Sandman

Sandman was unplaced in his June 27, 2024, debut but reached the winner’s circle in his second start. The gray or roan colt by leading sire Tapit won a seven-furlong race by 1 ¾ length on Aug. 10 at Saratoga Race Course.

Trainer Mark Casse tried Sandman against stakes competition in his third start, and he rallied from 10^th of 11 to finish fifth in the Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes Sept. 14 at Churchill Downs. He followed with a third-place finish in the Grade 3 Street Sense Stakes Oct. 27, also at Churchill Downs.

Sandman made his first start as a 3-year-old in the Grade 3 $1 million Southwest Stakes going 1 1/16 miles at Oaklawn Park on Jan. 25, 2025, and finished second in a gutsy effort. After getting off to a disastrous start, Sandman made a gritty comeback to get up for second in the nine-horse field, beaten 2 1/2 lengths after spotting the rest of the field a lengthy head start. The Southwest was a points race on the Road to the 2025 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve, and with his runner-up finish he earned 10 qualifying points to raise his overall point total to 14.

All eyes were on post-time favorite Sandman at the start of the Feb. 23 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn, and he broke well this time under Cristian Torres and settled off of the early pace through the backstretch before starting to move forward. Torres angled Sandman wide wheeling out of the far turn, and he unleashed his usual rally but could not catch winner Coal Battle and runner-up Madaket Road in the final yards, settling for third. He nabbed 15 more Kentucky Derby points with the effort.

Sandman finally got the big statement win he was looking for on the road to the Kentucky Derby when he decisively won the $1.5 million Grade 1 Arkansas Derby going 1 1/8 miles at Oaklawn Park on March 29. Sent off as the 3.70-1 third choice in the betting in a nine-horse field in the Arkansas Derby, Sandman raced far back in the field for the first half of the race which was dominated by an eight-length-gap speed duel between Cornucopian and Speed King. Sandman made his move into contention around the far turn and assumed the lead in the stretch and drew off to a 2 1/2-length win under jockey Jose Ortiz. The Arkansas Derby was a maximum 100-points-to-the-winner qualifying race for the Kentucky Derby.

In the Kentucky Derby May 3 at Churchill Downs, Sandman was sent off as the 5.77-1 second choice in the 19-horse field for the run for the roses but failed to fire his best shot that day on a sloppy track to finish in seventh place. Sandman was subsequently entered in the Preakness Stakes two weeks later at Pimlico where he closed from last to finish third.

A half-brother (same dam, different sire) to Grade 3 winner She Can’t Sing, Sandman was produced by the winning Distorted Humor mare Distorted Music. Sandman’s family is anchored by fourth dam (maternal great-great grandmother), It’s in the Air, the 1979 champion 2-year-old filly and grandam (maternal grandmother) of French classic winner Musical Chimes and multiple Grade 1 winner Misic Note.