by Kimberly French, USTA Web Newsroom Senior Correspondent

Kimberly French

Louisville, KY — He didn’t exactly pick up where he left off, but his connections are confident that 5-year-old Badlands Nitro, the 2008 Art Rooney Pace victor, will soon regain his old form.

“You have to take the time to get him back where he was in class and the weather hasn’t been so good here (in Delaware), so it’s been hit or miss,” explained George Teague, Jr., who is the stallion’s conditioner. “He qualified four times and the last time he qualified in (1):52 and a piece, but the first start back has been so hard because of the weather. I think he would have performed a bit better if I would have had him in more of a routine.”

The son of Badlands Hanover-Pleasant Thoughts returned to the races on March 15 with a sixth place finish in a $40,000 Preferred Pace at Dover Downs after a brief sojourn in the breeding shed. Badlands Nitro, who is co-owned by Teague, his sister Brenda and John Celii’s Badlands Racing, had last paced in a pari-mutuel event on November 9, 2008 in the Progress Pace. The stallion has earned more than $1.5 million, with a career slate of 26-15-6-2 and a mark of 1:50f.

World Wide Racing Photo

Badlands Nitro won more than $1.4 million as a 3-year-old in 2008 and hit the board in 16 of his 17 starts.

In addition to the Rooney, Badlands Nitro captured the 2008 Max Hempt final and the 2008 Battle of the Brandywine. He also finished second in that year’s Windy City Pace, North America Cup and Cane Pace. As a freshman, he equaled the world record established by Artsplace 17 years earlier for a 2-year old colt on a five-eighths-mile oval (1:51.1) in his Matron elimination.

“He wasn’t as productive as he should have been in the shed,” Teague said. “He got a few (mares) in foal, but he wasn’t getting a big enough percentage, so we decided to take a crack at it and bring him back to the races.”

Even after nearly 12 months of leisure, it didn’t require much effort to get Badlands Nitro’s mind back to business.

“He’s always been a very nice horse that loves to race so that was never an issue,” Teague said. “It’s getting him back to where he could compete at the level he needed to be. There is no easy way to prepare for that after being off for so long; it’s tough.”

The stallion also had another reason for not being at his best last Monday night.

“He was a bit sick with a little bit of a throat infection and was off his game,” Teague said. “He didn’t look as good as I wished he would have, but I don’t think he’s any worse for the wear, but he did need an advantage and not a disadvantage going into that one. It wasn’t a nice night and that horse (race winner Three Of Spades) has raced some big miles.”

Even though his first race back wasn’t as powerful as Teague had hoped, he remains confident Badlands Nitro will enjoy an outstanding 2010 campaign.

“I’ve been training him back since November and he seems as good as he always has been, so I’m hoping there is the possibility he will be as good as he was,” Teague said. “We staked him up to all of the bigger races and the first race he’s geared towards is the Levy (first leg at Yonkers on March 27). We are looking forward to racing him there and he’s always been a good racehorse who loves what he does. We hope he gets better as he goes on and I expect he will press on.”