Kentucky Derby Roundup: Giocoso gets a win on grass

Six months from now, the name of the 151st Kentucky Derby (G1) winner will be written in the history books.

But for now, the first Saturday in May is 173 days away and it’s anyone’s guess which horses will visit the winner’s circle.

The Kentucky Derby trail is in a lull at the moment; there isn’t another prep race until Nov. 23, when the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby kicks off with the Cattleya S. at Tokyo Racecourse. But there’s never a truly quiet week where the Derby trail is concerned, and several developments are worth recapping in this week’s Kentucky Derby Roundup.

Giocoso, Mesoro run well in Churchill allowance

Giocoso and Mesoro, who finished third and fourth when the Road to the Kentucky Derby began in the Iroquois (G3) at Churchill Downs, met again in a 1 1/16-mile allowance over the Churchill Downs turf course last Friday.

Giocoso brought turf experience to the mix, having followed his Iroquois effort with a sixth-place finish in the Bourbon (G2) at Keeneland. Mesoro was trying grass for the first time, having used his time since the Iroquois to gain an additional Kentucky Derby qualification point when fifth in the Breeders’ Futurity (G1).

Turf experience paid off for Giocoso. After settling roughly four lengths behind fractions of :23.85, :48.44, and 1:13.58, he rallied readily down the homestretch to prevail by three-quarters of a length in 1:42.77. According to the Equibase GPS result chart, Giocoso ran his final three furlongs in a strong :34.68.

Mesoro also ran well. He dropped farther off the pace than Giocoso (about five lengths), but gained ground nicely to finish third by three-quarters of a length.

Whether Giocoso and Mesoro stick to turf or return to the Kentucky Derby trail in the future remains to be seen. But they’re both in encouraging form at the moment and have options no shortage of options.

Road to the Kentucky Derby contenders post workouts

Three horses ranked on the Road to the Kentucky Derby leaderboard have posted recent workouts:

Dapper Moon: Fourth in the Breeders’ Futurity (G1) and Street Sense (G3), Dapper Moon returned to the work tab with an easy half-mile in :38 on Saturday at Churchill Downs.

McKinzie Street: Coming off a third-place finish in the American Pharoah (G1) behind subsequent Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) 1-2 finishers Citizen Bull and Gaming, McKinzie Street clocked half a mile in :49.00 at Santa Anita last Monday. According to David Grening of Daily Racing Form, McKinzie Street is targeting the Dec. 14 Los Alamitos Futurity (G2) on the Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Tiztastic: The Street Sense (G3) runner-up worked an easy half-mile in :51.80 at Churchill Downs last Monday.

Derby-winning trainers Cox, Mott saddle maiden winners

A pair of Kentucky Derby-winning trainers saddled notable maiden winners last week.

Brad Cox, the conditioner of 2021 Kentucky Derby winner Mandaloun, sent out Admiral Dennis on Thursday at Churchill Downs. Coming off a third-place finish in his debut sprinting at Churchill, Admiral Dennis showed strong finishing speed while stretching out for a one-mile maiden special weight, tracking quick fractions of :22.92 and :46.32 before taking over and running his final two furlongs in :12.20 and :12.37 to score by 6 1/2 lengths in 1:35.87.

Two days later at Aqueduct, Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott—who saddled Country House to win the 2019 Kentucky Derby—sent out Tux to a debut win. Facing four rivals in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden special weight, Tux tracked splits of :23.53 and :46.89 in second place before finishing up strongly to win by 3 1/2 lengths in 1:17.39.

Road to the Kentucky Derby leaderboard top five

1. Citizen Bull (40 points)
2. Gaming (15 points)
3. Getaway Car (11 points)
4. Chancer McPatrick (10 points)
5. East Avenue (10 points)

European-Middle East Road to the Kentucky Derby top five

1. Hotazhell (20 points)
2. Wimbledon Hawkeye (13 points)
3. Camille Pissarro (10 points)
4. Rashabar (5 points)
5. Delacroix (5 points)