Kentucky Derby 2019 Radar: Shades of Wicked Strong in Mihos
Mihos emerged from one of New York's strongest maiden special weight flights of the fall to break his maiden Saturday at second asking, circling the field with a four-wide move at Aqueduct before finishing under wraps.
This looks like a future stakes winner, with the question when it comes to the 2019 Kentucky Derby Radar just how far he wants to go, as the son of first-crop sire Cairo Prince is out of the Lion Heart mare Feline Flatline.
Cairo Prince has already produced one Derby trail winner, the Iroquois Stakes (G3) hero Cairo Cat. Mihos looks in line to compete for another after scoring in Saturday’s third race, becoming the first 2-year-old to win for the combination of trainer Jimmy Jerkens and owner Centennial Farms since Wicked Strong, the eventual Wood Memorial winner who ran fourth in the 2014 Derby. He's ridden by Rajiv Maragh, too.
Mihos showed perhaps his most impressive dimension in the final two furlongs. When shaken up by Maragh, he easily kicked away before eased across the wire. The final time for six furlongs was 1:11.20 and could have been swifter if needed.
We’d be remiss not to mention the runner-up. Mutakaamil is a half-brother to 2016 Derby contender Shagaf and obviously has some gate issues. After left at the start, he rallied to be second by 1 1/4 lengths, the margin a bit deceiving given Mihos slowed dramatically toward the wire.
Mihos, a $320,000 yearling purchase, debuted against eventual Nashua (G3) winner Vekoma and Epic Dreamer, another next-out winner on the Derby Radar for his score. Notably, he was ridden confidently while running on Lasix for the first time.
Checking the Derby Radar boxes for Mihos:
Broke maiden on major circuit
Sire known for two-turn runners (We'll give Cairo Prince the check for this given Cairo Cat's score from the crop. Mihos' distance limitations could come from the female family.)