Champions Songbird, Drefong among California contingent to arrive for Travers Day assignments

By Lynne Snierson —-

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The formidable contingent of California horses, which include dual champion and nine-time Grade 1 winner Songbird and 2016 champion Sprinter Drefong, rolled into the Saratoga Race Course backside late Tuesday afternoon after an uneventful cross country trip and were bedded down in their respective barns in preparation for their graded stakes assignments on Saturday’s stacked card, anchored by the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers presented by NYRA Bets day.

“Songbird is absolutely fantastic, as always,” said Christina Jelm, the assistant to Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. “She was accompanied by her exercise rider, Freddy Rodriguez and her groom, Caesar Orentes, who always goes on the road with her. She landed beautifully and the van ride from the [Albany] airport went fine. She’s very relaxed and Freddy said she enjoyed the flight and the van ride.”

Songbird was on the same plane from Southern California with horses trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, who won last year’s Grade 1 Travers with track and stakes record-setter Arrogate, and by Doug O’Neill. The flight stopped along the way in Louisville, Kentucky to pick up the Dallas Stewart-trained Forever Unbridled, who will challenge Songbird in the Grade 1, $700,000 Personal Ensign on the Travers undercard.

Baffert’s horses stepped off the van at approximately 4:30 P.M. and include 2016 Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner Drefong, who contests the Grade 1, $600,000 Forego, Travers contender and Grade 3 winner West Coast, and American Anthem, who runs in the Grade 1, $500,000 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial. O’Neill will saddle multiple graded stakes winner Irap in the Travers, Ann Arbor Eddie in the Jerkens, and Frank Conversation in the Grade 1, $1 million Sword Dancer. Cause We are Loyal was also sent by O’Neill to try the $200,000 Seeking the Ante for New York-bred 2-year-old fillies on Friday, and she will match up in that race with fellow flyer Newport Breeze, who was dispatched by Peter Eurton.

“Everything was fine with all of the horses, as far as I know. I think Songbird is the most traveled and she’s always level-headed and the ultimate professional. The minute we got into the barnyard here, she knew exactly where she was. She was looking for her grass to graze on,” Jelm said, after calling owner Rick Porter and Hollendorfer to report on their stable star.

“We’re absolutely looking forward to the race. The plan now is that as long as she settles in fine, tomorrow morning we’ll take her to the track to jog once around and then we might walk through the paddock. Jerry will be here and he’ll call the shots from there on, but typically we’ll then just gallop into her race,” she said.

Songbrid, Drefong and Forever Unbridled are all previous Grade 1 winners at Saratoga.

NBC-TV will telecast the Travers and the Sword Dancer live from 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM Saturday and four races on the card- the Forego, the Sword Dancer, the Personal Ensign and the Ballerina- are Breeders’ Cup races qualifiers as part of the “Win and You’re In” series.

Cover Photo: Songbird; Zoe Metz Photo