Life Is Good tops fantastic Saturday for Into Mischief

Into Mischief’s superlative 4-year-old colt Life Is Good showed his brilliance once again in Saturday’s $1 million Whitney S. (G1) at Saratoga, turning back stablemate Happy Saver to win the historic race by two lengths.

The Whitney is part of the Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” program, guaranteeing Life Is Good a paid entry into the Nov. 5 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) at Keeneland.

Life Is Good was just one of three stakes winners on the day for Into Mischief, joining Fulsome, who took the $200,000 West Virginia Governor’s S. (G3), and Provocateur, winner of the Jersey Shore S. at Monmouth Park.

In upstate New York, the Saratoga surface was hit by rain about an hour before the Whitney, rendering the course “good” at post time and marking the first time Life Is Good had raced on a track not labeled fast.

Life Is Good showed his usual speed, opening up a 3 ½-length lead over Hot Rod Charlie after a half-mile in :46.84. Life Is Good was very relaxed down the backstretch and around the final turn, with Hot Rod Charlie and Happy Saver getting within a length at the top of the stretch. After straightening into the lane, he opened up again under some urging from Irad Ortiz, Jr.

The final time was 1:48.97 for the 1 1/8-miles.

“When you feel like you’re bringing over the best horse, you worry about everything,” said winning trainer Todd Pletcher. “Today we got the rain, the deep track, the heat, and humidity. All those things can be concerning, but he was able to overcome all of that and just show how brilliant he really is.”

Life Is Good has won eight of his 10 lifetime starts for CHC Inc. and WinStar Farm LLC, including seven graded stakes, and pushed his earnings to $4,086,700 with Saturday’s payday.

Bred by Gary and Mary West, Life is Good is out of the Distorted Humor mare Beach Walk. She foaled a full-brother to Life Is Good on Mar. 31 and returned to Into Mischief for 2023.