Report: Knicks Go points to Whitney for next start

After his 10 1/4-length win in Saturday's Cornhusker Handicap (G3), Knicks Go will start next in the $1 million Whitney (G1) on Aug. 7 at Saratoga, according to a Thoroughbred Daily News report.

Trainer Brad Cox could not be reached for comment, but he told TDN that the 1 1/4-miles Breeders' Cup Classic also could be in play for the 5-year-old if he were to perform well in the Whitney, which is a "win and you're in" for the Breeders' Cup feature. Last year, Knicks Go won the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile.

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Cox told Horse Racing Nation last week that Knicks Go has "obviously kind of shown us now that he's a two-turn horse; he doesn't like the one-turn mile," an observation that was borne out in last Saturday's Cornhusker.

Knicks Go began racing for Cox with two allowance wins going a mile last year. He then scored in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, which was followed by a score in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) in January going 1 1/8 miles. 

After a fourth-place finish in the Saudi Cup also at 1 1/8 miles, Knicks Go was cut back to a mile for the Metropolitan Handicap (G1), where he also finished fourth. However, that was around one turn.

“He's a horse that doesn't slow down around the turns and that's where he seems to win his races, on the far turn," Cox told TDN.

For this year's Breeders' Cup, Cox said that both the Classic and the Dirt Mile are options.

Knicks Go has not raced beyond 1 1/8 miles. However, Cox told TDN, "With the way he ran Friday and the configuration of Del Mar, the Classic is definitely in play. Both Breeders' Cup races are in play. At Del Mar, we think a mile-and-a-quarter is something he can handle. I think he's a horse that benefits from a shorter stretch."

Other horses known to be under consideration for the Whitney include Country Grammer, Silver State, Code of Honor and By My Standards.