Kentucky Derby 2020 Radar: Major Fed’s ‘in the game’
With a wide rally last Wednesday at Fair Grounds, the newly turned 3-year-old Major Fed not only made himself a maiden winner but propelled himself on the 2020 Kentucky Derby Radar.
The Ghostzapper colt, trained by Greg Foley, positioned fifth coming out of the far turn of a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight race flight at Fair Grounds.
Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. steered Major Fed to the far outside entering the stretch, chasing four rivals to his inside. Under minimal urging, Major Fed found another gear and blew by them all inside the 3/16ths pole.
“It pumps you up and puts you in the game,” Travis Foley, assistant to his father, told Fair Grounds publicity after Major Fed’s 4 ¼-length maiden score. “The way that he did it was visually impressive, and it makes it exciting.
“That’s why you get in this game, to have chances at the big ones and obviously we have a long way to go to get where we want to be, but he gives us a chance and that’s all you can ask for.”
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The New Year’s Day graduation for Major Fed came at second asking after the Lloyd Madison IV Farms homebred debuted with a third-place run in a six-furlong sprint Nov. 23 at Churchill Downs. The winner of that event, Gold Street, went on to take Fair Grounds’ black-type Sugar Bowl Stakes on Dec. 21. Runner-up Mayberry Deputy was also a next-out winner.
Major Fed’s two-turn triumph Wednesday backed up connections’ confidence in the colt’s ability to go longer distances.
“I think he’s bred to go all day,” Travis Foley said. “Some of his relatives could get a mile and a half and just seeing him kick home the other day you get excited to see how he finished.
“It looked like he had a ton left in the tank and I think the further the better with him. We’ll see how good he is, but distance should not be an issue with this horse.”
Major Fed brings a familiar lineage for his team. Mare Bobby’s Babe, a daughter of Grade 1 winner Smart Strike, was trained by Greg Foley and campaigned by Madison.
Bobby’s Babe’s offspring have included Clairenation (12:5-0-1, $192,723), multiple stakes-placed Zapperini (32:3-4-6, $261,471), stakes winner May Lily (21:4-5-3, $271,926) and Attorney Tim (5:1-1-0), who recently broke his maiden over the Fair Grounds turf. Of those, only Zapperini has a dirt win on the resume.
“There are all nice horses in this family,” Foley said. “They’ve all been stakes caliber and have just been knocking on the door waiting for a breakthrough.
“Most of this mare’s good runners have been turf, which isn’t a bad thing, but it’s nice to have Major Fed showing so much talent over the main track.”
Fair Grounds hosts three points-paying Kentucky Derby preps, with the Jan. 18 Lecomte Stakes (G3) first of them. The Feb. 15 Risen Star (G2) and March 21 Louisiana Derby (G2) follow.
“Time wise, it’s not the best,” Travis Foley said. “It’s a little too quick back for the Lecomte. We’re still trying to map it all out. He came out of the race really good and is sound.”
Fair Grounds' media relations coordinator, Grant LaGrange, contributed to this story.