A Day in the Life of a Kentucky Derby Horse
Graded stakes winners Locked (left) and Dornoch are scheduled to make their 3-year-old debuts Saturday in the Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park. (Coady Photography/Eclipse Sportswire)
The $400,000 Coolmore Fountain of Youth Stakes Saturday at Gulfstream Park is the penultimate qualifying points prep for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve at the Hallandale Beach, Fla., track and one of four points preps scheduled for an action-packed Saturday of racing in the U.S.
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The 1 1/16-mile Fountain of Youth offers a total of 105 qualifying points for the 150th Kentucky Derby May 4 at Churchill Downs, distributed to the top five finishers on a 50-25-15-10-5 basis. It traditionally serves as a lead-in to Gulfstream’s marquee Kentucky Derby prep, the Florida Derby, which will be held on March 30. But the Fountain of Youth is also a prestigious race in its own right, and since its inception in 1945 has been won by such notable horses as Tim Tam, Kauai King, Spectacular Bid, Proud Truth, Bet Twice, Forty Niner, Fly So Free, Dehere, Thunder Gulch, Pulpit, Quality Road, Union Rags, Orb, and Code of Honor. Read more about past winners in this feature.
This year’s renewal is highlighted by the much-anticipated 3-year-old debuts of two of the top juveniles from last year, Dornoch and Locked. Both took down key Kentucky Derby prep races for 3-year-olds last fall and are among the leading contenders in future-book wagering for Derby 150.
The Fountain of Youth Stakes will be broadcast live on CNBC and streamed on Peacock as part of NBC Sports’ “Road to the Kentucky Derby” series, and the race will also be shown on FanDuel TV. Post time is scheduled for 6:10 p.m. ET.
Read on for information about all of the Fountain of Youth Stakes contenders.
Ryan Thompson/Coglianese Photo
1. Speak Easy (9-2 morning-line odds)
Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Owners: WinStar Farm and Siena Farm
Career record: 1 start – 1 win – 0 seconds – 0 thirds
Career earnings: $42,000
Earnings per start: $42,000
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 92
Kentucky Derby points: 0
Pedigree: Constitution – Fun, by Harlan’s Holiday
Color: Bay
Running style: Press the pace
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Speak Easy enters the Fountain of Youth Stakes off of an impressive debut win going seven-eighths of a mile on Gulfstream’s dirt track Jan. 27. He defeated Victory Avenue by 1 ¾ lengths after pressing that rival early on, moving up to engage him on the turn, and then forging ahead in midstretch. Both of those colts were making their first career starts Jan. 27 and are ambitiously spotted in the Fountain of Youth, although Speak Easy is also cross-entered in a 1 1/8-mile allowance-optional claiming race Friday at Gulfstream. If Speak Easy competes in the Fountain of Youth, there’s little reason to question this decision: his connections have Derby-winning experience, and even if he doesn’t finish in the top three in the Fountain of Youth and accumulate a decent allotment of Derby points, he can make one final start in a late March/early April prep that offers even more of them. Speak Easy should be able to handle an extra furlong and a half around two turns in Saturday’s race and retains the services of Irad Ortiz Jr. in the saddle. Ortiz is the runaway leader in both wins and earnings at Gulfstream’s ongoing Championship Meet and won last year’s Fountain of Youth for Todd Pletcher aboard Forte. Look for Ortiz to urge Speak Easy out of the gate fast from his inside post position and challenge Dornoch, who’ll be making his first start in three months, for the early lead. Of note: both Speak Easy and Victory Avenue raced with the anti-bleeding medication Lasix (furosemide) on Jan. 27 but will race without it as required by Kentucky Derby prep race rules on Saturday. Hall of Famer Pletcher has three other wins in the Fountain of Youth: Scat Daddy in 2007, Eskendereya in 2010, and Itsaknockout in 2015. Irad Ortiz also won the 2018 Fountain of Youth aboard frontrunning Promises Fulfilled.
Adam Coglianese/NYRA
2. Le Dom Bro (30-1)
Jockey: Edwin Gonzalez
Trainer: Eniel Cordero
Owner: Vicente Stella Stables
Career record: 5 starts – 1 win – 3 seconds – 0 thirds
Career earnings: $88,450
Earnings per start: $17,690
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 87
Kentucky Derby points: 0
Pedigree: Mucho Macho Man – Valiant Emilia, by Pegasus Wind
Color: Bay
Running style: Press the pace/stalker
Notable achievements and interesting facts: This son of 2013 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Mucho Macho Man finished second to Fountain of Youth foe Frankie’s Empire in the Feb. 3 Swale Stakes at Gulfstream, his most recent race. He was bumped early and then lost some momentum while racing on the inside through the turn of the seven-furlong Swale but recovered to continue on through the stretch and check in 3 ½ lengths behind the winner. Le Dom Bro was sent off at odds of 13.10-1 in the Swale, the second-highest in the seven-horse field (Frankie’s Empire was 14-1), and he will be a longshot yet again in the Fountain of Youth based on his final race of 2023 and only start around two turns. That occurred in the 1 1/8-mile Remsen Stakes, in which he was never involved and finished ninth of 10, defeated 30 ½ lengths by Dornoch. Dornoch, of course, returns for his 3-year-old debut in the Fountain of Youth along with highly rated Locked and a couple of promising but less experienced runners in Speak Easy and Victory Avenue. If he gets a swift pace to close into, filling out the superfecta is a possibility for Le Dom Bro – anything more would be a surprise.
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3. Victory Avenue (SCRATCHED)
Jockey: John Velazquez
Trainer: Gustavo Delgado
Career record: 1 start – 0 wins – 1 second – 0 thirds
Career earnings: $14,000
Earnings per start: $14,000
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 89
Kentucky Derby points: 0
Pedigree: Arrogate – Epic Scataway, by Scat Daddy
Color: Dark bay or brown
Running style: Pacesetter/press the pace
Notable achievements and interesting facts: This son of the late Arrogate ran well in his debut although he finished second to Speak Easy Jan. 27 at Gulfstream. Like that foe, Victory Avenue takes a significant class hike Saturday in the Fountain of Youth for trainer Gustavo Delgado Sr., who won last year’s Kentucky Derby with Mage. Favored at 3-2 in the aforementioned Jan. 27 maiden race, Victory Avenue broke awkwardly to his inside out of the gate but recovered to set a contested early pace with solid fractional times while under pressure from Speak Easy to his outside. Holding the lead into the homestretch, he was passed by Speak Easy in the final furlong but did not quit, and co-owner Ramiro Restrepo told ABR’s Tom Pedulla that he and the rest of Victory Avenue’s connections were encouraged by an effort that netted a first-race 89 Equibase Speed Figure. If this colt can move forward and bump up his speed figure 15 points or so, he’ll have a good chance to earn some Kentucky Derby qualifying points with an on-the-board finish in the Fountain of Youth and then hopefully do even better in his final Derby prep. That’s the path Mage took in 2023 for Delgado and a large ownership group that also included Restrepo, as the late bloomer finished fourth in the Fountain of Youth, second in the Florida Derby, and then peaked on the first Saturday in May. Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez takes the mount on Victory Avenue as Luis Saez, who rode in January, is assigned to Dornoch. Velazquez has won the Fountain of Youth five times: Scat Daddy (2007), Quality Road (2009), Eskendereya (2010), Orb (2013), and Code of Honor (2019).
Angelo Lieto/NYRA
4. Real Macho (8-1)
Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione
Trainer: Rohan Crichton
Owners: Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Rohan Crichton, Daniel Walters, and Dennis Smith
Career record: 4 starts – 2 wins – 0 seconds – 0 thirds
Career earnings: $68,320
Earnings per start: $17,080
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 84
Kentucky Derby points: 0
Pedigree: Mucho Macho Man – Hedonism, by Curlin
Color: Chestnut
Running style: Stalker/closer
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Locked and Dornoch are the headliners, and Speak Easy and Victory Avenue are the buzz horses in Saturday’s Fountain of Youth. Real Macho, on the other hand, is flying under the radar yet still is worthy of consideration as an exacta and trifecta filler with a slim chance at pulling the upset. The Mucho Macho Man colt has made all four of his starts at Gulfstream Park, winning his second race back in November and also his most recent outing, a Feb. 3 allowance-optional claiming race held at a one-turn mile. In that race, he was bumped at the start, recovered to stalk the pace in fourth through the first half-mile, and then moved up through the turn and rallied stoutly in the stretch to nip the pacesetter and odds-on favorite Born Noble by a neck. Real Macho was 26.30-1 in that race and will probably go off at odds in the 12-1 range on Saturday. So far, through four starts he’s alternated wins with lackluster efforts, but like all of these horses he’s got plenty of untapped potential and can improve significantly at any time. Trainer Rohan Crichton is quietly having a solid Championship Meet at Gulfstream, winning at a 20% clip through Feb. 26, and Tyler Gaffalione, who was aboard Real Macho in his Feb. 3 win, retains the mount in the Fountain of Youth. Look for this colt to be running late and picking off a few horses if the early pace is fast enough.
Dom Napolitano/NYRA
5. Dornoch (2-1)
Jockey: Luis Saez
Trainer: Danny Gargan
Career record: 4 starts – 2 wins – 2 seconds – 0 thirds
Career earnings: $257,400
Earnings per start: $64,350
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 99
Kentucky Derby points: 10
Pedigree: Good Magic – Puca, by Big Brown
Color: Bay
Running style: Pacesetter/press the pace
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Anticipation around this well-bred colt’s 3-year-old debut has grown over the past couple of weeks after the runner he defeated last December in the Remsen Stakes, Sierra Leone, returned for his sophomore bow and impressively won the Risen Star Stakes Feb. 17 at Fair Grounds. Dornoch first drew attention last summer for his debut at Saratoga based on the fact that he’s a full brother (same sire [father] and dam [mother]) to 2023 Kentucky Derby winner Mage. He finished second in that July outing at the Spa and second again in the one-mile Sapling Stakes at Monmouth Park in late August. Dornoch then closed out his juvenile campaign with a 6 ½-length win in a 1 1/16-mile maiden race Oct. 14 at Keeneland followed by his triumph over Sierra Leone in the 1 1/8-mile Remsen at Aqueduct. In that race, Dornoch set the early pace with pressure from a pair of longshots before taking over in early stretch. As in his Keeneland race, Dornoch had trouble switching to his right lead and only did so after bumping the rail, and then he appeared to lose momentum as Sierra Leone mustered a rally from last to threaten in the final furlong. Dornoch responded when passed by Sierra Leone to his outside and battled back to win the Remsen by a nose, earning a 99 Equibase Speed Figure for the effort along with 10 Kentucky Derby points. By all accounts, he’s been training well for Danny Gargan in Florida over the past months and could be ready for a career-best race despite the layoff. Dornoch figures to either set or contest the pace once again come Saturday evening, and if he doesn’t receive much pressure early on, he is a threat to win the Fountain of Youth in gate-to-wire fashion. Jockey Luis Saez rode Dornoch on both of his wins and stays aboard in the Fountain of Youth. Saez won back-to-back editions of the Fountain of Youth in 2014 (Wildcat Red) and 2015 (Itsaknockout).
Lauren King/Coglianese Photo
6. Merit (SCRATCHED)
Jockey: Edgard Zayas
Trainer: Saffie Joseph Jr.
Owner: Peter E. Blum Thoroughbreds
Career record: 2 starts – 1 win – 0 seconds – 1 third
Career earnings: $31,920
Earnings per start: $15,960
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 81
Kentucky Derby points: 0
Pedigree: Mastery – Faithful, by Vindication
Color: Dark bay or brown
Running style: Stalker
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Merit returns Saturday for his first stakes try after he was last seen in the Feb. 3 race won by Real Macho. This Mastery colt finished third in that one-turn mile event, 5 ¼ lengths behind Real Macho and favored Born Noble, who were separated by a neck. He had won his career debut at Gulfstream, a sprint going seven-eighths of a mile, by a commanding 10 ¼ lengths and therefore was sent off as the 4.90-1 second betting choice on Feb. 3. With Edgard Zayas aboard, Merit moved up to challenge pacesetter Born Noble entering the turn but could not surpass him, and soon fell back while longshot Real Macho surged into contention en route to a 26.30-1 upset. Merit certainly is eligible to bounce back, and he’ll have to do so – and then some – to hit the board in the Fountain of Youth. On the plus side, his pedigree suggests that he will improve around two turns, as 1998 Ashland Stakes winner Well Chosen and a few graded stakes-winning turf horses at route distances are in his dam’s (mother’s) bloodline. Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. is having a typically strong Gulfstream Park meet, leading in both earnings and wins (the latter by a 23-win margin as of Feb. 26). This colt is a deserved longshot as a win candidate, but is worthy of consideration for exacta and trifecta bets if he continues to develop in what is only career start number three. Merit is cross-entered in the same 1 1/8-mile allowance optional claiming race as Speak Easy, set for Friday, March 1 at Gulfstream, and could start in that race instead. Update: On Feb. 29, trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. told Daily Racing Form’s Mike Welsch that Merit would indeed run in the March 1 allowance optional claiming race at Gulfstream instead of the Fountain of Youth.
Lauren King/Coglianese Photo
7. Frankie’s Empire (20-1)
Jockey: Miguel Vasquez
Trainer: Michael Yates
Owner: Frank DeLuca
Career record: 7 starts – 4 wins – 0 seconds – 1 third
Career earnings: $185,700
Earnings per start: $26,529
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 94
Kentucky Derby points: 0
Pedigree: Classic Empire – Donna D, by Dixie Union
Color: Dark bay or brown
Running style: Stalker/closer
Notable achievements and interesting facts: This Classic Empire colt shipped to South Florida from his former base in the Mid-Atlantic region in early February and immediately turned heads in his 3-year-old debut, posting an upset win in the Swale Stakes for new trainer Michael Yates. Frankie’s Empire was sent off at 14-1 odds, the highest in a seven-horse field, for the Swale and won in a fashion befitting the race favorite as he closed from sixth while racing wide and powered clear in the stretch to score by 3 ½ lengths over Le Dom Bro. Prior to heading south, Frankie’s Empire won three races at three different tracks – Monmouth Park, Delaware Park, and Parx Racing – at distances ranging from five to 6 ½ furlongs. He also was well-defeated in three stakes tries, one of those held on turf and another coming in the one-mile Sapling Stakes at Monmouth, where he checked in third, nine lengths behind runner-up Dornoch. His win in the Swale was an eye-opener and easily the best race of his career to date, and the 94 Equibase Speed Figure he earned last out puts him in the conversation for a top-three finish in the Fountain of Youth should he be able to repeat or improve that number. A fast early pace will help his chances of rallying into contention under local jockey Miguel Vasquez, who rode Frankie’s Empire for the first time in the Swale.
Anne Eberhardt/BloodHorse
8. Locked (SCRATCHED)
Jockey: Jose Ortiz
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Owners: Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Walmac Farm
Career record: 4 starts – 2 wins – 0 seconds – 2 thirds
Career earnings: $608,400
Earnings per start: $152,100
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 109
Kentucky Derby points: 19
Pedigree: Gun Runner – Luna Rosa, by Malibu Moon
Color: Chestnut
Running style: Closer
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Locked was initially scheduled to make his 3-year-old debut in the Feb. 10 Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, but missed that race due to an elevated temperature. He’s on track now to resume his Kentucky Derby quest in Saturday’s Fountain of Youth, and he profiles as arguably the leading win candidate in the race – just ahead of Dornoch – based on how well he ran in his final three 2023 starts. After finishing third in his first race at Saratoga last summer, Locked won a one-turn mile maiden at the Spa by a widening 7 ¼ lengths and then rallied late to win his two-turn debut, the Grade 1 Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland, by a half-length in October. Following that, Locked tried two turns and 1 1/16 miles again against the best of his age group Nov. 3 in the FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, where he was made the post-time favorite at 2.30-1 odds. He was slow to get involved in the Juvenile but made up ground in the stretch to finish third in a race won by longshot stablemate Fierceness. Locked was only a half-length behind runner-up Muth, however, and he earned a solid 100 Equibase Speed Figure, the second triple-digit number of his career. This son of 2017 Horse of the Year and prominent sire Gun Runner does not need to win the Fountain of Youth to stay on the Kentucky Derby trail as he’s already banked 19 qualifying points from his 2023 races. It would be a surprise to see him run worse than third, however, and if he has matured over the winter break and can improve on his Breeders’ Cup Juvenile effort, look out. Pletcher also trains promising Speak Easy in this race; the Hall of Famer has prior Fountain of Youth wins in with Scat Daddy in 2007, Eskendereya in 2010, Itsaknockout in 2015, and Forte last year. Jockey Jose Ortiz has been aboard Locked in all of his starts to date; he won the 2021 Fountain of Youth on Greatest Honour and the 2022 renewal on Simplification.
Adam Coglianese/NYRA
9. Dancing Groom (30-1)
Jockey: Javier Castellano
Trainer: Antonio Sano
Owner: Alexandres
Career record: 5 starts – 1 win – 0 seconds – 1 third
Career earnings: $129,482
Earnings per start: $25,896
Top Equibase Speed Figure: 89
Kentucky Derby points: 5
Pedigree: Vino Rosso – Snow Dancer, by Bernardini
Color: Chestnut
Running style: Closer
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Local trainer Antonio Sano has enjoyed success in the Fountain of Youth Stakes in recent years, winning with Gunnevera in 2017 and Simplification in 2022. His 2024 entrant will be making his fourth straight start in a Kentucky Derby points race, and will need to find a new gear to have a shot at hitting the board. Dancing Groom’s lone win came in his second start last August at Saratoga, when he took a one-mile race washed off the turf by five lengths. He was then elevated to the Grade 1 level and checked in third, beaten by 10 ½ lengths, Oct. 7 at Aqueduct in the one-turn mile Champagne Stakes, which was won by recent Rebel Stakes victor Timberlake. That finish stands as Dancing Groom’s high-water mark on the Kentucky Derby trail so far, as he subsequently ran sixth of eight in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs in late November. Dancing Groom then finished fifth of seven in his 3-year-old bow in the Holy Bull Stakes Feb. 3 at Gulfstream. He did have an excuse in the Holy Bull as he was bumped at the start, but he never got involved in the 1 1/16-mile race won by front-running Hades. He’s a come-from-the-clouds closer, and truthfully, even if he gets a fast pace Saturday Dancing Groom has not shown the sort of closing punch that would enable him to run past most of this field and pull the upset. On the positive side, he does have a solid stamina pedigree, and Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano rode Gunnevera to victory for Sano back in the 2017 edition of this race.
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