Poster (Inside).scoring the Remsen Stakes. (Coglianese/NYRA)
Grade II winner Poster faces local standout California Burrito in $777K Steaks
Derby Dispatch
LOUISVILLE, Ky.—Poster, last year’s Remsen Stakes (Grade II) winner, and California Burrito, the John Battaglia Memorial victor, headline a competitive field of 12 3-year-olds and one also-eligible entered in next Saturday’s $777,000 Jeff Ruby Steaks (GIII), the richest race in history at Turfway Park Racing & Gaming.
The 1 1/8-mile Jeff Ruby Steaks serves as a key stop on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, offering qualifying points on a 100-50-25-15-10 scale to the top five finishers for a spot in the $5 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (GI).
The Jeff Ruby Steaks is Race 12 on Turfway Park’s blockbuster 13-race program, which features six stakes contests, including the $300,000 Bourbonette Oaks (Listed) on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks; $300,000 TwinSpires Kentucky Cup Classic (GIII); $250,000 Latonia (Listed); $250,000 Animal Kingdom; and $250,000 Rushaway. First post is 12:45 p.m. (all times Eastern) with the Jeff Ruby Steaks scheduled for 6:25 p.m.
Poster, a homebred for Godolphin, trained by Eoin Harty, closed out his 2-year-old season with a determined victory in the Remsen at Aqueduct. The son of Frosted returned with a fast-closing third-place finish in the Sam F. Davis at Tampa Bay Downs, finishing behind TwinSpires Louisiana Derby (GII) entrant John Hancock and eventual Tampa Bay Derby (GIII) winner Owen Almighty. Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez will be in the irons from post No. 9
California Burrito, owned by Aaron and Victoria Haberman and trained by Tommy Drury Jr., secured his spot in the Jeff Ruby Steaks with a gutsy victory in the John Battaglia Memorial, holding off favored Baby Max. The son of Army Mule was dominant in his prior start, rolling to a 7 ¼-length allowance victory at Turfway. Irving Moncada will have the call from post 3.
Among the other top contenders entered in the Jeff Ruby Steaks is Charlie’s to Blame, who captured the Kitten’s Joy Stakes on the Gulfstream Park for owners BG Stables, Roadrunner Racing, SAF Racing, West Coast Stables, Barbara Evenson and Jeffrey Lambert. The Peter Eurton trainee could be one of the early pacesetters in the Jeff Ruby Steaks and will be ridden by Juan Hernandez from post 2.
The field also features several other accomplished 3-year-olds, including He’s Not Joking, winner of Woodbine’s Grey Stakes (GIII); Baby Max, the Leonatus Stakes winner; Innovator, who finished third in the Lecomte Stakes (GIII) at Fair Grounds; and Flying Mohawk, an impressive last-out allowance winner.
JEFF RUBY STEAKS QUOTES
Baby Max (trainer Kelsey Danner): “He ran well in the Battaglia but just couldn’t quite get by the winner late. We are adding blinkers for this start and hoping will help him stay more focused to run down the leaders late in the race.”
California Burrito (trainer Tommy Drury Jr.): “I don’t expect the pace to be nearly as slow as it was in the allowance or Battaglia. We’ll leave it up to (jockey) Irving (Moncada) to see where he’s placed early in the race. We’ll bounce out of there pretty good, but Irving knows the horse well and can sit off of horses if need be.”
Flying Mohawk (trainer Whit Beckman): “Win or lose, we know one day he’s going to be a very special horse on the turf. We are taking a try at the big time.”
How To Watch The Jeff Ruby Steaks, Louisiana Derby
> Watch the Jeff Ruby Steaks and Louisiana Derby on CNBC’s Road to the Kentucky Derby coverage with Ahmed Fareed, Jerry Bailey and Randy Moss. Live streaming is available on Peacock.
> FanDuel TV will have live, on-site coverage at Fair Grounds and Turfway Park.
> Stream live on TwinSpires.com, the official wagering provider of Churchill Downs Incorporated and the Kentucky Derby.
