Veteran Seeking the Soul enters the Pegasus World Cup mix
Seeking the Soul’s getting up there in age, but you wouldn’t know it based on trainer Dallas Stewart’s seeing from the 6-year-old readying for another campaign in 2020.
“He’s a horse that goes out to the track and bucks and plays all the time,” said Stewart, with had Charles Fipke’s Grade 1 winner back on the work tab Christmas Eve for a half-mile breeze toward the $3 million Pegasus World Cup (G1).
A son of Perfect Soul, Seeking the Soul ran second in the 2019 Pegasus, which was then a $9 million race with a $500,000 entry fee. Recently announced changes to the race cut the purse, yet made the race more enticing for a number of horsemen.
“That’s still a lot of money,” Stewart said, “and now it doesn’t cost anything to run.”
Seeking the Soul is training toward Gulfstream Park’s Pegasus at Stewart’s winter base, New Orleans’ Fair Grounds. His most-recent piece of work Tuesday went in 49.60 for the four furlongs.
Sixth in his most-recent two starts, Seeking the Soul competed in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita Park and Churchill Downs’ Clark Stakes (G1) to cap his season. Stewart said he and Fipke briefly discussed a breeding career before the owner gave the direction: train on to the Pegasus.
“He ran pretty well in the Breeders’ Cup,” Stewart said. “We thought he could possibly hit the board. He was right in behind the horse that was unfortunate, Mongolian Groom, and maybe coming back was a little quick for him in the Clark this year. He was a little flat.
“This will be two months between races, so we’ll see where he takes us.”
Seeking the Soul’s career highlights include victories in the 2017 Clark, 2018 Ack Ack (G3) and 2019 Stephen Foster (G2), all at Churchill Downs. Stewart also pointed out the horse’s affinity for Fair Grounds.
“He’s just a fun horse to train. He’s an athlete,” the trainer said, “and he’s there for you every morning. He’s doing well. He’s actually prepped here a lot in Louisiana, so he knows the surface, and he ran here when he was young.”
After the Pegasus, Seeking the Soul could advance to a race such as the New Orleans Classic (G2) — formerly known as a handicap — on March 21.