Five Takeaways From Busy Weekend on Kentucky Derby Trail, Including the Champ’s Return

Racing
Kentucky Derby, Robert B. Lewis, Citizen Bull, Bob Baffert, Martin Garcia, Captain Cook, Withers, Aqueduct, Santa Anita, Manny Franco, Rick Dutrow, Burnham Square, Ian Wilkes, Gulfstream, Holy Bull, Kopion, Richard Mandella, Tenma, Edgard Zayas
Citizen Bull poses in the winner’s circle at Santa Anita Park after taking the Robert B. Lewis Stakes, with jockey Martin Garcia still in the saddle and co-owner Tom Ryan at left. (Eclipse Sportswire)

America’s Best Racing’s Mike Curry offers five key takeaways from a busy weekend on the path to Louisville for the 2025 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve with three races Feb. 1 that awarded the top five finishers Kentucky Derby qualifying points on a 20-10-6-4-2 basis.


CLASS BULL-Y: Any concerns regarding reigning champion 2-year-old male Citizen Bull’s chances to continue to excel as a 3-year-old were quickly dispelled with a dominant 3 ¾-length win in the $200,000 Robert B. Lewis Stakes on Feb. 1 at Santa Anita Park. The Into Mischief colt led from start to finish in defeating highly regarded stablemate Rodriguez in Citizen Bull’s first start since winning the FanDuel Breeders' Cup Juvenile presented by TAA. “He wasn’t cranked up totally, but he is such a good horse that he just caught another gear,” Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert said of Citizen Bull, who sits atop the Road to the Kentucky Derby leaderboard with 60 points.


Franco and Captain Cook. (Joe Labozzetta/NYRA)

DERBY DREAMING: Trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness in 2008 with Big Brown and last started a Kentucky Derby runner in 2010. After jockey Manny Franco guided Captain Cook to a surging 2 ¼-length win in the $250,000 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct, the rider had thoughts of Louisville on the first Saturday in May running through his mind. “When Manny hopped off of that horse, he said, ‘Rick, I’m starting to dream.’ ” Dutrow said Sunday. “He’s a very relaxed horse, and we’re very lucky to have him. He’s a pleasant surprise.” Dutrow plans to point the Practical Joke colt to the $750,000 Wood Memorial Stakes on April 5 at Aqueduct.


UP TO THE CHALLENGE: Burnham Square followed a nine-length maiden win with a last-to-first victory by 1 ¾ lengths in the $265,000 Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park. The Liam’s Map gelding has improved in three starts since stretching out from a sprint in his career debut to test his stamina in two-turn races, but the addition of blinkers by trainer Ian Wilkes proved the key to Burnham Square’s ascent. “He’d run away from horses. He wouldn’t run into the dirt. … He just needed blinkers,” Wilkes explained. “He just keeps getting better, and that’s what you want. You’ve got to get better because the water gets deeper. You’ve got to keep improving.”


Kopion impresses. (BENOIT photo)

ONE FAST FILLY: Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella appeared to have a bona-fide Longines Kentucky Oaks contender last spring in Kopion, but the best-laid plans in horse racing often don’t come to fruition. She did not make it to Churchill Downs for the Oaks and instead was sidelined for more than eight months until a flashy comeback win Dec. 26 in the Grade 1 La Brea Stakes Presented by Don Julio. The Omaha Beach filly made it two stakes wins in a row Feb. 1 at Santa Anita Park with a 4 ½-length romp in the $196,000 Santa Monica Stakes and looks to be a West Coast standout female sprinter for Mandella. “As you can see, she has just grown into a beautiful mare now and I couldn’t ask for more,” he said of Kopion, who earned a 110 Beyer Speed Figure and a 112 Equibase Speed Figure, both career bests, for the Santa Monica win.


NO TEST FOR TENMA: Bob Baffert’s talented 3-year-old filly Tenma coasted to victory when facing only two opponents in the $92,000 Fasig-Tipton Las Virgenes Stakes, defeating stablemate Cipriani by 6 ½ lengths while earning a 99 Equibase Speed Figure and a 92 Beyer Speed Figure. It was hardly a test for the Nyquist filly, but Baffert has been encouraged by her maturation since her lone defeat in the Oak Leaf Stakes Presented by Oak Tree in October 2024 at Santa Anita. Since then, she has emerged as a Longines Kentucky Oaks contender with wins in the Starlet Stakes at Los Alamitos in December and the Las Virgenes. “I didn’t feel like she was mature enough to run in the Breeders’ Cup, but now she has come a long way,” Baffert said. “Coming into this race, she was looking really good.”

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