The Real Premier Pegasus Takes Off
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Zipse’s Kentucky Derby Daily – Day 56
In a race
that looked to be quite wide open going in, Premier Pegasus turned today’s San
Felipe Stakes into an absolute romp. Stamping himself as perhaps the second
favorite for the Kentucky Derby behind only Uncle Mo, PrePeg romped to a 7 ¾ length
runaway win in the quarter of a million, grade 2 affair Saturday at Santa Anita.
Sent off at 7-1, the son of Fusaichi Pegasus proved to be a fabulous overlay as
he sprinted past Comma to the Top as the field turned for home and then
proceeded to draw off to the wire. The victory margin was the largest in the
history of the race.
The San
Felipe is the last major prep race for the Kentucky Derby in California other
than next month’s Santa Anita Derby, and PrePeg used it to display the kind of potential
that I had been hoping to see since I began to follow him last fall. Bred, owned,
and trained by native Korean Myong Kwon Cho, PrePeg is one of two Derby
contenders the 68-year-old horseman conditions, along with Riveting Reason, out
of his stable of ten. Cho said after the race that he will now be pointed for
the Santa Anita Derby.
Final time
for the 1 1/16 miles over the fast track was 1:41.23. The final time came after
a torrid pace of 21.75, 44.58, and 1:08.98 for six furlongs had been carved out
by Comma the Top, Albergatti and Runflatout. Race time favorite Jaycito, making
his first start for trainer Bob Baffert, rallied from far back to get up for a
non-threatening second.
While the
San Felipe result came to a surprise to many, the winner is a horse who seemed
to be screaming out for more distance after running quite successfully in sprints
his first four starts. Today also marked PrePeg’s first race without blinkers. Running
without the hood seemed to relax him more, and sitting off of the blistering proved
to be a blessing as the pace of the race unfolded.
Premier
Pegasus is a horse I have rated highly from the beginning in my Kentucky Derby
rankings, believing he would relish the added distance, and today he came
through on my expectations. It seems likely that he will be the horse they all
have to beat in the Santa Anita Derby, and from there you would have to give
him a reasonable chance to match the feat of his sire, who won the run for the
roses eleven years ago.
[How high do you think Premier Pegasus will rise on HRN's 2011 Kentucky Derby Rankings?]Read More
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