Ky. Derby pedigree: Golden Tempo shines as a contender

With a last-to-first rally, Golden Tempo made history as the first horse since 1974 to win the Grade 3 Lecomte Stakes with one or fewer starts before the race. The previous horse to accomplish the feat was Crimson Ruler, who captured the race in his career debut. 

Golden Tempo is now firmly on the Kentucky Derby 2026 trail, sitting second on the leaderboard with 20 qualifying points.  He completed 1 1/16 miles in 1:44.98 with a 6.73-second final furlong. In a thrilling finish, he bested his stablemate Mesquite by 3/4 length, with Carson Street a neck back in third.

Conditioned by Cherie DeVaux for owners and breeders Phipps Stable & St. Elias Stables, Golden Tempo (Curlin–Carrumba, by Bernardini) made a similar move in his maiden victory a scant month ago at Fair Grounds. The two-time winner has earnings of $183,000. 

Sire

Curlin (Smart Strike–Sherriff's Deputy, by Deputy Minister) is one of the most consistent stallions standing at stud. The flashy two-time horse of the year offers stamina to his progeny and has sired winners of the Preakness, Belmont, Travers Stakes and Breeders' Cup Classic.

Curlin hasn't added the Kentucky Derby to his impressive resume yet, but he's knocking at the door. Journalism (2025), Good Magic (2018) and Exaggerator (2016) placed second in Kentucky, and Journalism and Exaggerator won the Preakness. Additionally, Palace Malice captured the 2013 Belmont Stakes. 2022's Kentucky Derby winner, Rich Strike, is a grandson of Curlin through his Travers-winning son Keen Ice. 

The Curlin–Bernardini cross is incredibly successful, having produced 25 winners from 42 starters, 11 of them stakes winners, an average of 15%. Notable winners include multiple Grade 1-winning heroine Clairiere and 2020 CCA Oaks (G1) winner Paris Lights. 

Female family

Golden Tempo owns a middle- to classic-distance pedigree filled with elite dirt and turf influences, with much of that foundation rooted in his maternal line.

Mitochondrial DNA and the X-factor both relate to maternal inheritance, with MDNA passed exclusively through the mare and playing a key role in oxygen utilization, muscle endurance and finishing strength across distances, among other performance traits.

That maternal strength traces directly to Golden Tempo’s fifth and sixth dams, the reine-de-course mares Lady Pitt (Sword Dancer–Rock Drill, by Whirlaway) and her daughter, Blitey (Riva Ridge–Lady Pitt), one of the most influential foundation mares in modern American breeding and a cornerstone of the Phipps family program. This family has consistently transmitted the MDNA attributes from one generation to the next.

Starting with Golden Tempo’s fifth dam, Blitey produced several top-class performers and producers, including Fantastic Find (by Mr. Prospector), the dam of multiple Grade 1 heroine Finder’s Fee (Storm Cat), who is the third dam of 2022 horse of the year Flightline (Tapit).

Blitey also produced Dancing Spree (by Nijinsky), winner of the 1989 Breeders’ Cup Sprint, and his full sister Oh What a Dance. Though Oh What a Dance never raced, her progeny include the sire Pure Prize (Storm Cat) as well as champion 3-year-old filly and black-type producer Heavenly Prize (Seeking the Gold). Her grandson Instilled Regard (Arch) captured the 2018 edition of the Lecomte and later became a Grade 1 winner on turf.

Heavenly Prize had two full sisters, Grade 1 heroine Oh What a Windfall and Golden Tempo’s third dam, Grade 1 placed Dancinginmydreams.   

Golden Tempo’s second dam, Castanet (El Prado) is a half-sister to Grade 1 winning turf router Dancing Forever (Rahy) and stakes-placed Puzzling (Ghostzapper).  

A tough competitor, Carrumba (Bernardini–Castanet, by El Prado) was out of the top three only twice in her 15-race career. She began her career in June of her 3-year-old season, placing in a pair of sprints before stretching to 1 1/8 miles for her initial victory. 

Competing from the Grade 1 to Grade 3 levels, the Phipps Stable homebred won from a mile to 1 1/8 miles, including the Top Flight Invitational Handicap (G3) at 1 1/8 miles, and earned $621,500.  

Besides Golden Tempo, Carrumba foaled Hype House (Candy Ride), who was unplaced in three starts, the unraced Tarnished Truth (Blame), an unnamed 2-year-old colt by Nyquist and a yearling filly by Liam’s Map.

Damsire

Golden Tempo’s damsire Bernardini (A.P. Indy–Cara Rafaela, by Quiet American) was the 2006 champion 3-year-old. He was an established sire and is a solid broodmare sire, with his daughters producing classic-distance stakes winners who include Sovereignty, Alabama Stakes heroine Dunbar Road and Catholic Boy, plus Grade 1-winning turf routers Colonel Liam and Hunter O’Riley. 

Kentucky Derby contender or pretender?

Lecomte winners usually are winnowed out by Kentucky Derby day, but they have fared better in the Preakness. Eight of the last 15 Lecomte victors entered the starting gate on the first Saturday in May, and none placed better than fourth. 

But three contested the Preakness Stakes and either won or placed second, and one of the two Lecomte winners who made it to the Belmont Stakes finished second.

Golden Tempo’s conformation and pedigree indicate a colt who will improve with maturity and that classic distances are within his scope. He has a smooth gait and keeps a straight path.

Golden Tempo rallied as a one-run closer in both starts. But in an astute move in the Lecomte by jockey Jose Ortiz, Golden Tempo never hesitated while weaving through traffic around the far turn, going three wide and then diving for the rail instead of taking the typical overland route like his stablemate Mesquite. 

Other than his 13.04 opening furlong, Golden Tempo clicked off internal fractions in the 11.75 to 12.92 range, with an average 11.70. This shows that he isn’t a one-paced clunker passing tired horses but has legitimate speed. He improved speed-figure-wise from a 78 Beyer to an 81.

According to his trainer, Cherie DeVaux, Golden Tempo will target the Risen Star Stakes (G2) on Feb. 14.

Golden Tempo has the pedigree and conformation of a legitimate Kentucky Derby contender. While a last-to-first running style can complicate things as fields grow deeper, he has shown the ability so far to weave through traffic and not be intimidated by rivals.