The 2017 Kentucky Derby takes place in thirteen weeks (Saturday, May 6) and Kentucky Derby prep races are underway. This past weekend prep races took place in Florida (Gulfstream Park), New York (Aqueduct) and California (Santa Anita). Each race awarded precious points to the top three finishers which are ultimately used to determine who makes it into the starting gate for the Derby.
Of the three Derby Prep races the Holy Bull Stakes in Florida was probably the most interesting. The winner, Irish War Cry is a New Jersey bred which is very unusual. While New Jersey might be known for nice beaches, it is generally not known for having horses on the Kentucky Derby trail! Not only did Irish War Cry win the Holy Bull Stakes wire to wire, he defeated Classic Empire who won the Eclipse Award as the best 2 year old colt in 2016. I’m not sure what to think of Classic Empire. He has run brilliantly and had a couple of poor races. I was at the Hopeful Stakes in Saratoga last Summer when he tossed his jockey coming out of the gate as the heavy betting favorite. With that said, he also won the Breeders Cup Juvenile against 13 other horses at Santa Anita last Fall.
The Withers Stakes in New York was won by El Areeb who has now won four races in a row. While he beat eleven other horses, I don’t think the Withers Stakes field was particularly tough. El Areeb reminds me of El Kabeir, a horse who won two of the early Derby preps in New York (Jerome Stakes and Gotham Stakes) in 2014 but struggled when the competition got tougher.
In California, the Robert B. Lewis Stakes was won by Royal Mo, a son of Uncle Mo. The owners of Royal Mo also own Gormley who won a Derby Prep race (Sham Stakes) at Santa Anita in January. While the Derby is a long way off, having two horses on the Derby Trail is pretty unique.
The Derby Trail shifts to the west coast of Florida this weekend with the running of the Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs on February 11. The Sam F. Davis is the second leg of a three leg Derby Prep series at Tampa Bay Downs that culminates in the Tampa Bay Derby on March 11.
I will be at Tampa Bay Downs to watch the Sam F. Davis but my real interest is the Tampa Bay Stakes which will be run one race before the Sam F. Davis. This will be the 31st running of the Tampa Bay Stakes, a Grade 3 race on the turf going 1 1/16 miles. Our plan is to enter Catapult, one of our horses (Woodford Racing) in the Tampa Bay Stakes. Catapult is one of 33 horses who have been nominated for the race and entries will be determined in a few days. Catapult last ran in the Gio Ponti Stakes at Aqueduct in November where he was victorious!
