Kentucky Derby 2018 trail: Vino Rosso wins Wood Memorial
If only they ran the races at 9 a.m., Vino Rosso owner Mike Repole has a habit of saying, Vino Rosso could contend on 2018 Kentucky Derby trail. The able workhorse got it done in the afternoon as well Saturday, dueling to a controversial win in Aqueduct’s Grade 2, $1 million Wood Memorial.
Vino Rosso survived a rider's objection after moving inward through the stretch, bumping with runner-up Enticed before clearing his rival by three lengths late. In such a case, stewards had to determine the contact didn't change the race's outcome.
The victory gave trainer Todd Pletcher a fourth entry in the prospective Kentucky Derby field, with Vino Rosso joining Florida Derby winner Audible, Louisiana Derby winner Noble Indy and Rebel Stakes winner Magnum Moon. Repole also owns a portion of Noble Indy.
"I got close to (Enticed) and he was coming out," said Vino Rosso jockey John Velazquez. "So, I made my horse switch leads and when he switched, I leaned on him a little bit, and then he pushed me out and my horse went right back on him. That's what happened."
Enticed's rider, Junior Alvarado, offered a different view.
"I got bumped three times. I got pinched on the rail," Alvarado said. "This was way too much. I didn't even bump him once. I don't know what to say. This is unacceptable. If somebody else rode that way, he would have been taken down."
Enticed held on for second along the rail with Restoring Hope third. Thanks to his last-out victory in the Grade 3 Gotham Stakes, Enticed, a Kiaran McLaughlin-trained son of Medaglia d'Oro, should also be moving on to Churchill Downs the first Saturday in May.
Two other Derby preps this season -- both on the West Coast -- saw results changed by stewards. Keeping the outcome on the track led to Vino Rosso's third win in five starts, plus a bounce back from his head scratcher of a fourth-place finish in the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby.
Connections added blinkers to the colt, a $410,000 purchase, and he faded sharply through the turn, only to re-rally under Velazquez. Saturday, Vino Rosso was off a step slow, but he gained ground of the back stretch.
"I was a little worried right at the start, because his hind-end kind of slipped out leaving the gate, and it looked [like] it took him about a hundred yards to get engaged," Pletcher said. "He was a little farther back than I thought he would be, but when you take the pacesetter out, he really was close to the contenders.
"I felt good about it. I was just hoping he would sustain his momentum around the turn, and he finished up and did great."
The eventual 1-2-3 finishers swallowed loose leader Old Time Revival through the far turn after that one clicked off fractions of an opening quarter mile in 22.96 seconds, with the half in 46.68. From there, the stretch battle ensued, Vino Rosso on the outside, and Enticed the inside.
Off as the 4-1 third choice, Vino Rosso returned $10.40 to win. He completed 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.79.