Kentucky Derby 2024: Cox starts road with Gettysburg Address

Brad Cox regularly says he always thinks about the Kentucky Derby from his barn 22 at Churchill Downs.

His path to the 150th renewal begins Saturday with 12-1 long shot Gettysburg Address entered in the Grade 3, $300,000 Iroquois.

Gettysburg Address is one of the many 2-year-olds Cox has in his Churchill Downs stable. The son of Constitution remained in Kentucky throughout the summer and broke his maiden Aug. 6 at Ellis Park.

“He’s acted like a horse who will like stretching out in distance to one mile in the Iroquois,” Cox said. “We know he has to step up to be competitive in this race, and we’re confident he can do so.”

Last year Cox began his road to Kentucky Derby 2023 when Jace’s Road finished third to Curly Jack in the Iroquois. Jace’s Road would go on to finish 17th in the Derby.

Gettysburg Address will be ridden by Gerardo Corrales out of post 9.

Another interesting 2-year-old prospect entered the Iroquois is MyRacehorse’s Seize the Grey. Trained by four-time Kentucky Derby winner D. Wayne Lukas, Seize the Grey broke his maiden July 29 at Saratoga and enters the Iroquois from a third-place finish in the Aug. 18 Skidmore Stakes.

Seize the Grey’s jockey Jaime Torres is represented as an agent by Hall of Famer Gary Stevens, who won the Kentucky Derby for Lukas aboard Winning Colors in 1988 and Thunder Gulch in 1995.

Torres, a new addition to the Kentucky riding colony, previously rode in New York and Pennsylvania. The five-pound apprentice was aboard Seize the Grey for his maiden score. The duo will break from post 6.

The Iroquois, carded as the ninth race on Saturday, will begin the traditional road to the Kentucky Derby, a series of 37 races where points will be offered for the top five eligible horses. The Iroquois begins a series of 21 foundation-building races. As the calendar moves closer to the Kentucky Derby, the points and distances of each race will increase. The top five finishers in the Iroquois will be awarded points on a 10-5-3-2-1 scale.

The Iroquois is part of the Breeders’ Cup dirt dozen, where the top three finishers will receive a partial credit toward their entry fees in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile on Nov. 3 at Santa Anita.