Kentucky Derby Road: April 5 Wood Memorial, Santa Anita Derby, UAE Derby
Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby, 1 1/8 Mile.
Journalism stamped his credentials as the probable Kentucky Derby favorite with a come-from-behind victory as the even-money favorite. It was his fourth straight win. Journalism saw longshot Westwood (44-1) lead the way around the first bend with Bob Baffert trainees Citizen Bull (2-1 second choice) and Barnes (5-2) in closest pursuit. Journalism was fifth in the field of five into the backstretch. Citizen Bull pulled ahead of Westwood midway up the back after initial fractions of 22.25 and 47.14. Baeza (14-1) made his presence known early in the second turn with six furlongs in the books at 1:11.42. Around that turn Citizen Bull and Baeza battled for supremacy with Westwood a grudging third, Journalism starting to come on strong on after traffic trouble when shuffled behind Westwood and bumping with Barnes at the seven-sixteenths pole, and Barnes fading. In In mid-stretch a charging Journalism was already past Citizen Bull and catching Baeza en route to the win by 3/4 of a length. He hit the finish line in 1:49.56 under Umberto Rispoli. Baeza was second, Westwood third 9 1/4 lengths off the winner, Citizen Bull fourth another half-length back and Barnes fifth, beaten 19 3/4 lengths.
The winner is trained by Michael McCarthy for the partnership of Bridlewood Farm, Don Alberto Stable, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Elayne Stables 5, Robert V. LaPenta, Mrs. John Magnier-Lessee, Derrick Smith-Lessee, and Michael B. Tabor-Lessee. Journalism was bred in Kentucky by Don Alberto Corporation. He's by Curlin out of Mopotism, by Uncle Mo. Kentucky Derby points were valued at 75% of the normal 100-50-25-15-10 due to the short field.
THE NEXT DAY: “All good,” trainer McCarthy said Sunday morning. “I thought he showed a lot of poise being down inside. He had to kind of bide his time and wait for a seam to get through. As I said yesterday, he is amenable to whatever Umberto asks of him. He will have a couple of easy days and start back at the end of the week.: When Journalism ships to Louisville remains to be determined. "We’re going to watch the weather and come up with a game plan. We’ll get with everybody and see what we think is best for him.”
Journalism got a 102 Beyer in in the Santa Anita Derby. Journalism's Equibase speed figure is 108, which is next-level consistency. Second time out he broke his maiden with a 105 going a mile at Del Mar, followed by a 106 winning the Los Al Futurity and a 110 destroying the San Felipe.
Winning trainer Michael McCarthy: “He had me worried for a jump or two. Special horse. I saw a little bit of adversity today, which you saw around the far turn. It took him a little bit to get his feet under him, but once Umberto was able to wheel him outside, he started getting him through his gears. He started to pick it up towards the end, leveled off nicely. He looked like he finished up well and galloped out well.
"It’s pretty exciting. It’s a huge day on the Santa Anita calendar, a huge day on any calendar, or any kind of Derby before the Kentucky Derby. So to go ahead and be a part of this and be lucky enough to win, it is special.”
Winning jockey Umberto Rispoli: “I was trapped on the fence, and I thought, ‘Wow, this isn’t looking good. I knew my only way out was to push Barnes a little bit. I got through. That’s such a good animal to be able to get out of there. It’s rare for a horse to get held up at the three-eighths pole and to get back in the race in that way. It’s always difficult, especially for such a big horse. But he has such an amazing style and is just an amazing horse."
Runner-up trainer John Shirreffs: “He (Baeza) ran super."
Bob Baffert, trainer of fourth-place Citizen Bull and fifth-place (and last) Barnes: “I was discouraged (Citizen Bull) didn’t get the win today. He got tired. He’s a heavy horse. The track was deep today. We will figure this out. We have a week and then we’ll decide what is next.”
As for Barnes: “We need to regroup.”
G2 Wood Memorial, 1 1/8 Mile
West coast invader Rodriguez led all the way to win by 3 1/2 lengths under Mike Smith in a swift 1:48.15. Internal fractions for Rodriguez (7-2 odds) were 23.31, 47.44, 1:11.25 and 1:35.68. Captain Cook (favored at 9-5) attended the pace into the stretch but faded to fourth 6 3/4 lengths behind the winner as Grande (4-1), who lost ground after the break, made a big middle move and went wide out of the turn before overtaking Captain Cook for the place. Passion Rules (9-1) got up late for third, beaten 5 1/4 lengths. Longshot McAfee (29-1) finished well to take fifth. Local hero Sand Devil ran sixth. Kentucky Derby points 100-50-25-15-10.
Bob Baffert trains the winner, who raced in the Starlight colors, for the consortium of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Stonestreet Stables, Dianne Bashor, Determined Stables, Robert E. Masterson, Tom J. Ryan, Waves Edge Capital and Catherine Donovan. Rodriguez was bred in Kentucky by Kingswood Farm & David Egan. He's a son of 2020 Kentucky Derby winner Authentic out of Cayala, by Cherokee Run.
Rodriguez was assigned an outstanding 111 Equibase figure. Per Tom Ryan's post on X, it's a 101 Beyer.
Rodriguez broke his maiden at Santa Anita in his second start with a 105 Equibase figure going one mile. Next out he ran second to Citizen Bull in the G3 Robert B Lewis Stakes, registering a 101. He backed up to a 92 when a very distant third to Journalism in the G2 San Felipe.
Equibase chart
Winning trainer Bob Baffert: “He’d been training like he was going to do something like that. I’ve always been very high on him. He’s just had some rough trips here in California. I knew the added distance would be a big factor for him. I thought he’d love stretching out and going a mile and an eighth. Mike Smith told me he wanted a super live one and I said, ‘Man, I’ve got a good one for you.’ He rode him beautifully. The horse looked great – he looked like Authentic. He won like a good horse. It was very impressive.
“His last two works were really strong here so I felt really good as long as he didn’t get too worked up, he'd be good. I think with taking the blinkers off, he relaxed a lot better. It was just a beautiful run and I’m just happy and blessed to have a horse like that.
“Any time you win in New York it means a lot. I have great memories of winning the Wood [Bob and John, 2006; Congaree, 2001]. It’s a very important race. Just knowing that you have a horse that looks like he’s a serious Derby contender makes it that much better. We’re all pretty excited and I’m really happy for our ownership group.”
Winning jockey Mike Smith: " Just happy I got the opportunity. I know they thought a lot of him early on. Because in California racing there’s not big fields, if it’s a five-horse field, Bob probably has three. They can’t all just go out there and hook each other, you’ve got to try and play some strategy.
“I think they realized he just wants to be left alone. I could tell that warming up. Every time you did something with him, he’d get uptight. That’s just it – if you get him to breathe, he’s gonna run, man, and that’s what he did today. That’s probably why he ran that 100 Beyer when he broke his maiden to be honest with you.
“Man, he was doing it and Manuel (Franco on Captain Cook) came at me early around that turn and he picked it up with him. We put some separation on the field, and when I felt him do that again, I said, ‘Oh, we’re OK! He’s just got to be good enough, and he was.
“I just really thank the owners and Bob. He said, ‘I’m pulling you off the bench, man. There’s three seconds and I need you to hit a three.’ I said, ‘alright, I’ll do it, Bob.’ I closed my eyes and I hit a three [laughs].”
About the gallop out: “He looked good, didn’t he? He really did. I asked Manuel, he picked him up [in the gallop out] and said, ‘Whoa, he’s still got a lot.’ I said, ‘yeah!’ Look, the Derby is always different, there’s going to be a big crowd. He gets a little [nervous], that’s why he had the earplugs. There’s a lot of growing for this horse to do, and that’s a good thing.
About a potential Derby bid: “I’m excited. I don’t want to say that I’m going back [to Louisville], he [Baffert] took me off the bench, but I just hope they keep me on.”
Runner-up trainer Todd Pletcher: "I thought he ran super. He didn’t break real well. He got shuffled around a little bit going into the first turn. Dylan [Davis] said he kind of had to check off heels which forced him to go really wide. He advanced nicely down the backside while out in the middle of the track. He still got hung out pretty wide on the far turn and I think compared to the ground saved that the winner had, it was a very creditable effort.
“He hasn’t been that far back, he hadn’t had dirt in his face – it was his first time in a stakes and only his third start. We have a lot of positive things to draw from it.”
On a start in the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby May 3, at Churchill Downs: “I think so. That’s why we were here today – to see if we belong and earn some points. I think he proved that he does belong and got some points as well. We’ll see how he comes out of it and come up with a plan, but I thought he certainly ran well enough.”
Runner-up jockey Dylan Davis: “He ran very nicely. I was planning on just trying to break well. He broke OK. We were going nicely into the first turn but the four [My Mitole] ended up pushing the five [Sand Devil] out in front of me, I had to go a little wide because I was going to be on heels. After that, they kind of slowed down in front of me a little bit. My horse was off the bridle and I needed to get him on the bridle and get him engaged. I got him into it with a little mid-move there in the backside just to get him engaged with those frontrunners. I wanted him closer than where I was at. He was into a nice rhythm into the second turn, I was really happy with the way he was going then. The one [Rodriguez] just kind of jumped away from him. He ran well. He stepped up nicely and had to overcome a wide trip. Given the circumstances, he ran a great race, stepping up big from his two wins."
Kendrick Carmouche, jockey of third finisher Passion Rules: “I had a perfect trip. I got the horse to break better. I had him in a good position. My horse broke good. I saved ground. It took him a little longer to get started. At the quarter-pole, I think those horses got away from him. I think that was pretty much the race."
G2 UAE Derby, 1 3/16 Mile
Admire Daytona edged Heart of Honor by a nose in a head bob to win. Don in the Mood was third, beaten 2 3/4 lengths, Shin Forever fourth and the filly Queen Azteca fifth. The winning time was 1:59.13. Admire Daytona and Rafid were part of opening fractions of 10.48, 11.10, 12.09 and 12.40. Heading into the final turn, Heart of Honor and Don in the Mood had joined those front-runners. Rafid soon faded to finish eighth of nine. Admire Daytona stayed the final quarter-mile in 26.22 in what a track announcer described as a war of attrition. Gotham Stakes winner and betting favorite Flood Zone, the only U. S. based horse in the race, was never in contention. He was last into the stretch and finished seventh of nine. It was the fourth straight UAE Derby win for a Japan-based horse.
Christophe Lemaire rode the winner for trainer Yukihiro Kato and owner Junko Kondo. Admire Daytona was bred in Japan by Northern Racing. He is by Drefong out of Ice Pastel, by Shackleford. Kentucky Derby points 100-50-25-15-10. All starters carried 126 pounds except Queen Azteca, who carried 121.
In his last start Admire Daytona finished fourth behind Fukuryu Stakes winner Luxor Cafe in the Hyacinth Stakes. Third finisher Don in the Mood was also third in the Hyacinth last time out. UAE Derby second finisher Heart of Honor, based in Dubai, also finished second most recently in the Al Bastakiya, preceded by another second in the G3 UAE 2000 Guineas.
The track record is 1:55:18, Mendellsohn 2018. Hit Show ran the 1 1/4-mile Dubai World Cup in 2:03.50.
Of the top five finishers in the UAE Derby only Shin Forever was early-nominated to the Triple Crown. The deadline for late nominations is Monday, April 7 for connections who haven't already filed their paperwork and paid the $6,000 fee.
Winning jockey Christophe Lemaire: “Honestly, I thought I’d won but it was very tight so you never get too happy, too early. The Japanese horses come here with quite a bit of experience at home. For us, they arrive near their best this early in the season, not too much racing but also with plenty of experience. I think they like the Meydan dirt track too. For sure he can go to Kentucky, but it is such a difficult race to win. It is one of the most iconic races in the world and we have to go if we can.”
Winning trainer Yukihiro Kato: He confirmed the plan is for Admire Daytona to go to the Kentucky Derby.
Heart Of Honor trainer Jamie Osborne: “He’s put up a lifetime best, and you always have to be pleased when that happens. But this is a tough one to swallow.”
Don In The Mood jockey Ryusei Sakai: "He ran well. The pace was fast, he travelled nicely on the bridle, he just found it tough the last 400 meters."
Don in the Mood trainer Teiichi Konno: “He was traveling very well and I thought he might win it. It was tough for him at the end. He is always relaxed but was a little bit nervous in the stalls this time. His physique will definitely improve more.”
Shin Forever jockey Akira Sugawara: “Missing the jump ruined his race. All good. Other than that, he ran well.”
Queen Azteca jockey Carlos Lopez: “She went well, I’m so proud of her. She felt strong all the way, I thought she was going to kick a little bit more in the finish. She showed she is a good filly.”
Dragon (6th) jockey Yutaka Take: “He handled dirt well. He was hanging a bit and didn’t respond.”
Flood Zone (7th) jockey Florent Geroux: “Disappointed, to be honest. He broke well, I thought I was going to be in a good spot. I let the speed go, I tucked behind the two leaders and got down to the rail. From there, as soon as we hit the first turn, he never traveled, never grabbed the bit and just kept going backwards. It was too bad to be true. If he’d been able to grab the bit, I think I would have been able to travel into it, but I was trapped where I was and I couldn’t follow those in front. For some reason, our American horses don’t seem to have the same early speed here.”
Rafid (8th) jockey John Velazquez said: “Good break and that was it.”
Galactic Star (9th) jockey Tadhg O’Shea said: “Traveled well in the run, but just never finished off. Ran a little bit flat.”
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