Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Instant Coffee confirmed to go in Louisiana Derby
Confirming what seemed all but certain when the colt didn’t post a timed workout last weekend, trainer Brad Cox said Tuesday that Instant Coffee won’t run in the Risen Star Stakes on Feb. 18 at Fair Grounds and will await the $1 million Louisiana Derby on March 25.
Entries for the Risen Star and the rest of the Feb. 18 Fair Grounds races are to be taken Saturday. Instant Coffee is the fifth-ranked horse this week on Daily Racing Form’s Derby Watch after wins last November in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes and on Jan. 21 in the Lecomte Stakes at Fair Grounds, his 3-year-old debut. Instant Coffee, by Bolt d’Oro, already has accumulated 32 Kentucky Derby qualifying points, the second-highest total in the system used to determine the 20 horses that can start in the Derby.
Instant Coffee won his career debut going seven furlongs at Saratoga in September and was fourth the next month trying two turns in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland, won narrowly by subsequent Breeders’ Cup Juvenile hero Forte over Loggins, the fastest 2-year-old Cox trained during 2022. Loggins went out of training with an unspecified injury last October and has yet to be cleared to return to the track.
While Instant Coffee finished about seven lengths behind Loggins in the Breeders’ Futurity, he occupies a lofty spot in the division because few 3-yearolds truly have distinguished themselves yet this year. Extra Anejo, who looked like an elite talent winning his lone start last October, has resumed training after recovering from an injury of his own but is weeks away from working for the first time in months. Loggins seemingly is too far behind now to make the Derby, and uncertainty still swirls around the bevy of highlevel 3-year-olds trained by Bob Baffert, currently banned from 2023 Derby participation.
Instant Coffee boosted his top Beyer Speed Figure from 82 to 92 in the Lecomte. Stamina, consistency, and professionalism mitigate his lack of brilliance, and Instant Coffee still appears to be an improving colt.
“He’s a solid, honest horse,” said Cox, who expects Instant Coffee to work this weekend at Fair Grounds.
Cox has such a deep roster of 3-year-old dirt horses that he’s likely to enter three in the 1 1/8-mile Risen Star – Victory Formation, Angel of Empire, and Tapit’s Conquest. Another colt, Tapit Shoes, is aimed at a first-level, dirt-route allowance race on the Feb. 18 Fair Grounds card. Verifying, Giant Mischief, and perhaps one other horse are intended for Oaklawn Park’s next Derby prep, the Rebel Stakes on Feb. 25.
Victory Formation has started his career with three wins and aced his two-turn debut winning the Smarty Jones at Oaklawn by three lengths. He’s been breezing at Fair Grounds, while Smarty Jones runner-up Angel of Empire stayed at Oaklawn. Victory Formation’s recent workout times were notably fast.
“I think he’s going to like the mile and an eighth,” Cox said.
Tapit’s Conquest finished a troubled second on the Lecomte undercard in a first-level, dirtroute allowance race and stands to improve in the Risen Star.
◗ Banishing, who had to be scratched from a Jan. 18 allowance race start after getting cast in his stall the night before, got back on the Fair Grounds work tab Sunday with a bullet five furlongs in 1:01, fastest of 31 drills at the distance that morning. The Godolphin homebred trained by Brendan Walsh was a second-start maiden winner Dec. 26, making a fine visual impression trying two turns for the first time while earning a 90 Beyer. He could return to racing Feb. 18 at Fair Grounds, most likely in allowance competition.
–Marcus Hersh
Cave Rock near a work
Though he was a fast, elite 2-year-old last season, Breeders’ Cup Juvenile runner-up Cave Rock is taking his own sweet time at age 3. Cave Rock is the only horse on the Derby Watch list without a race or workout in 2023. Cave Rock is galloping daily at Santa Anita, and trainer Bob Baffert said the colt is nearing his first comeback work.
“I’m not pressing him, I’m not forcing him to do anything,” Baffert said Sunday. “He’s going to start breezing in a couple weeks. There’s nothing set in stone. He’s going to let me know. I did lose two weeks during the rain. That set me back.”
Cave Rock initially targeted a Feb. 25 return in the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn. He will not make that race. For now, Baffert will keep his options open until the colt resumes workouts. The 12-1 third choice on Daily Racing Form’s Derby Watch odds by David Aragona, Cave Rock this week was listed 42-1 to win the Kentucky Derby by Circa Sports Book in Las Vegas.
Arabian Knight 6-1 in futures
The status of Baffert-trained Derby prospects remained uncertain as of midweek due to the Churchill Downs ban, but Baffert-trained Arabian Knight maintains 6-1 favoritism on the DRF Derby Watch odds by Aragona, close to the Circa future-book odds. Circa listed Arabian Knight 6.50-1 to win the Kentucky Derby and also offered a wager that would pay if Arabian Knight does not win. The price this week was -940, which means risking $940 to for a net win of $100.
Circa offers a similar wager on Forte, whose Kentucky Derby future-book win price is slightly higher than Arabian Knight at 8-1. Forte, however, does not have the Churchill Downs-Baffert ban in the way, therefore his “will-notwin-Derby” price was -1,240. Bettors must risk $1,240 for a potential net win of $100. Final future-book underlay note from Circa: Fair Grounds-based filly Hoosier Philly and Santa Anita debut sprint winner Geaux Rocket Ride both were listed at 35-1.
–Brad Free
Harcyn bred for classics
None of the projected runners in Saturday’s $100,000 El Camino Real Derby at Golden
Gate Fields have a Triple Crown pedigree quite like the unbeaten colt Harcyn.
Owned by Jerry Moss, Harcyn is from the family of half-brothers Giacomo, the winner of the 2005 Kentucky Derby, and Tiago, who won the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby in 2007 and was seventh behind Street Sense in the Kentucky Derby.
Harcyn runs in the El Camino Real Derby at 1 1/8 miles following wins in two races at six furlongs – a maiden race in October and an allowance race on Jan. 16. He led throughout in both wins, pulling clear through the stretch.
“I know we’re asking a lot to go from six furlongs to a mile and an eighth,” trainer Steve Sherman said earlier this week. “I wish the race was a mile, obviously. I got a feeling he’s a nice horse.”
Moss raced Giacomo and Tiago, who were trained by John Shirreffs. Harcyn, who is by Goldencents, is out of Florian. She is a half-sister to Set Them Free, the dam of Tiago and Giacomo.
The El Camino Real Derby is the lone Triple Crown prep race in Northern California. The winner receives a berth to the Preakness Stakes on May 20 at Pimlico. Golden Gate Fields and Pimlico are both owned by 1/ST Racing.
In 2021, Rombauer won the El Camino Real Derby, finished third in the Blue Grass Stakes, and won the Preakness Stakes.
Harcyn is expected to be part of a field that includes Passarando and Chase the Chaos, the first two finishers of the Gold Rush Stakes at a mile on Dec. 3; Gilmore, a maiden race winner at a mile for trainer Bob Baffert on Dec. 10 at Los Alamitos; and Happy Does, winner of an allowance race at a mile on Jan. 21 at Golden Gate Fields.
–Steve Andersen