Kentucky Derby video: Mott likes looks of Sovereignty's workout

Sovereignty, winner of the Grade 2 Holy Bull and second behind Tappan Street in the Grade 1 Florida Derby, worked five furlongs at Churchill Downs in 1:00.6 on Saturday for trainer Bill Mott.

"I really like the way he finished up. He was strong coming to the wire and galloped out good. The time was good, but the way he looked doing it was even more impressive than just the time itself."

Mott expects that Sovereignty will work again next Saturday, one week before his expected start in Kentucky Derby 2025.

Churchill Downs is no new surrounding for Sovereignty. He was already a graded-stakes winner at Churchill Downs as a juvenile, after breaking his maiden in the Kentucky Jockey Club (G2) last October. That gave Mott a good foundation on which to build his 3-year-old campaign leading into the Kentucky Derby.

"We know we had those things behind us, and we had a couple points from that race...we just felt we wanted to get a couple good races in him before we got here. We were able to accomplish all that."

As much faith as Mott has in Sovereignty's talent and ability to run at Churchill Downs, he acknowledges that there is always going to be a luck factor in the Kentucky Derby, a 1 1/4-mile race with up to 20 runners.

"He's a closer, so he's got to find room. It's a 20-horse field. They've got to navigate their way through. You can say sometimes, it's not always the best horse that wins. It's the horse that gets the good trip and runs a good race on that day."