Two years ago, on the Tuesday before the Belmont Stakes, Funny Cide went to the track for a workout and ran 5 furlongs in 57.82 seconds. A minute flat is considered a good workout, so this was blazing – it might not seem like much, but 2.2 seconds in racing equals 11 lengths. A workout like that can prove that a horse is in good shape, or it can hint that an overeager horse cannot be controlled by his rider.

People were of two minds about Funny Cide, who had won the both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness. After his Belmont workout, the racing world debated whether he was ready to roll, or if he had wasted his energy and competitive spirit beating up exercise ponies. The latter proved to be true.

People are of two minds about Bellamy Road this year, and increasingly, one’s prediction for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby hinges upon which side of that fence one sits on. If yesterday’s morning workouts at Churchill Downs are any indication, Bellamy may not run away with the Derby as he did with the Wood Memorial.

In the clear morning light yesterday, with temperatures in the nippy 40s, seven Derby contenders hit the track, Bellamy Road among them. George Steinbrenner’s horse went 5 furlongs, cruising powerfully through the opening splits and slowly ramping it up until he was powering through the last quarter-mile in less than 24 seconds.

According to Mike Welsch of the Daily Racing Form, Bellamy clocked in at 1:00.42 for the 5 furlongs, then galloped out to 7 furlongs in 1:27.86, looking like he’d love to run the 1 1/4 miles of the Derby. Steady, fast, professional, this performance should please Bellamy’s entourage.

But he wasn’t at all alone. Though Bellamy looked the most impressive, all the horses ran well, and they all looked like real competition for the likely favorite.

High Fly hasn’t raced since he won the Florida Derby on April 2. He was driven through the end of that race, not looking like a horse who wanted another 1/8th of a mile, but yesterday morning, he looked like a champ. The Form recorded 1:00.38 for 5 furlongs; High Fly, too, accelerated to close the final 2 furlongs in under 24 seconds.

Noble Causeway was out there too, running a couple of ticks faster in the total speed for 5 furlongs, and a couple of ticks slower for the last quarter, which means he was anxious to get going. Bandini’s workout was average, with a final quarter over 25 seconds, although he looked less impressive galloping out. Going Wild slipped in just under a minute.

Flower Alley did the five in 1:00.42, running with the 2004 3-year-old filly of the year Ashado. That’s some nice company (although she didn’t run all that well), and with the announcement that Flower Alley will be running with blinkers on his trainer, Todd Pletcher, is attempting to school him on keeping his attention on the track.

Spanish Chestnut was also on the track, and his workout went equally well, leading trainer Patrick Biancone to confirm that the horse would run Saturday. But after the three bad prep races he’s run, one suspects that his role in the run for the roses is to rabbit for Bandini.

All told then, each of these horses worked out well; we didn’t see any crazy blowouts or sluggish times. The central question going into the Derby may be whether or not Bellamy Road is going to run back to his form in the Wood Memorial last month, but of one thing there can be no question: This is looking like a great group of 3-year-olds, and one hell of a Derby.

***

It might be one hell of a Kentucky Oaks, too, even with Sweet Catomine retired. The Sis City vs. Summerly rematch is especially enticing.

Sis City has dominated in each start since the Demoiselle of November 27, run at Aqueduct. She runs fast, she runs out front, and she’s been winning races. She went gate to wire at the Febraury 5 Davonna Dale at Gulfstream, opening up a 16-length lead. After a layoff, she came back to win the April 9 Ashland at Keeneland by 10 1/2 lengths after pressing the pace behind Amazing Buy.

Summerly was the favorite that day. She had started her season with a 9-length romp in an Allowance at the Fair Grounds. She started in New Orleans again in February and took the Silverbulletday, and then came back in March to wire the Fair Ground Oaks. But when she met Sis City in the Ashland, she fell apart and finished fourth.

Summerly is ready for redemption. The rest of the fillies will certainly keep the race honest, and should Summerly or Sis City fail to fire, several others are capable of winning the Oaks. But if the favorites both show up strong, it’s a two horse race – and a good one.