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| Staff Writer |
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Two more high-class contenders have joined the list of likely starters for the US$3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational at Gulfstream Park on January 25, with Grade One winner Power Squeeze and Group Three victor Skinner being added to the 12-strong field of invitees for the nine-furlong contest.
The pair are replacing J B Strikes Back and Rattle N Roll, who have been withdrawn from consideration for the prestigious event. Power Squeeze, trained by Jorge Delgado, becomes the seventh Grade One winner in the potential line-up and will be the sole filly facing the colts.
Power Squeeze's finest hour came when landing the prestigious Alabama Stakes over 10 furlongs at Saratoga last summer. Her subsequent form includes a seventh-place finish behind division leader Thorpedo Anna in the Gr.1 Cotillion at Parx, before running second in the mile Rampart on December 26, where she finished a neck behind Windy Walk and a head in front of Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint winner Soul of an Angel.
The reserve list for the Pegasus has been bolstered by New York-bred Mama's Gold and Group Three winner Society Man. Mama's Gold, who has shown significant improvement, concluded 2024 with two victories at nine furlongs, including success in the Empire Classic.
Meanwhile, Gun Song, who nearly caused a major upset when finishing a neck behind Horse of the Year candidate Thorpedo Anna in the Cotillion, has returned to training. The filly, trained by Mark Hennig, completed her first workout of the winter, breezing three furlongs in 38.47 seconds on Wednesday.
Her impressive three-year-old campaign included a 3¼-length victory in the Gr.2 Black-Eyed Susan at Pimlico and a second-place finish to Tarifa in the Gr.2 Mother Goose at Aqueduct.
Hennig said: "We talked briefly about the Breeders' Cup after the Cotillion before deciding she'd had a long year and coming up with the plan to run just one more time, against three-year-olds, in the Mother Goose, before giving her a break. I thought everything went great for her last season except for the Acorn, when I probably brought her back a little too quickly off the race at Pimlico.
"She really matured as the year went on and showed, with her performance in the Cotillion, that she can be a very tough filly to tangle with no matter who you are."
The trainer has yet to finalise plans for Gun Song's 2025 debut, adding: "We just let her stretch her legs a little bit to get her started today. We'll let her tell us when to get serious. The distances of the [stakes] races for older fillies here has a tough progression to bring a horse along, so we'll just have to wait and see before deciding whether to run her here this winter or not."
Friday's nine-race programme at Gulfstream Park is highlighted by two US$96,000 allowance and optional-claiming turf contests. The seventh race, for older fillies and mares over 11 furlongs, features Justdeny, trained by Danny Gargan, who finished second in the Gr.3 Jockey Club Oaks Invitational at Aqueduct last summer.
Christophe Clement saddles both Youknownothing and I'm a Sure Thing, while Bourbon Thief and Aspen Dawn step up in trip. The closing race sees the promising Origami, trained by Jack Sisterson, making her local debut against eight rivals, including Ramsey Pond and the Brendan Walsh-trained pair Lush Lips and Sashay Away.