Zipse: Ky. Derby win is part of huge weekend for Godolphin

Carried to victory by his powerful, late-running strides, Sovereignty did something Saturday that no other Godolphin runner ever had done. He won the Kentucky Derby.

Chasing the roses in vain for decades, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai and the boss of the most powerful operation in racing, finally owns the most coveted trophy in American racing.

Sovereignty passes Journalism, wins Kentucky Derby.

And if the breakthrough victory for Godolphin in the Kentucky Derby wasn’t enough, Sovereignty’s convincing score came on the heels of two other huge wins within a two-day span on both sides of the Atlantic.

It started Friday under the famed twin spires of Churchill Downs as the classic blue silks were worn to victory by rider Luis Sáez aboard heavily favored Good Cheer.

A sloppy track for the Kentucky Oaks could not stop the Brad Cox-trained daughter of Medaglia d’Oro from rallying strongly from mid-pack in the Grade 1, $1.5 million classic for the fillies.

An easy winner of her first six races coming into her biggest career test, Good Cheer once again made it look easy as she splashed home by 2 1/4 lengths over 12 other sophomore fillies.

Considering Good Cheer’s consistent dominance, it would seem the only 3-year-old filly who could prove competition for her would be her fellow Godolphin homebred Immersive. That unbeaten champion is recovering from an injury and has not raced since a convincing win in last fall’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.

For Godolphin it was the second Kentucky Oaks victory in three years, having also campaigned 2023 winner Pretty Mischievous.

A big Friday for Sheikh Mohammed and team was followed by a much bigger day on Saturday.

Contested at Newmarket, the 2,000 Guineas is the first British classic of the year and, like our Kentucky Derby, had a clear favorite in this edition with highly regarded Field of Gold. That John Gosden-trained runner made a strong late run but only could split Godolphin’s pair of Ruling Court and Shadow of Light on the wire.

An impressive winner in Dubai in his only previous start this year, Ruling Court raised his record to three wins in four career starts when he rushed to the lead in deep stretch of the one-mile classic and had plenty left under rider William Buick to hold off fast-finishing Field of Gold.

Trained by Charlie Appleby, Ruling Court won by a half-length as the second choice Saturday. He is a son of the American Triple Crown winner Justify and is expected to come back next in the Epsom Derby at the extended distance of 1 1/2 miles.

Ruling Court became the sixth winner for Godolphin in the Group 1 2,000 Guineas and the second in a row after Notable Speech won the classic last year.

With victories in the Kentucky Oaks and 2,000 Guineas already in the books, Godolphin came into the Kentucky Derby on a roll and looking for more with a big, strong son of America’s top sire Into Mischief.

While streaking Journalism got the majority of ink coming in, Sovereignty had done little wrong for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott in the weeks and months leading up to the first Saturday in May.

An impressive winner of last fall’s Street Sense Stakes (G3) over the Churchill Downs main track, he returned to Louisville off two solid preps in South Florida.

A strong finisher in all of his races, the handsome bay stayed clear of serious traffic from his outside post position under rider Júnior Alvarado and collared Journalism as the field turned for home in a sloppy-track edition of the Kentucky Derby.

The favorite fought on, but the momentum of Sovereignty to his outside was too much to be denied. Pulling clear to defeat Journalism by 1 1/2 lengths with late-running Baeza just behind him, the Godolphin runner capped a massive weekend for his stable.

With all its worldwide success, Godolphin came in with very little in America’s Triple Crown series. Sovereignty ended a winless streak of 13 in the Kentucky Derby, and Godolphin never has won the Preakness. Before Saturday, Essential Quality was their only winner in the series, having taken the Belmont Stakes in 2021.

This weekend erases previous failures. It was shades of the dominant days of Calumet Farm nearly a century ago with the sweep of the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby. Add in a British classic victory sandwiched between the two, and it truly was a historic weekend for the iconic blue silks.

The Eclipse Award winner in America as outstanding owner seven times, including the last five years, Godolphin reached new heights this weekend in America and England.

Good Cheer, Ruling Court and, last but certainly not least, Sovereignty all proved best on the big stage. What a weekend it was Godolphin.