Zedan Racing Stables LLC's Arabian Knight came into Saturday's $750,000 Southwest Stakes (G3) as one of the most highly touted 3-year-olds in the country and lived up to the hype with a dominating 5 ½-length victory at Oaklawn Park before an on-track crowd of 27,000.
Despite making just his second career start and first on a sloppy track, Arabian Knight shot to the lead like a veteran and proceeded through fractions of :22.98 and :46.82 for the first half mile. Jockey John Velazquez gave him a breather down the backside and his nearest rival, Frosted Departure, was able to get within a length of him around the turn for home, but the ending was never really in doubt. Arabian Knight had plenty left to hold off Red Route One, who closed from last to get second. The winning time was 1:43.50 for 1 1/16 miles over sloppy track.
Renaissance Stakes winner Frosted Departure held on for third and was followed by his stablemate Sun Thunder, Jace's Road, Corona Bolt, El Tomate and Western Ghent.
The Southwest carried 40 total points towards eligibility for the 2023 Kentucky Derby (G1), but Arabian Knight is ineligible for points because of trainer Bob Baffert's two-year suspension by Churchill Downs, stemming from Zedan Racing Stables' Medina Spirit being disqualified from a 2021 Kentucky Derby victory for a medication violation. Red Route One earned eight points, Frosted Departure received six points, Sun Thunder got four points, and Jace's Road got two points.
Jace's Road is currently ranked fifth on the Kentucky Derby Leaderboad with 15 total points, Red Route One is ranked sixth with 13 points, and Frosted Departure is ranked 16th with six points. Only the top 20 point-earners can start in the Kentucky Derby.
Arabian Knight, a $2.3 million 2-year-old in training purchase, is now a perfect two for two and has earned $544,275. The son of Uncle Mo returned $2.80 or the win.
The victory was a record-breaking sixth for Baffert in the Southwest and a third for jockey John Velazquez.
Arabian Knight was bred in Kentucky by Corser Thoroughbred LLC. His dam is the Astrology mare Borealis Night. The bay colt was a $2.3-million purchase at the 2022 OBS Spring sale of 2-year-olds in training, where Top Line Sales consigned.
Southwest Stakes Quotes
Winning jockey John Velazquez: “He made it look easy. He broke well and I took advantage of it. Obviously, he's pretty quick and I let him push along into the first turn. He was kind of looking around a lot. Finally got to the backstretch and I moved out from the rail a little bit, just to get him to relax. Horses were coming and he felt the noise and goes on. Second turn, I dropped in right on the rail. At the quarter pole, I went after him, and he opened up and he saw the tire track (from starting gate). I said, 'Come on buddy, don't do something stupid.' I hit him once, right before we got to the tire track. He kind of hesitated and then he sees the light and I hit him one more time and all of a sudden, he takes off on me. Going to the wire I was like, 'OK, that's what I wanted to see.'”
Winning trainer Bob Baffert: “When he got away and got in that high cruising (speed) down the backside I thought, 'Well, if he's as good as I think he is, there's no excuse.' If he got beat today, the distance was going to get him. These good horses are hard to come by. We've had a lot of luck here at Oaklawn, so it was nice to have a horse like this. What he did today, he ran 1:43 and change, that's racehorse time and he did it without taking a deep breath. This was a big effort, so he needs time in between (races). We'll play it by ear (regarding his next start).”
Trainer Steve Asmussen, second with Red Route One: “I think the circumstances of today, who handled it (sloppy track), who didn't, that kind of thing – obviously, the winner is an extremely nice horse. I think our horse, we've always been excited about being able to run him further.”
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