we went ahead and decided to run him," McPeek said. "He jumped right in it, and he acts like a horse with a big future."

Since the race Oskar Blues has breezed twice over the Oklahoma training track, most recently going five furlongs in 1:03.87 on Tuesday. McPeek said the horse's demeanor and work ethic recall Harlan's Holiday, who McPeek trained to wins in the Grade 1 Florida Derby and Blue Grass before a seventh-place finish as the favorite in the 2002 Kentucky Derby.

"He's had normal gallops and a couple of maintenance works, just keeping it on an even keel. Nothing complicated," McPeek said. "He kind of reminds me of Harlan's Holiday. He just did everything right every day and didn't have a lot of flash to him but was very workmanlike, and workmanlike is a very good thing in this game. He just goes out there and works. He makes training horses easy."

Oskar Blues is one of four maiden winners making his stakes debut in the Hopeful. Among his rivals are Firenze Fire, Free Drop Billy and Psychoanalyze - the top three finishers from the Grade 3 Sanford July 22 at Saratoga.