Barn Tour: Beckman steps up with Honor Marie in Risen Star

It’s been less than three years since Whit Beckman got his trainer license. And come Saturday, he could have a colt headed to the Kentucky Derby.

Not that Beckman is new to racing. His experience includes working for Todd Pletcher and Chad Brown. But now the Louisville, Ky., native is focused on building his stable in his hometown.

He has 28 horses in training, split between Kentucky and New Orleans.

“I never really kind of put a number on what would be ideal for me,” Beckman told Horse Racing Nation on Monday from New Orleans. “The stables I worked in were like, you know, 200-, 300-type horse stables. I don't know that I want to be ever that big. But two strings, 40, 50, 60, somewhere in that neighborhood, would be more than manageable. So for now, I'm concerned that it all kind of comes naturally. I don't want to force anything. I'd like it to be an organically developed situation. So for right now, I'm right where I want to be.”

His Derby contender is Honor Marie, the Honor Code colt who won the Kentucky Jockey Club (G2) last out in November and is entered in Saturday’s Grade 2 Risen Star, a virtual win-and-you’re-in for the Kentucky Derby with 50 qualifying points going to the winner.

“Hopefully he's made the jump from 2 to 3 and is still as good as he displayed last November.” Beckman said.

“He's a really easy-going horse. Very smart, does everything just under the cue of us. He doesn't really do anything wrong, knock on wood at this point. Early on, he was a little immature, he's a late foal. So as we just kind of took our time and let him develop, he's rewarded us greatly. And he's doing great.”

Honor Marie has been working at Fair Grounds, most recently breezing five furlongs in 1:01 on Feb. 5. “His works have been very good. I'm very happy with how he's been coming into this race,” Beckman said.

“It's a very strong field based off the limited preps and races there have been for 3-year-olds, but it looks like probably one of the tougher groups. You've got talent coming from Florida. It's not that I'm trying to dodge, but we're going to have to run against good horses eventually, so it'll be nice to see where we stack up. But it's a strong race.”

Of course, it would be exciting for a Louisville native to win the Kentucky Derby. But Beckman was trying not to get ahead of himself.

“It's funny, you know, when you win these races, and there's always that kind of inkling of hope. But working with some of the guys I've worked for, we had tons of Derby hopefuls, starters and everything in between. And a lot can change in a very short period of time. So just day to day. We're just happy we have a Risen Star horse and hopefully then a Louisiana Derby horse, and if stars align then a Kentucky Derby horse.”

Beckman discussed others in his stable for the latest in HRN’s Barn Tour series.

Harlan Estate. The 6-year-old gelded son of Kantharos posted a 10: 1-2-1 record last year, including starts in five graded stakes. He’s entered in the Fair Grounds presented by Horse Racing Nation (G3) on Saturday. “He was my first stakes win back in the summer, in (the Tapit Stakes) at Kentucky Downs,” Beckman said. “But he just skipped a month. I didn't run him last month. We just kind of gave him a little freshening. He's a horse that I think runs better fresh. So we're entered Saturday. We're just looking for a big year with him. Hopefully we kind of culminate in that Kentucky Downs. We know he likes the place. In the meantime, we do have some rain anticipated on Saturday. I don't know if it'll be enough to affect the turf course, if it will be on or off. But we'll kind of hope we get to catch firm ground, but if we don't we'll maybe make some adjustments. But he's doing fantastic, and we're just excited to see what he produces this year.”

Agoo. The 3-year-old Munnings colt brought a record of 4: 1-2-1 into an optional-claiming allowance race Tuesday at Fair Grounds, where he finished seventh. “He had a really nice 2-year-old year, second in a stake (at Churchill Downs) at the end of the year and then third in another stake down here. I kind of just reset him for a little bit, just gave him a couple of weeks off. … We know he's a talented horse. I think maturity-wise, he's still figuring things out.”

Anthem King. The 3-year-old son of Bolt d’Oro has yet to break his maiden after five starts, finishing second last out in a maiden special weight at Turfway Park. “He always trains and he puts himself in a good spot. He finished second the other day at Turfway. The races at Turfway, unfortunately, the last three cycles of maidens had been mile races. I think the horse wants to go a little further, but he will break his maiden. I believe just based off how he's running up there and his training, he's just getting a little unlucky running against some good horses. His trips haven't exactly been perfect. He breaks a little slow, but he's doing great, and we're excited to hopefully get him back running again in another couple of weeks.”

Present Moment. The 5-year-old daughter of No Nay Never, looking for her first win since June, was second last out in a Turfway Park allowance. “She ran a couple times down here at Fair Grounds, and we decided after her last race that the distances that they were carding, the mile and 16th, weren't really suiting her. I think she wants to go a little shorter. So we took her up to Turfway and she ran second there the other night in an allowance. She ran great. Not sure what the plan is next with her, but most likely Turfway, possibly Gulfstream. She's not Kentucky-bred, so she takes a huge hit on those purses.”

Sabalenka. The 4-year-old Good Samaritan filly was 0-for-7 last year, with all but one of her starts in stakes. “She's been on the farm since the end of November. She'll probably be scheduled to come back in here the next couple weeks. … She's just been a super solid, just consistent nice turf filly for us. She's put herself in some stakes and always run well. And I think she's one of the first ones to kind of get my name out to a wider audience. So she's always had a special place with us. She was my first graded-stake placing, and she's won a couple of nice races for us as well.”

Lexa. The 4-year-old Gun Runner filly was 2-for-8 last year and finished fourth last month in the Likely Exchange at Turfway. “We sent her to the farm just for a little break. She had a pretty consistent schedule all the way through the first part of the year. So she's back on the farm, and she'll be coming back here by next month.”

Hay Stack. The 4-year-old daughter of War Front is 0-for-5 since breaking her maiden in April. “She was a filly that we bought out at Keeneland last (year), horses of racing age sale. She was second twice for me in allowances there in Kentucky, and then we brought her down here and her last start wasn't wasn't great. She didn't run bad, but we kind of gave her a reset and she's entered for Thursday here, first-level allowance.”

Frat Pack. Formerly trained by Chad Brown, the 5-year-old son of Upstart has a record of 5: 2-1-2 in New York. “We bought him out of the November sale as well. He's had a couple of nice wins up at Aqueduct, and we're gearing him up to run next month. But he's doing fantastic. He'll be one to watch.”