Divining Rod targeting Preakness

Divining Rod (Precious Kitten), a three-length winner of the

Lexington S. (G3) at Keeneland on April 11, is being pointed to the $1.5 million

Preakness S. (G1), the second jewel of the Triple Crown on May 16 at Pimlico.

It would be the first Preakness starter for

trainer Arnaud Delacour, who is gearing up for his return to the Fair Hill

Training Center in Elkton, Maryland, after spending the winter in Florida. 

"Yes, I'm thinking of the Preakness," Delacour

said. "The timing seems right. It's five weeks after the Lexington. We had the

Preakness in mind before we entered in the Lexington, hoping he would step up to

that caliber of horses. His win in the Lexington was very encouraging."

Divining Rod was beaten by just a neck while making his sophomore bow in the

January 31 Sam F. Davis S. (G3) and ran a

troubled third in the Tampa Bay Derby (G2) on March 7 before his breakthrough

victory at Keeneland. Under jockey Julien Leparoux, he tracked the early pace

before swinging outside and finishing full of run in 1:43 1/5 for 1 1/16 miles. 

"I was very pleased because he really did it the right way," Delacour said. "He took back a little bit, just relaxed there

and came with a big run in the stretch, so that was pretty exciting. He came

back very well from it." 

The $100,000 The Very One, a five-furlong turf sprint that is one of seven

stakes on the Preakness undercard, is a likely landing

spot for Divining Rod's stablemate Ageless (Successful Appeal).