champion letruska returns to Keeneland work tab

St. George Stable’s Letruska, who made Keeneland her main base of operations during an Eclipse Award-winning campaign in 2021, worked 5 furlongs in 1:02.40 over a fast track Friday morning. (Click here for a video of the work.)

Following the second track maintenance session, Letruska and jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. waited until after the first wave of workers to begin her drill. She posted fractions of :12.60, :25.20, :37.40, :50.20, 1:02.40 and galloped out 6 furlongs in 1:16.20. 

The champion older dirt female for 2021, Letruska compiled an 8-6-1-0 record last year that included four Grade 1 victories. One of those came during Keeneland’s Fall Meet when she won the Juddmonte Spinster. 

Letruska, who arrived at Keeneland last week from Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida, will follow a similar pattern to last year, according to trainer Fausto Gutierrez. She is using Keeneland to do the bulk of her training with the year-end goal being another start in the Breeders’ Cup here in November.

In late February, Letruska returned to the races with a victory in the Royal Delta (G3) at Gulfstream Park. Friday’s work was her fourth since that race. 

“She is ready,” Gutierrez said. “She will leave Monday for Oaklawn Park (for next Saturday’s Grade 1 Apple Blossom) and then come back here.”