Champion Groupie Doll put trainer Buff Bradley's mind at ease as she reeled off her final serious piece of work in advance of her attempted title defense in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint next Saturday.
With exercise rider Jada Schlenk guiding the way, Groupie Doll covered 4 furlongs in a handy :47.40 over the main track at Santa Anita Park. By design, the move was easier than her bullet half-mile work in :46.40 at Churchill Downs on Oct. 18 and left Bradley satisfied that he's got his homebred 5-year-old mare right where he wants her.
"She went very well, or to use the words Jada used, she was amazing," said Bradley, who bred and co-owns Groupie Doll along with his father, Fred. "She went really nice and easy and Jada was really having a tough time pulling her up. She was on go."
Groupie Doll's work took place shortly after Grade I winner Points Offthebench, a leading contender for the Breeders' Cup Sprint, suffered a fatal breakdown while working over the track.
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Groupie Doll touted her brilliant run in the Filly & Mare Sprint a year ago with the way she sailed over the Santa Anita track in the mornings. The daughter of Bowman's Band has lost two of three starts this year, but seeing the way she handled the ground Saturday furthered Bradley's belief that she hasn't lost a step.
"Today, watching her breeze and the way she did it, she did very easily," he said. "I really think she's doing better than this time last year."
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