One of the biggest stories in horse racing over the past year has been the emergence of social media content creator Griffin Johnson as one of the sport’s most active and passionate ambassadors. Johnson first burst on the scene around a year ago after he became a part-owner of Sandman, a talented 2-year-old colt who flashed potential in the fall and winter of 2024. Johnson signed up with America’s Best Racing’s “A Stake in Stardom” program offering ownership interests in racehorses to influencers, and he became hooked quickly after meeting the gorgeous gray and watching his talent develop.

Sandman ended up fulfilling expectations this year at age 3, winning the $1.5 million Arkansas Derby, running in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve, and finishing third in the Preakness Stakes.

Johnson’s journey with Sandman captivated millions and introduced many Gen Z-ers to horse racing. But it was just the beginning. Now, through his association with West Point Thoroughbreds, Johnson has an ownership stake in two more talented 2-year-olds.

Curtain Call is set for a start in the $500,000 Champagne Stakes Saturday, Oct. 4 at Aqueduct (called Belmont at the Big A this fall) in New York. Meanwhile, Ewing was originally slated to start in the $650,000 Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland Race Course in Kentucky, but was withdrawn on Oct. 2 (see below).

These are very prestigious and important races for two reasons. First, they are “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series preps for the $2 million FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, which will be held on Oct. 31 at Del Mar in California. The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile usually determines which 2-year-old male racehorse is voted champion for his racing year … so if Curtain Call earns a berth in the Juvenile this Saturday and then wins that race, he’ll probably become a champion!

Equally important, both the Breeders’ Futurity and the Champagne are early prep races for next year’s Kentucky Derby May 2 at Churchill Downs. The winner of each of these races will earn 10 qualifying points for the 2026 Kentucky Derby, and horses finishing second through fifth will earn less points. Banking some Kentucky Derby points this early in the prep race season will be very beneficial Curtain Call as his owners (including Johnson) plot out his training and prep race schedule in the months ahead.

Let’s learn a little bit about both of these talented prospects:

Ewing

Named after the Hall of Fame NBA center who patrolled the paint for the New York Knicks in the 1980s and 1990s, Ewing is 2-for-2 so far. Both of his wins came at Saratoga in upstate New York over the summer in sprint races held at 5 ½ furlongs and 6 ½ furlongs (there are eight furlongs – each 220 yards – in a mile). He’s already a stakes winner, taking the Saratoga Special Stakes on Aug. 2.

Update: On Friday, Oct. 3, Griffin and the connections of Ewing announced that the colt would not start in the Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity due to a minor health issue and would instead return to the track once 100% and target another stakes race in the months ahead.

Curtain Call

This Florida-bred colt started his racing career at Churchill Downs back in June, where he finished a promising second behind a subsequent stakes winner named Obliteration, who later finished second behind Ewing in the Saratoga Special Stakes. Curtain Call then he shipped to Saratoga for his second start, a six-furlong race that he won impressively by 8 ½ lengths.

Next up, Curtain Call ran in the Grade 1 Spendthrift Hopeful Stakes mentioned above, and he along with every other contender in that race was no match for Ted Noffey, who will run in the Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity. Still, he did not quit and finished third in the seven-furlong race. This contender will need to improve Saturday in the Champagne Stakes, a Grade 1 race, but he’s certainly eligible to do so. He’ll attempt to win racing one mile in the Champagne, which will still be held around one turn due to the configuration of the racetrack at Aqueduct.

Curtain Call’s bloodlines should help him succeed in longer races, perhaps as early as Saturday, but also in the future. He’s a son of Belmont Stakes winner and Kentucky Derby runner-up Tiz the Law and he’s related to a champion filly named Banshee Breeze on his dam’s (mother’s) side of the family.

Post time for the Champagne is 3:20 p.m. ET and that race will be televised on FS1.

Exciting times are fast approaching, and by Saturday evening, we’ll know a lot more about Curtain Call and how he shapes up among his fellow 2-year-olds in advance of the Breeders’ Cup less four weeks from now and the Kentucky Derby down the road.