War of Will Doing Well Day After Maker's Mark Mile Victory

Gary Barber’s War of Will made the most of his short stay in Lexington Friday in posting a nose victory in the $300,000 Maker’s Mark Mile (G1).

“He came over from Churchill Downs Friday morning and went back last night,” said David Carroll, who oversees the Keeneland string for trainer Mark Casse. “He is doing fine this morning.”

Now an earner of almost $1.8 million, War of Will added Friday’s Grade 1 grass triumph to a glowing resume that includes a victory in last year’s Preakness (G1) on dirt.

War of Will, a Keeneland sales graduate, has trained or raced at Keeneland at ages 2, 3 and 4. Carroll has seen the colt’s development since he made his third career start in the 2018 Dixiana Bourbon (G3) in which he finished fourth.

“He always trained beautifully and we had high hopes for him, which thankfully he has now realized,” said Carroll, who was with War of Will through the early part of his 3-year-old campaign at Fair Grounds and Keeneland. “Keeneland is a beautiful place to train … one of my favorites.”