Florida Derby Recap: Nyquist Rolls on to Kentucky

1st: Nyquist – What more can you say…the champ came to Florida and dominated Mohaymen in his own back yard.  Nyqusit will move on to Kentucky as the likely favorite, and still has his undefeated record intact.  His Beyer speed figure of 94 is nothing special, although with the track conditions changing throughout the day it might be tough to make an accurate call on that Beyer number.  Regardless, he proved that he can outrun his pedigree which was the big test he had to pass.  Deserving Kentucky Derby favorite.

2nd: Majesto – Was taken off the pace to make one big run, and saved  a lot of ground coming up the inside to finish second.  At the top ot the stretch he was really flying and you thought for a split second he might shoot up the inside and not look back, but Nyquist was able to put him away downt the stretch.  However, Majesto galloped out way ahead of Nyquist suggesting he might be better as the distances get longer.  Gallop outs can sometimes be tough to judge though so we’ll have to see how that plays out.

3rd: Fellowship – He just keeps plugging away, and getting better as the distances get longer.  His consistent on the board finishes in Florida have earned him a spot in the Kentucky Derby starting gate, even though I don’t think he’ll have much of a chance.  His come from behind running style will always leave him a lot to do, and he’ll be a victim of the pace scenario every time as well.

4th: Mohaymen – Really bad race from him…almost beyond belief.  After his wide trip you knew it would be hard for him to catch Nyquist, but he made a move on him on the turn and just totally quit down the stretch to finish behind two average at best horses.  They must regroup off of this effort in a big way if they think they have any shot at winning in Kentucky.

5th: Sawyers Mickeys – Raced side by side with Nyquist for most of the race before turning for home when he faded to be fifth.  The race wasn’t awful considering his long odds, but just didn’t belong with this group.

6th: Copingaway – Sat close to the pace early on, but was basically one paced all the way around the track.  Not good enough to face this caliber.

7th: Takeittotheedge – Previous race maiden winner just never looked comfortable out there.  Basically never found his stride, and was done before they even turned for him.  Romans will regroup with him and find him and easier spot next time out.

8th: Fashionable Freddy – Rated off the pace and sat in decent position, but just didn’t have any kind of punch when the real running began.  Will need a class drip next time out.

9th: Chovanes – Tried to press the pace early on in the race, and just couldn’t keep up as they turned for home.  Faded badly and is another that needs a class drop.

10th: Isofass – Clever name, but not an accurate name.  In fact he’s quite slow and needs to be dropped way down in class next time out.  Barely finished the race.