Barn Tour: Ortiz is 'enjoying the ride' with Barber Road

The current meet at Oaklawn has been kind to trainer John Ortiz, who is in fourth place in the track’s training standings, with 14 victories. Ortiz has won at a 22 percent clip and has finished in the money 55 percent of the time.

The coming weekend will be a big one for Ortiz, who said he has been enjoying the meet.

“The name of the game here is winning, but it comes in waves,” Ortiz said. “We're just happy to be on a good, good wave and we’ll go from there. Hoping to get a lot more.”

Ortiz updated Horse Racing Nation on some of his top horses.

Barber Road: After a second-place effort in the Southwest (G3) on Jan. 29, the Race Day colt returns to the Arkansas leg of the Road to the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, when he is entered to run in the Rebel (G2) at Oaklawn. Ortiz had high praise for Barber Road, who also finished second in the Smarty Jones and Lively Shively.

“This is a horse that showed up from a maiden 30 and he showed up ever since,” Ortiz said. “It’s nothing that we’re doing, it’s nothing about us. It’s all about the horse’s ability, and we’re just enjoying the ride.”

Reylu Gutierrez will be in the irons for the Rebel. The field is set to include Newgrange, running for Bob Baffert, who was made the 9-5 morning-line favorite.

Ortiz said Barber Road, who was the morning-line second choice at 9-2, continues to develop.

“He’s still a young horse,” Ortiz said. “He’s very baby-like. You come in here and he’s up here shaking and wagging his tail, he looks like a puppy when he comes home from work. He’s just excited about everything he does. … I think with more age, with more time and more distance, this horse is going to develop and is going to get way more mature and become a real professional.”

Ortiz said if Barber Road performs well in the Rebel, which offers 50-20-10-5 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby, he plans to run the colt in the Arkansas Derby (G1) next.

Ice Orchid: After breaking her maiden on third asking Feb. 11, going six furlongs at Oaklawn, Ortiz is taking a shot with the Super Saver filly in the Honeybee (G3) on Saturday. That race is a 50-20-10-5 points race for the 2022 Kentucky Oaks.

“She’s been running really well here at Oaklawn,” Ortiz said. “A couple close calls in the maiden special weights, and then when she graduated two weeks ago we were very excited and happy about it.”

Ortiz said he will point Ice Orchid toward the Fantasy (G3) on April 2 at Oaklawn, with a possible eye on the Oaks. The filly is 6-1 on the Honeybee morning line and will be ridden from the fourth post position by Ricardo Santana Jr.

Mr Dumas finished second at Turfway Park on Saturday in the Dust Commander Stakes, going 1 1/16 miles on the Tapeta track. Ortiz said the 6-year-old Majesticperfection horse has multiple options for his next race.

“You’ve got the (Kentucky Cup Classic) at Turfway coming back at a mile and an eighth at the end of that meet, we’re looking at that to come back,” Ortiz said. “If not, we know that he’s a very good turf horse and Keeneland is going to be opening a week after that race.”

Hollis: After a fifth-place finish in the King Cotton on Jan. 29 at Oaklawn, the 7-year-old Street Sense gelding returned in allowance company going 5 1/2 furlongs on Sunday, also at Oaklawn. He made good in that race, kicking clear to win by 4 1/4 lengths.

Ortiz said Hollis came out of the race in excellent condition and named his next destination.

“That was more of a warmup for him,” Ortiz said. “This was a prep for the Whitmore (formerly the Hot Springs) coming up..., that’s about 20 days in between races.”

The trainer said Hollis used his allowance race to get back on track.

“He didn’t run his race back in the King Cotton,” Ortiz said. “That wasn’t his race, it wasn’t him. Nothing went his way, and he’s a horse that likes to have it his way. When it all lines up perfectly he does these type of performances, and coming back to five and a half we knew that this was a perfect prep to get his confidence back up.”