Zipse: Unlucky Forte, Ky. Derby winner Mage are new rivals

There should be no doubt Mage was a deserving winner of the Kentucky Derby. The developing son of Good Magic ran a big race Saturday to defeat Two Phil’s and Angel of Empire, who also ran admirable races on racing’s biggest stage. The three are clearly among the best of the crop, but who is best?

To answer that question, we should look back to the Florida Derby. The Grade 1 race at Gulfstream Park proved to be the key prep this year. It produced the Kentucky Derby winner Mage. It also produced the favorite, until a race-day scratch kept him on the sidelines, in Forte.

While Mage is the name that millions of casual viewers of the Kentucky Derby will take away from Saturday’s $3 million spectacle, should we consider him the best 3-year-old in the land? With Forte still very much in the picture, I’m not ready to say that.

Perhaps the Gustavo Delgado-trained, Javier Castellano-ridden Mage has improved to the point where he is the best.

The Kentucky Derby was only his fourth lifetime race after running a strong second in the Florida Derby. He needed an excellent performance Saturday to beat the multiple stakes-winning pair of Two Phil’s and Angel of Empire, and he delivered.

The question remains, though, what would Forte have done if he had a chance to run?

We will never know. In a sad set of circumstances for owners Mike Repole and Vinnie Viola, trainer Todd Pletcher and rider Irad Ortiz Jr., the son of Violence was scratched just hours before what would have been the biggest race of his life. It was a stroke of terrible luck.

Kentucky state veterinarian Nick Smith ruled the champion out on Saturday morning after making the decision he was unfit to compete because of a bruise on his right front hoof. 

Whether it was the right decision could spark endless debate, but Smith made the cautious, safe decision.

Getting back to that Florida Derby, run five weeks ago in South Florida, Forte employed a strong, late burst to run by Mage in the $1 million affair. It was a determined effort that pretty much clinched his place as the Kentucky Derby favorite, until he was scratched.

For Forte it was further evidence what a classy horse he is. Overcoming an outside post and defeating a talented horse who had all the momentum coming into the stretch was very impressive. Of course, seeing what Mage did in his next start makes it all the more impressive.

There is also a lot to be said by the performance by Mage in the Florida Derby. Having not made his career debut until late January, the major prep was only his third career start.

The $290,000 2-year-olds-in-training purchase demonstrated a huge upside with his second-place run. That potential became fulfilled in the largest possible way Saturday.

Still, the facts remain. They have raced twice, and Forte has won twice.

Before the Florida Derby, Forte beat Mage in the Fountain of Youth (G2), also at Gulfstream Park. Those two wins over Mage were part of a five-race winning streak that also includes the Hopeful at Saratoga and the Breeders’ Futurity and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, both at Keeneland.

Those three Grade 1 wins to close out his 2-year-old season were plenty enough to secure an Eclipse Award as America’s best juvenile male, and clearly he has done nothing to tarnish his reputation this year.

Has the lightly raced Mage moved forward and become a better horse than Forte? It’s possible, but until the Kentucky Derby winner beats the 2-year-old champion on the square, I find it hard not to side with the winner of five straight graded stakes.

Unfortunately, we did not get to see round 3 of the rivalry in the Kentucky Derby.

It was depressing not to see Forte get his chance in the one race that everyone dreams of winning. It was also flattering for the champion to see the horse he beat twice in a row walk off with the roses.

Having said that, I do not intend to take anything away from Mage. What this colt has accomplished in the short time since his Jan. 28 debut has been remarkable and speaks volumes regarding his talent and class.

Rather, I see Saturday’s circumstances and result as a chapter of what could become a very compelling story. Perhaps the Kentucky Derby will prove just a bump in the road of a beautiful young rivalry.

We can hope that a healthy Forte and Mage meeting on the track again happens as soon as 13 days from now in the Preakness.

Rivalries are great for racing, and Forte and Mage have all the ingredients of a very good one.