Horses to Watch: 10 are entered including Charge It, Forte

In this biweekly series, racing analyst Keeler Johnson shares promising horses from his handicapping watch list, reviewing runners who have recently caught his eye and previewing horses scheduled to run back in the near future.

Upcoming entries

Charge It

Fresh off victory in a $62,500 allowance optional claimer at Gulfstream Park, Charge It is returning to the graded stakes ranks for Saturday’s 10th race at Gulfstream Park, the Gulfstream Park Mile (G2, post time 3:33 p.m. EST).

Charge It finished second in the 2022 Florida Derby (G1) and competed in the Kentucky Derby before wrapping up his 3-year-old season with a 23-length demolition of the Dwyer (G3) racing a one-turn mile at Belmont Park. He’s returning to that configuration for the Gulfstream Park Mile and should be tough to beat in his second run of the year.

Corona Bolt

Corona Bolt faltered when stretching out over 1 1/16 miles for the Southwest (G3) at Oaklawn last month, finishing a distant sixth over a sloppy track. He’d previously gone 2-for-2 sprinting over fast footing, most notably smashing the six-furlong Sugar Bowl at Fair Grounds by 6 3/4 lengths.

Corona Bolt is returning to six furlongs for Sunday’s fourth race at Oaklawn, an allowance (post time 3:17 p.m.). He’s facing older rivals for the first time, but ranks as the field’s fastest entrant from a Brisnet Speed rating perspective. If Corona Bolt catches a fast track, he can sprint right back to the winner’s circle.

Faiza

Faiza isn’t the flashiest filly, but so far, no one has found a way to beat her. The daughter of Girvin is 3-for-3, parlaying a maiden sprint victory into hard-fought wins over Pride of the Nile in the 1 1/16-mile Starlet (G1) and one-mile Las Virgenes (G3).

Faiza will seek to keep her momentum going in Sunday’s third race at Santa Anita, the Santa Ysabel (G3, post time 4:30 p.m.). Pride of the Nile is back for another try, along with Del Mar Debutante (G1) winner And Tell Me Nolies, but Faiza’s perfect profile stamps her as the filly to beat.

Forte

The Hopeful (G1). The Breeders’ Futurity (G1). The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Forte won all of these races in succession during a championship 2-year-old campaign, emerging as the early favorite for the 2023 Kentucky Derby.

Forte is kicking off his sophomore season in Saturday’s 14th race at Gulfstream Park, the Fountain of Youth (G2, post time 5:43 p.m.). He’s repeatedly shown the ability to accelerate around turns, so the abbreviated homestretch of the Fountain of Youth shouldn’t affect his chances. I’m optimistic Forte will unleash a challenge around the far turn and sustain it down the homestretch.

Fort Warren

Although Fort Warren was beaten to third place in the San Vicente (G2) sprinting seven furlongs at Santa Anita, I was encouraged by his performance. Fort Warrant wasn’t asked for much run down the homestretch and is bred to improve with distance and maturity, so it’s unlikely we’ve seen his best yet.

Fort Warren may stretch out over one mile in Saturday’s ninth race at Aqueduct, the Gotham (G3, post time 4:56 p.m.). Or he might scratch and tackle one mile and 70 yards in Monday’s 10th race at Parx Racing, the City of Brotherly Love (post time 4:51 p.m.). Either race should prove more suitable for Fort Warren than the sprints he’s contested so far.

Justique

Justique couldn’t catch Faiza in the Las Virgenes, but she did close ground from far off the pace to finish third by three lengths. That effort marked Justique’s first start since missing some training time and a scheduled run in the Santa Ynez (G3) with a fever, so she’s eligible to move forward while getting a rematch with Faiza in the Santa Ysabel.

Don’t forget, two starts back, Justique unleashed a giant rally to win Del Mar’s seven-furlong Desi Arnaz under a hand ride. The daughter of Justify has a habit of starting slowly, but her talent can’t be denied.

Mage

One of the biggest wild cards in the Fountain of Youth field is Mage. The son of champion and hot young sire Good Magic impressed in his Jan. 28 debut sprinting seven furlongs at Gulfstream, leading all the way to dominate by 3 3/4 lengths in the quick time of 1:22.54 seconds.

Mage is stepping up significantly in class and distance for the Fountain of Youth, so it’s hard to know what type of performance to expect. But he finished strongly in his debut (running the final furlong in 12.37 seconds), and he has the pedigree to handle 1 1/16 miles, so those are encouraging signs.

National Treasure

Only four horses have ever defeated National Treasure. One is the above-mentioned Forte. Another is two-time Grade 1 winner Cave Rock. The third is Robert B. Lewis (G3) hero Newgate, and the fourth is Sham (G3) winner Reincarnate.

Given the caliber of competition National Treasure has faced while placing in the American Pharoah (G1), Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and Sham, he has to be viewed as the horse to beat in Saturday’s sixth race at Santa Anita, the San Felipe (G2, post time 5:30 p.m.). The competition looks a bit easier on paper, and National Treasure endured a troubled trip when third in the Sham, so a clean run on Saturday can send him to the winner’s circle.

Speak of the Devil

The former French campaigner Speak of the Devil has run only twice since arriving in the United States. She won the 2022 Churchill Distaff Turf Mile (G2) at Churchill Downs with a terrific burst of homestretch acceleration, defeating future two-time Grade 1 winner In Italian by 2 3/4 lengths. Then she misfired when fourth in the Just a Game (G1) at Belmont, after which she disappeared from the work tab.

The good news is, Speak of the Devil returned to serious training in January and should be tough to beat even off the layoff in Saturday’s 11th race at Gulfstream, the Honey Fox (G3, post time 4:05 p.m.). She won the Distaff Turf Mile off a six-month break, so look for Speak of the Devil to make a statement in her seasonal debut.

White Frost

One of Speak of the Devil’s key rivals in the Honey Fox is White Frost, who recently returned from a 14 1/2-month break to trounce a $62,500 allowance optional claimer racing one mile over the Gulfstream turf course.

White Frost showed tactical speed that day and finished up strongly, running her final two furlongs in 11.67 and 11.38 seconds to complete the contest in a snappy 1:33.85 seconds. She’s 2-for-2 at Gulfstream, having won the 2021 Sweetest Chant (G3) over a strong field, so White Frost can’t be dismissed from win consideration in the Honey Fox.

Which horses do you have your eyes on?