Exotics Plays for the 2022 Mint Million Stakes

A well-matched field of nine will converge at Kentucky Downs in Saturday’s $1 million Mint Million S. (G3).

Defending champ #3 Pixelate (5-2) looks like a menacing figure in the field and will get top billing from me to repeat. The five-year-old son of City Zip looked the part when dominating this race last campaign over a field that was arguably better than this one.

The Godolphin homebred has been a consistent performer over the past few years and kicked off his 2022 season for trainer Michael Stidham with a nice try at Laurel Park when beaten by a neck when a clear third.

Pixelate excels at the one-mile distance with an 8-3-2-2 mark at eight furlongs, and the strong late runner figures to receive a solid trip from the break on Saturday. Florent Geroux will be in the silks atop the dark bay.

The Dallas Stewart-trained #2 Cavalry Charge (6-1) is a live contender in the field, in my opinion, with David Cohen signed on for the voyage. The gelded son of Honor Code comes off a fifth-place finish in the deep Arlington Million (G1) and could move forward in his third race off the bench.

The five-year-old was a smart allowance winner on the surface in 2021 in his lone run on the oval, and I like his chances to grab a share late at a fair number.

#6 Mr. Dumas (5-1) has won or placed in eight straight outings, five of which have come in the stakes ranks. Third in his only previous race on the oval, the son of Majesticperfection can run from on or off the pace and shows two excellent half-mile drills as of late. The John Ortiz pupil will track the pace while never far back beneath Reylu Gutierrez.

For the lower rungs of the gimmicks, I will also include Vickie Oliver’s #7 Kentucky Ghost (6-1), who finished second as favorite in Division One of the 1-mile 70-yard TVG Stakes race last year.

The five-year-old son of Ghostzapper is not especially consistent but he drops in class after running in the Arlington Million (G1) most recently, and he has also proven to love the unique Kentucky Downs course in both his starts here. Rafael Bejarano will be in the silks.

Mint Million Wagers

• $2 superfecta: 3 with 2, 6 with 2, 6, 7 with all ($48)
• $1 superfecta: 2, 6 with 3 with 2, 6, 7 with all ($24)