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Gary Stevens: Filly Trying Arkansas Derby, Secret Oath ‘May Be Better Than Winning Colors’

A ringing endorsement from Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens could propel bettors to take another look at the 3-year-old filly Secret Oath as she takes on the boys in the Grade 1, $1.25 million Arkansas Derby on April 2. Stevens spoke to the Thoroughbred Daily News about the daughter of Arrogate, comparing her to his Kentucky Derby-winning mount from 1988, the filly Winning Colors.

Both Secret Oath and Winning Colors have been conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas.

Stevens said: “People have asked me, 'Is [Secret Oath] anything like Winning Colors?' I actually think from what I'm seeing in the mornings, she may be better than Winning Colors. She's got a different style, she loves to sit off the pace and be a stalker and accelerate. She's got brilliant acceleration for a dirt horse–almost like a turf horse. When she drops [her head] and puts in her kick, she gets it over with in a hurry. Now, granted, she's been running against fillies, but I think there's a lot more in the tank than what we've seen.”

A homebred for Briland Farm (Robert and Stacy Mitchell), Secret Oath already has secured a spot in the Kentucky Oaks – the nation's biggest race for 3-year-old fillies – after collecting 60 points for victories in the Martha Washington and Honeybee. Both races were 1 1/16 miles.

Secret Oath had been a candidate for Oaklawn's final Kentucky Oaks prep, the $600,000 Fantasy Stakes (G3) at 1 1/16 miles April 2, before Lukas opted for the Arkansas Derby.

The filly recorded a five-furlong bullet (:59.40) workout on March 17 at Oaklawn Park, confirming Lukas' decision to send her against the males in the Arkansas Derby. The race offers points in the Kentucky Derby on a scale of 100-40-20-10.

Listen to Stevens' entire interview at the Thoroughbred Daily News.

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Full Field Of 16 To Line Up In UAE Derby; 12 Eligible For Kentucky Derby Points

A full field of 16 3-year-olds were signed on to compete for a possible 170 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby in the $1 million UAE Derby (G2) at Meydan Racecourse.

The 1 3/16-mile UAE Derby will be run on the undercard of the $12 million Dubai World Cup (GI). The action from Dubai begins early Saturday at 7:45 a.m. (all times Eastern) and horses in the UAE Derby will head to post in Race 5 at 10:10 a.m.

There are 12 horses currently eligible to garner points in the UAE Derby field. Three of the ineligible horses were bred in the Southern Hemisphere – therefore, they are considered 4-year-olds – and the other, likely favorite Pinehurst, is campaigned by Bob Baffert who is suspended by Churchill Downs Incorporated from competing in this year's Kentucky Derby.

Aside from Pinehurst, there are two other U.S.-based horses in the race – WC Racing, Aldabaugh, Wonderland and Goldstein's Get Back Goldie and Grandview Stable and Don Alberto Stable's Gilded Age.

Here is the complete field in order of program numbers (with jockey and trainer):

Irwin (ARG) (Francisco Goncalves, Antonio Cintra);
Kiefer (BRZ) (Hector Lazo, Ricardo Colombo);
Quality Boone (ARG) (Vagner Leal, Cintra);
Azure Coast (Antonio Fresu, Pavel Vashchenko);
Bendoog (Tadhg O'Shea, Bhupat Seemar);
Combustion (JPN); William Buick, Keizo Ito);
Crown Pride (JPN) (Damian Lane, Koichi Shintani);
Get Back Goodlie (Irad Ortiz Jr., Doug O'Neill);
Gilded Age (Luis Saez, Bill Mott);
Island Falcon (IRE) (Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor);
Pinehurst (Flavien Prat, Baffert);
Reiwa Homare (JPN) (Christophe Lemaire, Daisuke Takayanagi);
Sekifu (Cristian Demuro, Koshiro Take);
Summer Is Tomorrow (Mickael Barzalona, Seemar);
Withering (Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass); and
Arabian Gazelles (Richard Mullen, Seemar)

Only Crown Pride, Island Falcon, Pinehurst, Reiwa Homare and Sekifu were nominated to the Triple Crown. All other eligible 3-year-olds can pay a late $6,000 nominate fee that is due Monday.

The UAE Derby will be shown on “America's Day at the Races” on Fox Sports 2 and TVG. Fans are invited to bet on www.TwinSpires.com, the official wagering provider of the Kentucky Derby and Churchill Downs Incorporated.

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Four Potential Kentucky Derby Contenders Moved From Baffert To Other Trainers

Embattled trainer Bob Baffert has had four Kentucky Derby hopefuls transferred to other trainers, according to a report from the Los Angeles Times. The news follows the decision earlier this week that Circuit Court Judge Thomas Wingate sided with the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) and denied Baffert's bid to overturn the commission's refusal to issue a stay of his suspension.

Former Baffert assistant Tim Yakteen will take over the care of Messier, Doppelgänger, and McLaren Vale, while Blackadder will head to Kentucky for trainer Rodolphe Brisset.

“These are all good horses and they deserve to go,” Baffert told the LA Times. “It's just such a great race, both the Kentucky Derby and Oaks. It's great for the fans and the sport. The fans deserve to see these horses run.”

Baffert-trained horses have been ineligible to earn points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby owing to Churchill Downs' two-year suspension of the Hall of Fame trainer from its properties. The suspension stems from a medication violation involving his 2021 Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit, who was officially disqualified from that win on Feb. 21, 2022.

Baffert was also handed a 90-day suspension by the KHRC as a result of the disqualification of Medina Spirit, which the trainer could begin serving on April 4, according to Judge Wingate's ruling. The 90-day suspension would be reciprocated by other states, and per California regulation, could require Baffert to remove his signage and equipment from his barns at his home base at Santa Anita Park and send horses to be conditioned by someone other than his assistant training staff.

The future plans for the four transferred 3-year-olds are expected to be as follows:

Messier, 15-length winner of the G3 Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita, will point to the G1 Santa Anita Derby on April 9. He is owned by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, Catherine Donovan, Golconda Stable, and Siena Farm.
Doppelganger, second in the G2 San Felipe, could head to the G1 Arkansas Derby on April 2. He is owned by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, Catherine Donovan, Golconda Stable, and Siena Farm.
McLaren Vale, third in the G2 San Felipe, whose next start has not yet been decided on. He is owned by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, Catherine Donovan, Golconda Stable, and Siena Farm.
Blackadder, winner of the El Camino Real Derby, could target either the Jeff Ruby Steaks at Turfway on April 2 or the G1 Blue Grass on April 9 at Keeneland. He is owned by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, Catherine Donovan, Golconda Stable, and Siena Farm.

Other Baffert-trained 3-year-olds not mentioned in the LA Times story include:

G3 Southwest winner Newgrange, owned by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, Catherine Donovan, Golconda Stable, and Siena Farm.
G2 UAE Derby entrant Pinehurst, owned by SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, Catherine Donovan, Golconda Stable, and Siena Farm
G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Corniche, owned by Speedway Stables (has not resumed breezing after his Breeders' Cup win)

Asmussen: Chasing Time ‘Capable’ Of Stepping Forward In Arkansas Derby

Two-time winner Chasing Time will attempt to earn his way into the Kentucky Derby via the Grade 1, $1.25 million Arkansas Derby on April 2 at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark. Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen told the Daily Racing Form the decision was made after the 3-year-old son of Not This Time worked five furlongs in a bullet 1:00 on March 21.

“He worked very well yesterday and came out of it in great shape,” Asmussen told DRF. “We need him to step forward, but feel he's capable of doing so.”

Kentucky Derby points on offer in the Arkansas Derby are awarded to the top four finishers: 100-40-20-10.

Bred in Kentucky by Tenlane Farm, Chasing Time is out of the winning Dixie Union mare Race Hunter, a half-sister to multiple graded stakes winner Paid Up Subscriber. A $115,000 yearling at the Keeneland September sale when he went to Royal Flush Racing, Chasing Time returned to the ring to bring $250,000 from MyRacehorse.com at the OBS April sale of 2-year-olds in training.

The colt required three starts to break his maiden, doing so in November at Churchill Downs, before finishing second in a December allowance race at Oaklawn. Chasing Time won his next start, his first try around two turns in an allowance optional claiming race on Jan. 14, by 7 3/4 lengths, but could do no better than fifth in the G2 Rebel Stakes last out.

Jose Lezcano will ride Chasing Time in the Arkansas Derby.