Cyberknife pulls upset to win Arkansas Derby
Doppleganger finishes fourth in the Derby prep
Cyberknife won the $1.25 million Arkansas Derby by 23⁄4 lengths on Saturday in the richest prep race for the Kentucky Derby.
Ridden by Florent Geroux, Cyberknife ran 11⁄8 miles in 1:50.42. The 3year-old colt earned 100 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby on May 7. He paid $13.60, $7 and $3.60.
Cyberknife sat off the pace before taking the lead in the stretch for trainer Brad Cox, who also won the Oaklawn Mile with Fulsome.
Barber Road returned $7.40 and $4 and earned 40 qualifying points.
Secret Oath, the filly trained by 86-year-old Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas, paid $2.80 to show as the 7-5 wagering favorite. She earned 20 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby, although she may run in the Derby-eve Kentucky Oaks.
Doppelganger finished fourth and earned 10 qualifying points. The colt had been with Hall of Famer Bob Baffert before being transferred to Tim Yakteen. Baffert’s 90-day suspension begins Monday. He has been sanctioned stemming from the disqualification of Medina Spirit, who finished first in the 2021 Kentucky Derby.
Florida Derby: White Abarrio and Charge It were the first two horses across the finish line at the Florida Derby on Saturday. Soon, both might be on their way to Churchill Downs. White Abarrio made a big move to prevail in the race at Gulfstream Park, getting to the lead in the stretch and holding off a late challenge from Charge It to win the Grade I, $1 million race. “I don’t even know what to say right now,” said winning jockey Tyler Gaffalione, a South Florida native. “I feel like I’m on cloud nine. I’m just so thankful and I feel so blessed. This is all my childhood dreams come true. To win the Florida Derby, growing up down here, it’s just so amazing.” But what mattered most to those horses was points: White Abarrio got 100 Kentucky Derby qualifying points for the win and is now certain to have a spot in the May 7 race at Churchill Downs, while Charge It got 40 for finishing second — which should be enough to get him in the first race of this year’s Triple Crown series as well. “I think he earned enough points and showed he’s good enough now,” Charge It trainer Todd Pletcher said. “Just got to see how he comes out of it and come up with a plan.” White Abarrio finished the 11⁄8 miles in 1 minute, 50.78 seconds for Gaffalione and trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. White Abarrio returned $7.80, $4.20 and $2.80 for the win. Charge It paid $5 and $3.20 to place and Simplification paid $2.60 to show. If all goes to plan, White Abarrio will be the second Kentucky Derby starter for Joseph. He took Ny Traffic there in 2020 and finished eighth. “You just want it to stay somewhat healthy and go there and get a clean trip,” he said. “It’s going to be a nice journey to enjoy. I’m going to try to enjoy it, and hopefully all goes well, and we’ll get to show up at the Derby and enjoy it like we enjoyed today.”
Jeff Ruby Steaks: Tiz the Bomb picked up his second straight win, capturing the $600,000 Grade III Jeff Ruby Steaks at Turfway Park. Tiz the Bomb collected 100 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby.