Gulfstream And Oaklawn Split The Spotlight On Stakes-Laden Saturday

[Wandering Eyes]

Gulfstream Park's GI Curlin Florida Derby tips off one hour ahead of Oaklawn's GI Arkansas Derby on Saturday and, with 100 points on the 'Road to the Kentucky Derby' on offer in each spot, both races offer what amounts to a 'win and you're in' spot in the gate on the first Saturday in May. Between them, the two tracks host eight of the day's 10 graded stakes.

Godolphin homebred Sovereignty (Into Mischief), one of two runners in the Florida Derby along with Madaket Road (Quality Road) facing a jockey change this week after the untimely and unfortunate injuries to both Junior Alvarado and Tyler Gaffalione, had just enough to deny 'TDN Rising Star' River Thames (Maclean's Music) by a head in the GII Coolmore Fountain of Youth Stakes March 1 to take his second straight graded stakes.

“I think plans changed when he won the Fountain of Youth,” said Sovereignty's regular rider Alvarado. “Ideally if he would have finished second or third, he probably would have gotten the extra week and shoot for the Wood Memorial or the Blue Grass to make sure he was good going into those races to pick up the points. But now that we picked up the points, I think running here makes more sense because then you have one extra week going into the Derby. Mr. Mott is in the Hall of Fame for a reason.”

The only 'Rising Star' in Saturday's field, $1.15m KEESEP grad Disruptor (Gun Runner) romped by nearly double digits at second asking on the Fountain of Youth undercard but now gets a serious talent ask. Brad Cox brings back GIII Holy Bull runner up Tappan Street (Into Mischief), a million-dollar FTSAUG yearling who has been working lights out at Payson Park in the lead up to the Florida Derby. Florida-bred Neoequos (Neolithic), third at long odds to Sovereignty in the Fountain of Youth after setting the pace early, also gets the stretch-out Saturday for trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. Jimmy's Dailys (Vekoma), another runner with strong Florida ties as a homebred for Donald Dizney, is one of three runners in the field to have contested the 1 1/8-mile distance, albeit not in stakes company when second last out (just ahead of Indecisiveness {Decisive Moment} and Smoken Boy {Catholic Boy}) at Gulfstream facing optional claimers Feb. 27.

“After his first start at Churchill, he had an unusual injury that we had to give him time for,” said trainer Brian Lynch of Jimmy's Dailys. “He's owned by the Dizneys, so we sent him down here to their farm in Florida. He probably wasn't in the form that we'd have liked but we wanted to try to get him on the Derby program. So, he probably wasn't as ready for his first start as he could have been but he's really come on from that. I thought he ran very gritty his first start around two turn. You have to think second time around two turns he's going to get better.”

Cornucopian | Coady Media

Weather threatens to dampen racegoers in Arkansas Saturday but will do little to limit expectations for impressive first-out winner and 'TDN Rising Star' Cornucopian (Into Mischief) who will stretch out from six furlongs to 1 1/8 miles for Bob Baffert in the Arkansas Derby. He'll face a host of far more experienced rivals including the GII Rebel Stakes winner Coal Battle (Coal Front) who rides a four-race win streak for trainer Lonnie Briley. Rebel third (and beaten favorite) Sandman (Tapit) will be looking to capitalize on early pace to make a late run and is well-versed over the track, having also finished runner up in the GIII Southwest Stakes Jan. 25.

“He's feeling good and everything,” Briley said of Coal Battle. “I kind of need a race in him. It would be 10 weeks before the [Kentucky] Derby if I wouldn't have done it. It was either the Arkansas Derby or the Blue Grass. The Blue Grass, to me, would have been a little close. And this one's kind of in the middle.”

Of Sandman, trainer Mark Casse said: “He worked good [on March 19]. I guess there was a fairly significant headwind [in the stretch], which makes it a little more difficult for the rider to know exactly how fast they're going. But Cristian [Torres] said he worked well. He said he actually thought he was going faster than what he was, but he finished nice and galloped out strong.”

The longshot Southwest winner Speed King (Volatile) will need a rebound effort after coming up empty in the Rebel for Ronald Moquett. Publisher (American Pharoah), fourth in the Rebel after a troubled beginning, is still looking for his first win but finished an encouraging second over the local course at 1 1/16 miles (and on a muddy track to boot) behind Virginia Derby winner American Promise (Justify). He adds blinkers Saturday and retains the services of Flavien Prat for Steve Asmussen.

Not to be outdone, the 'Road to the Kentucky Oaks' also offers a pair of 100-point races Saturday. GIII Honeybee Stakes winner and 'TDN Rising Star' Quietside (Malibu Moon) tackles the undefeated Simply Joking (Practical Joke) who last took the listed Silverbulletday Stakes at Fair Grounds Jan. 18. The field of 10 also features Martha Washington Stakes winner Take Charge Milady (Take Charge Indy) who will reset for Ken McPeek after a bad trip in the Honeybee. The Coach brings in maiden winner Princess Aliyah (Into Mischief), a $1.2m KEESEP half-sister to GISW Eskimo Kisses (To Honor and Serve).

Florida's GII Gulfstream Park Oaks features GII Davona Dale Stakes winner The Queens M G (Thousand Words), one of three entries for Saffie Joseph, Jr. alongside Virginia Oaks runner up Early On (Union Rags) and rail-drawn Paradise City (McKinzie). Gatsas Stable homebred Five G (Vekoma) took the Cash Run Stakes and was second to Quietside in the aforementioned Honeybee for George Weaver. And maiden winner Cassiar (City of Light) will stretch out past her 6 1/2-furlong debut for Claude McGaughey after winning at Tampa Feb. 8.

White Abarrio | Coglianese

Gulfstream's Saturday feature for the older horses on the dirt, the GIII Ghostzapper Stakes, sees the return of GI Pegasus World Cup hero White Abarrio (Race Day) who has been two-for-three since returning to the barn of Saffie Joseph, Jr. He'll face Tuscan Sky (Vino Rosso) for Todd Pletcher and a talented filly in Power Squeeze (Union Rags) who, though a winner of the GI Alabama Stakes last year, was never a factor in the Pegasus World Cup.

Both 1 1/2-mile events on the turf, the GIII Pan American Stakes and the GIII Orchid Stakes close out the graded action in Florida. Cash Equity (Fr) (Toronado {Ire}) and 'TDN Rising Star' Far Bridge (English Channel) line up opposite another 'Rising Star' in Capture the Flag (Quality Road) in the Pan American while La Mehana (Fr) (Al Wukair {Ire}) draws inside of Queen Regent (GB) (Roaring Lion) and Beach Bomb (Saf) (Lancaster Bomber) in the Orchid.

The GIII Oaklawn Mile drew a field of eight including outside-drawn Saudi Crown (Always Dreaming), the stakes return of Just Steel (Justify), The Wine Steward (Vino Rosso) in his second start off the layoff and GIII Razorback Handicap second Banishing (Ghostzapper).

Two races for older horses at Santa Anita, the GIII San Carlos on the dirt and the GIII Wilshire on the grass, swing the action out west. Baffert brings two of five entries into the San Carlos with Pilot Commander (Justify) and Fort Bragg (Tapit) drawn side by side with John Sadler's For All Mankind (Into Mischief) outside of that pair. The one-mile Wilshire drew Tirupati (Mitole) on the rail tackled by Don Alberto Stable homebred Alpha Bella (Justify) and Phillip D'Amato's Uncorked (Aus) (Pierro {Aus}).

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