Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith will ride Omaha Beach in the Pegasus World Cup.
Omaha Beach won the Rebel (G2) and the Arkansas Derby (G1) at Oaklawn Park and was the favorite for the Kentucky Derby before scratched when found to have an entrapped epiglottis. On return, Omaha Beach won the six-furlong Santa Anita Sprint Championship by a head on Oct. 5, but ended up second as the even-money favorite in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. He completed his 3-year-old season with an impressive 2 3/4-lengths win in the seven-furlong Malibu (G1) on Dec. 28 at Santa Anita.
Mandella said he does not expect that Omaha Beach will have any trouble stretching out again a month after the Malibu.
“He’s always been able to do what you want to do, short or long,” Mandella said. “I might have put him a little bit to sleep going into the mile of the Breeders’ Cup as a mistake. Coming out of that sprint, I was a little concerned that I jazzed him up quick to do that. I thought ‘Well I don’t want to overdo it going into the mile.’
“I think I went a little bit too far the other way because leaving the gate he kind of galloped around there until he came around the field and ran a good finish. I think I had more to do with him getting beat than him.”
Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who won the inaugural Pegasus in 2017 with Arrogate, has confirmed to Gulfstream’s racing office that he will enter Mucho Gusto in Saturday’s Pegasus. The 4-year-old was third last summer in the Travers (G1) and was fourth last time out in the Oklahoma Derby (G3) in September at Remington.
In latest news, jockey Irad Ortiz will reportedly ride Mucho Gusto, leaving Spun to Run without a rider as of Monday.
PEGASUS PROBABLE FIELD
with Best Beyer Figure, Trainer/Jockey, Owner, Sire from Daily Racing Form
Bodexpress – 101
Trainer: Gustavo Delgado/Emisael Jaramillo
Owner: Top Racing, LLC, Global Thoroughbred and GDS Racing Stable
Sire: Bodemeister
Diamond Oops 105
Trainer: Patrick Biancone/Julien Leparoux
Owner: Diamond 100 Racing Club, LLC, Amy E. Dunne, D P Racing LLC, and Patrick Biancone
Sire: Lookin At Lucky
Higher Power 107
Trainer: John Sadler/Flavien Prat
Owner: Hronis Racing LLC
Sire: Medaglia d’Oro
Mr Freeze 102
Trainer: Dale Romans/Luis Saez
Owner: Jim Bakke and Gerald Isbister
Sire: Bernardini
Mucho Gusto 101
Trainer: Bob Baffert/Irad Ortiz Jr.
Owner: Michael Lund Petersen
Sire: Mucho Macho Man
Omaha Beach 104
Trainer: Richard Mandella/Mike Smith
Owner: Fox Hill Farms Inc.
Sire: War Front
Seeking the Soul 105
Dallas Stewart/John Velazquez
Owner: Charles Fipke
Sire: Perfect Soul
Spun to Run 110
Juan Guerrero/TBA
Owner: Robert P. Donaldson
Sire: Hard Spun
Tax – 101
Trainer: Danny Gargan/Jose Ortiz
Owner: R.A. Hill Stable and Reeves Thoroughbreds
Sire: Arch
Tenfold 96
Trainer: Steve Asmussen/Javier Castellano
Owner: Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC
Sire: Curlin
True Timber 104
Trainer: Kiaran McLaughlin/Joe Bravo
Owner: Calumet Farm
Sire: Mineshaft
War Story 112
Trainer: Elizabeth L. Dobles/Joel Rosario
Owner: Imaginary Stables and Glenn Ellis
Sire: Northern Afleet
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