Preakness: Saffie Joseph's scenario for Skippylongstocking

Skippylongstocking is at 20-1 on the Preakness Stakes morning line, and trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. knows he will have to step up to have a chance on Saturday.

One factor that isn’t a concern is the distance, as the colt covered 1 1/8 miles in his last two starts: a 3 3/4-length win in a Gulfstream allowance followed by a third-place effort in the Wood Memorial (G2).

Still, “he has to improve again to beat these kinds of quality horses,” Joseph told Horse Racing Nation Wednesday. “Epicenter, Early Voting, they're two deserving favorites and then the McPeek horse is a good horse in his own right. But if we've got the pace set up and the race can kind of fall apart, I think he'll come running on in.”

In the Wood, Skippylongstocking was 3 1/2 lengths behind Early Voting, who was caught late to lose to Mo Donegal by a neck.

“I thought it was a credible effort,” Joseph said. “He was second to Early Voting, who was the favorite in this race. Mo Donegal ran a pretty good race in the Derby. (Skippylongstocking) was wide at the home stretch. So you could say he ran better than his final margin suggests. Overall I thought it was a good performance, and that's what's made us decide to take a chance at the Preakness.”

Skippylongstocking, who drew post 9, worked five furlongs in 59.60 seconds on Friday at Palm Meadows Training Center, the best of five at the distance.

“He ran well, galloped out strong,” Joseph said. “He's in good order.”

Joseph also started A.P.’s Secret in the Wood, where he was 1 1/2 lengths behind his stablemate to finish fourth. Joseph said his next start will be in Lone Star Park’s Texas Derby on May 30.

Joseph’s Kentucky Derby starter, White Abarrio, “come out of the race well” after a 16th-place finish. “He's shipped back to Florida, we went over him thoroughly, all's good with him.”

The Derby “just didn’t work out for him,” Joseph said. “You need to get a trip. He was hung wide, he didn't really have much chance to get over from where he was.”

White Abarrio, winner of the Florida Derby (G1) “most likely” will have his next start in the $500,000 Ohio Derby (G3) on June 25 at Thistledown.

Another graded-stakes winner for Joseph, Drain the Clock, just got back to Gulfstream after his seventh-place finish in the Dubai Golden Shaheen (G1).

“We're going to target a summer campaign for him. There's a Grade 1 over at Del Mar that's a possibility, but we'll prep him before that once.”