Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Greatest Honour will face at least nine in Florida Derby
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – At least 10 3-year-olds are confirmed for the Florida Derby next Saturday, with Greatest Honour sure to be a heavy favorite in the annual Gulfstream Park signature event.
Greatest Honour, with Jose Ortiz back to ride for Shug McGaughey, will be attempting to sweep the major Gulfstream preps for the Kentucky Derby, having already taken the Jan. 30 Holy Bull and Feb. 27 Fountain of Youth. The Courtlandt Farm homebred will have Collaborate and Known Agenda as his chief opposition in a lineup also expected to include Nova Rags, Papetu, Soup and Sandwich, as well as four or five longshots.
Stabled at Payson Park nearly two hours north of Gulfstream, the stretch-running Greatest Honour was scheduled to have his final pre-race breeze this weekend, as were most of the other prospects for the Grade 1, $750,000 Florida Derby. Ever since he won the Holy Bull by 5 3/4 lengths, Greatest Honour has been one of the early favorites for the May 1 Kentucky Derby. He’ll be among the morning-line choices for the fifth and final pool in the 2021 Derby Future Wager, which runs next weekend (March 26-28).
The 1 1/8-mile Florida Derby offers Kentucky Derby qualifying points on a 100-40-20-10 scale, and although it’s a moot issue for Greatest Honour – he’s already safely in with 60 points – virtually all of the others need points to qualify.
Collaborate will be making his first start versus winners following a 12 1/2-length romp in a one-mile maiden race here Feb. 27. Known Agenda took a first-level allowance here by 11 lengths after finishing fifth as the favorite in the Feb. 6 Sam F. Davis at Tampa Bay Downs. Papetu was third at 18-1 behind Greatest Honour in the Fountain of Youth. Nova Rags will be making his first start since finishing second in the Davis. Soup and Sandwich will be making his first start in a stakes after easily winning his first two starts.
The other Florida Derby probables are Jirafales, Quantum Jump, and Sigiloso, while trainer Dale Romans said he expects to enter “one or maybe two” of the five colts he has nominated. All Saturday entries will be drawn Wednesday.
Prevalence, among the 25 Florida Derby nominees, will wait on one of the later qualifiers, perhaps the April 3 Wood Memorial or the April 10 Arkansas Derby, said trainer Brendan Walsh. Prevalence, a Godolphin homebred, is back in training at Palm Meadows after exiting a March 11 allowance win at Gulfstream in good shape, said Walsh.
Florida Derby Day is the penultimate day of the fourmonth championship meet, which closes the following day, March 28. Ontrack spectators will be admitted Florida Derby Day on a limited basis for just the third time at the meet. Tickets are being sold through the track website by pre-purchase only. Strict pandemic-related protocols apply.
The 69th Florida Derby will be one of 10 stakes on a blockbuster 14-race card. Five of the undercard stakes are graded, while four more, each worth $100,000, are ungraded: the Sir Shackleton for older horses at seven furlongs; the Sand Springs for fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles on turf; and a pair of one-mile turf races for 3-year-olds, the Cutler Bay and Sanibel Island (fillies).
As for the graded races:
Grade 2, $200,000 Gulfstream Oaks: Malathaat could go a long way to making herself one of the favorites for the April 30 Kentucky Oaks with a good showing in the Gulfstream Oaks, a 1 1/16-mile race that marks her 3-year-old debut. Trained by Todd Pletcher for Shadwell Stable, Malathaat will be looking to remain unbeaten after winning all three starts at 2.
Simply Ravishing, winner of the Grade 1 Alcibiades last fall, also will be making her first start of the year in the Oaks, which offers Kentucky Oaks qualifying points on a 100-4020-10 scale. Other probables include Bow Wow Girl, Competitive Speed, Millefeuille, and Pens Street.
On a related note, Whole bode meister, the 52-1 winner of the Feb. 27 Davona Dale when trained by Juan Avila, is now in the Pletcher barn following a private sale. She is nominated to the Gulfstream Oaks but is not expected to enter.
Grade 2 Pan American: Phantom Currency, Sadler’s Joy, and Cross Border are among at least eight older horses confirmed for this 1 1/2-mile turf fixture.
Grade 3 Orchid: Pletcher has the resurgent Always Shopping ready to go in the 1 3/8-mile Orchid, the filly-mare counterpart to the Pan Am. At least nine are likely.
Grade 3 Ghostzapper: Fearless, by Ghostzapper, surely will be favored if Pletcher runs him, but he may wait instead for the $1 million Oaklawn Handicap on April 17. That would open up this 1 1/8-mile race to any of the other 12 older horses nominated.
Grade 3 Appleton: This onemile turf race for older horses is shaping up as a real scramble, with Mike Maker (seven nominations) and Pletcher (five) likely to come well represented. Frostmourne, Gray’s Fable, and Seismic Wave are among the other probables.