Talkin, The Hell We Did eye Preakness after preps

Talkin will target the 151st Preakness Stakes on May 16 at Laurel Park, trainer Danny Gargan said.

Gargan won his first Triple Crown race with Dornoch in the 2024 Belmont Stakes and hopes the son of Good Magic can deliver a second triumph in racing's most revered series.

Talkin most recently finished third in the Blue Grass (G1) on April 4 at Keeneland, a race Further Ado won by 11 lengths. Good Magic, the 2017 champion 2-year-old, finished second in the 2018 Kentucky Derby and fourth in the Preakness behind Triple Crown winner Justify. Talkin, a $600,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase, races for Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Pine Racing Stables, Legendary Thoroughbreds, Belmar Racing and Breeding and R.A. Hill Stable.

Even if Talkin had wound up with enough points to make the Derby field, Gargan said the plan called for Maryland's Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown at 1 3/16 miles.

"The Preakness is the kind of race that fits him," he said by phone from South Florida, where he was preparing to pack up his winter stable to head north. "I told everybody that even if we ran second in the Blue Grass, we'd probably wait on the Preakness. He's not a real big horse. He's average-sized, not a big strong, strapping colt and I don't want to do too much with him. He's sound, he's really good. I don't want to overwhelm him, and the Derby can be too overwhelming. Twenty horses, and you can get pushed around there and run nowhere or run a mediocre 10th or eighth. I've done that.

"I want to win another Triple Crown race," he added. "He fits the smaller field. I think he'll like that track. It's a shorter distance. He really doesn't want to go a mile and a quarter, probably. Hopefully that's the race he can jump up and run big. I didn't really like the position we were in the other day, stuck on the rail the whole race, and the rail was kind of flat. Once he finally got out, it was over. Hopefully we can get a better post where we can sit a nice third or fourth, a nice trip instead of jammed in there, and have a chance to win this thing. It would be tremendous. I'd love to win the Preakness."

Gargan said Talkin likely will remain at Keeneland to train before shipping to Laurel. He expects Joel Rosario to ride him back. "If something happens and he can't ride him, I'll ride Kendrick (Carmouche)," he said.

"I'm going to run three or four horses that week," Gargan said of Laurel. "I have a filly, Snowyte, that I'm going to run in the fillies and mares route race (the Allaire DuPont Distaff). Golden Tornado, who was probably my best 2-year-old last year, might make his 3-year-old debut in the Sir Barton."

Gargan noted Snowyte has placed at the Grade 1 level.

The Hell We Did eyes Preakness after Lexington runner-up finish

Trendsetter, the upset winner of Saturday's Lexington (G3) at Keeneland, is not nominated to the Triple Crown, and trainer Ben Colebrook ruled out supplementing to the Preakness. Runner-up The Hell We Did remains a possibility.

Todd Fincher, the Southwest-based trainer of The Hell We Did, said the Preakness was on his mind heading into the 1 1/16-mile Lexington and remains under consideration.

"He'd only run six furlongs," Fincher said of The Hell We Did's previous races at Sunland Park, Zia Park and Remington Park. "We were hoping there would be three or four go to the front, and we could just chill back there. The pace wasn't super-fast, and he naturally has speed. He put himself in the race. Probably not fit enough for that. Very happy with him. He should only improve from here on out. Next step, I don't know.

"I had envisioned a great race and a win, and then go to the Preakness, but that is a long way away. We have options. We'll talk with the owners and decide. I think the next time he goes two turns, he'll be a lot better."

Positioned five weeks before the Preakness, the Lexington has been a reliable source of starters, including last year's runner-up Gosger, who won the race. Rombauer captured the 2021 Preakness in an upset after finishing third in the Lexington. Owendale (2019) and Senior Investment (2017) both finished third in the Preakness after winning the Keeneland stakes.