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Osborne takes Heart from Preakness run ahead of Belmont bid

Osborne takes Heart from Preakness run ahead of Belmont bid

Rhyl Journal19-05-2025

Having recovered from a slow start to make some late headway behind Journalism in the middle leg of America's Triple Crown, the Jamie Osborne-trained colt will now head to Saratoga on June 7.
'He ran a good race considering the circumstances. He wasn't the quickest into stride and we were always slightly on the back foot against those sharper American horses, especially on a real pace-oriented track,' Saffie Osborne told Sky Sports Racing.
'But he ran with a lot of credit and hopefully onto Saratoga now for the Belmont.
'He hit the line really well and obviously you've got a bit more distance in the Belmont, which should help him.'
Heart Of Honor made his first start at Southwell last October and then ran five times at Meydan, finishing a close second in the UAE Derby, before being pitched in at the deep end on his American debut.
Osborne added: 'They are so tuned up at the gates and that's probably something that he's just lacking at the moment, but hopefully he can do a bit of homework and work on that in the next three weeks.
'Obviously, it was a tricky preparation for him, shipping back from Dubai, having been there for five months, and then being in England and acclimatising back to that and then shipping out to America last week.
'So, I'd like to think that three weeks' training on the dirt back at the track would just help bring him forward a little bit.
'He obviously stays out there but I'll probably go a couple of days before it, as it's a busy time here for us, so I don't want to be there too long, but I absolutely loved riding in America.
'Everyone was so welcoming and it was an amazing experience to be sat in the jockeys' room next to Irad Ortiz and Johnny Velazquez, it was a real sort of surreal moment.
'It was an honour and a privilege to be a part of it.
'The whole day was an amazing experience and I've never really walked away from a racecourse having finished fifth in a race and just looked back on the day and thought it was amazing.
'America and NBC and everyone put on an amazing show and the whole build-up to the race was incredible.'

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