Met Mile next start for Quality Road

By: By Don Agriss, Horse Racing Editor

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Taking a break from reporting on three- year-olds headed to the Kentucky Derby, champion mare Zenyatta and Horse of the year Rachel Alexandra, let's have a quick update on a four-year-old colt.

You probably guessed that the four-year-old is Quality Road, no doubt the best older male currently in training. The colt has begun 2010 with two straight victories at Gulfstream Park.

Trained by Todd Pletcher for Edward Evans, Quality Road won the $100,000 Hal's Hope Stakes on Gulfstream's opening day, January 3. He came back on February 6 to record a 12 3/4-length romp in the $500,000 Donn Handicap.

Thursday morning at Palm Meadows Training Center the four-year-old had his first recorded workout since the Donn. Quality Road went an easy three- furlongs in 38.80 seconds.

It is not expected that Quality Road will make a start until the $500,000 Met Mile on Memorial Day at Belmont Park. After the May 31 start the only known race on the colt's schedule is the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic in November at Churchill Downs.

Quality Road currently sits second in the NTRA Thoroughbred Poll. This week he received four first-place votes and 164 points, 20 points behind top ranked Zenyatta.

The next ranked older male is Santa Anita Handicap champ Misremembered. The four-year-old is fourth with 106 points. Sitting in eighth is double Eclipse Award winner Gio Ponti who is coming off a fourth-place finish in the $10 million Dubai World Cup as the 3-1 co-favorite.

Turf runner Presious Passion is ninth in the poll with another seven-year-old, Bold Chieftain, completing the top 10.

We are two years removed from Curlin dominating the older male division on his way to a second consecutive Horse of the Year honor. Quality Road has an excellent opportunity this year to grab the older horse division and not let go.