Adam West is excited to see his Nunthorpe hero Live In The Dream warm up for a tilt at Breeders’ Cup glory in the Woodford Stakes at Keeneland on Saturday.
The four-year-old showed sensational speed to register a shock Group One success at York in August, a victory which guaranteed him a place in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Santa Anita on November 4.
Epsom-based West has since been giving his stable star some stalls practice with a starting bell in an attempt to get him used to American racing and he will gain more valuable experience when he lines up in Kentucky for a Grade Two contest that will be shown live on Sky Sports Racing.
“We’ve made our own bell and put that into practice, he’s responded really well to that,” said West.
“I’m not expecting him to have as raw gate speed against the Americans. I expect them to be better prepped for the first furlong than our horses in Europe, because we race in a different style. I think with everything else put together, he should be able to lay it down to them.
“It will bring him on really nicely for the big race. It’ll give him an experience with the bell, the track and hopefully, if we’re in the mix, we can lay it down to them on the big day.”
He added: “We definitely wouldn’t have been able to get him there without the Win and You’re In initiative. It’s a fantastic incentive and I really appreciate it. The guys at Breeders’ Cup were straight on the phone congratulating us and sent us a bouquet of flowers.
“We’re just all super excited, the whole family, everyone here at the yard, the team, it’s going to be amazing.”
Live In The Dream is drawn in stall two for the Woodford, a race that has been won by Wesley Ward’s dual Breeders’ Cup winner Golden Pal in each of the past two years.
Ward is again represented, with Eye Witness and Kaufymaker both part of a 12-strong field.
Later on the card Charlie Appleby’s Master Of The Seas bids for back-to-back Grade One wins in North America in the Coolmore Turf Mile.
The son of Dubawi impressed in the Woodbine Mile three weeks ago and his trainer feels he has every chance of following up in the hands of James Doyle.
“Master Of The Seas has come out of his race at Woodbine well. He shipped from Canada to Keeneland and everyone has been happy with his preparation going into this race,” he said on the Godolphin website.
“We are looking forward to getting him out again and any repeat of his Woodbine Mile run will make him hard to beat.”
