HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – After watching Sovereignty and River Thames finish first and second, respectively, just a neck apart, in Saturday’s Grade 2 Fountain of Youth, it’s only natural for everyone to be clamoring for a rematch later this month in the Grade 1, $1 million Florida Derby. As of Sunday, however, neither camp was ready to commit to the prestigious Kentucky Derby prep just yet.
Sovereignty, making his first start since winning his maiden in the Grade 3 Street Sense at Churchill Downs more than four months earlier, rallied from last after the opening six furlongs to run down River Thames in the final strides of the 1 1/16-mile Fountain of Youth. The run-up for the race was lengthened by 85 feet due to a change for dirt races at the distance that went into effect earlier in the week.
Sovereignty, a Godolphin homebred trained by Bill Mott, earned a 95 Beyer Speed Figure for the performance, the best of his four-race career. The race was originally assigned a 98, but the figure was adjusted after accounting for the new run-up.
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“Usually, a horse that opens up like the one we ran down [River Thames], it’s hard to catch them,” Mott said on Sunday. “When they turned for home I said, ‘Geez, I don’t know if we can get there.’ He had a pretty good spurt there at the end. He’s not a horse that will wow you when he works. But I’d say he kind of wowed you the last sixteenth of a mile yesterday. Or at least he wowed me.”
Mott said a decision on where or when Sovereignty might run next has yet to be made, but noted that the 1 1/8-mile Florida Derby is one of the races foremost in the discussion.
“Once we finalize our plans and if the horse is doing well, I suppose there’s a good possibility he’d go here at Gulfstream,” Mott said. “I don’t think a mile and an eighth is going to be an issue. He’s given us all the signs that he could do it.”
Trainer Todd Pletcher said both of his horses, River Thames and Gate to Wire, who finished fifth, came out of the Fountain of Youth in good order. River Thames also received a 95 Beyer, a career best for him as well, even in defeat.
“I thought River Thames ran a very good race and looking at the whole picture, seven weeks ago he was un-started so he’s come a long ways in a short period of time,” Pletcher said. “He was a little bit green at the end of the race but the winner was very good. As for Gate to Wire, we might consider cutting him back in distance a little bit.”
Pletcher said he was obviously aware that the distance of the Fountain of Youth had changed subsequent to it being drawn the previous Saturday.
“I know two-turn races here have been a concern for everybody, the outside post is really difficult, although yesterday’s race probably was closer to a mile and an eighth than a mile and a sixteenth,” Pletcher observed. “And after your horse gets run down in the last couple of strides, you always wonder if that made a difference. Although in the end, everybody ran the same distance.”
As for the Florida Derby, Pletcher said he is going to play things by ear for now. River Thames is owned in partnership by WinStar Farms and CHC Inc., who also have Holy Bull runner-up Tappan Street, the latter currently being pointed for the Florida Derby with trainer Brad Cox.
“I talked to Elliott [Walden] this morning and he said, ‘Let’s see what the horse looks like in the next couple of weeks and leave all options open,’ ” said Pletcher, who also has two other potential Florida Derby prospects, the undefeated Grande and impressive maiden winner Disruptor, both of whom are owned by Mike Repole.
Leading trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. said he is leaning toward bringing Neoequos, who finished third, 2 1/2 lengths behind River Thames while making his two-turn debut in the Fountain of Youth, back in the Florida Derby. Neoequos tied a career-best 91 Beyer on Saturday.
“He bounced back well from the race,” Joseph said. “Originally I thought he didn’t stay. I was thinking of cutting him back to one turn. But seeing how the numbers came out, I’m probably going to give him one more chance [around two turns] in the Florida Derby.”
Burnham Square finished a disappointing fourth as the tepid 9-5 favorite in the Fountain of Youth, although he actually improved one point from a Beyer standpoint, to a 91, off his visually impressive winning performance four weeks earlier in the Holy Bull.
Trainer Ian Wilkes, reported Sunday that Burnham Square also came out of the race well while saying it was “too early yet” to comment on any future plans for his horse.
The Queens M G on Oaks trail
Joseph also has himself a filly on the Kentucky Oaks trail following The Queens M G’s 2 3/4-length victory over La Cara and Ballerina d’Oro in Saturday’s Grade 2 Davona Dale. The effort earning Queens M G 37.5 qualifying points for the Kentucky Oaks, down from the 50 that was originally to be awarded the winner due to the fact the one-mile Davona Dale had only five starters.
The Queens M G rallied inside the leaders before drawing away impressively under Irad Ortiz Jr., posting an 80 Beyer for her effort. She was the only horse to win racing near the rail down the stretch over the main track on Saturday’s program.
“She didn’t get a great number but she ran well, she ran against the bias,” said Joseph. “She was the only horse to win on the rail all day. I thought she would move forward from the Forward Gal, and she did. She’ll come back in the Gulfstream Oaks in four weeks.”
La Cara outlasted Ballerina d’Oro by a nose to finish second in the Davona Dale, which moved her up to third on the Oaks points list. But there will be no rematch with The Queens M G in the Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Oaks on March 29, her trainer Mark Casse confirming Sunday that the Grade 1 Ashland at Keeneland would be next on her agenda.
“Dylan [Davis] said he thought she was a little on the dull side, which is kind of what we were expecting coming back in three weeks” off her easy win in the Suncoast at Tampa Bay Downs, Casse noted. “We accomplished getting that second start off the layoff out of the way. You’re always looking for them to be best in the third start, and we accomplished getting additional qualifying points for the Oaks. Now we can take our time and point her for the Ashland in five weeks.”
– additional reporting by David Grening
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