The Gotham, Fountain of Youth and San Felipe 2025
We have three stakes for three-year olds to look at Saturday and they go from east to west and coast to coast.
I’ll start with The Gotham which used to be a premiere race for three-year olds but over the last several years lost a good deal of its luster. Nonetheless it is a one turn mile stake that can have implications on the division going forward.
The Gotham looks wide open to me. The yet unbeaten Sand Devil is the likely favorite, but the New York bred has yet to run or win in open company and while steady and sporting a nice pedigree I do not think he is a cinch by any means. He is off a layoff, and I will take a shot against him. Interestingly the likely second choice is another undefeated New York bred who has yet to run in open company, Sacrosant who I will also be betting against.
I lean to McAfee. This colt is also off a lay off, but I like the courage and fight he showed last out at Churchill Downs when down on the inside where he had to re rally up the rail for a tough second. The fact Dutrow opts for a stake is a positive in my view and I do believe he is sitting on a nice race.
Two others in there I will be watching for future reference are Pagode and Garamond. Pagode ships in off a maiden win at Turfway park and the off Turfway synthetic angle has been huge all over the country. Paulo Lobo runs them where they belong and while this may be a big ask here, this colt probably has some talent. Whenever Chad Brown goes from a maiden to a stake I pay attention. He does that with Garamond and this Uncle Mo Juddmonte colt has plenty of room for improvement.
On paper the Fountain of Youth looks loaded with speed. The leads to good set ups for both likely favorite Burnham Square and comebacker Sovereignty. The two Pletcher horses, Gate to Wire and River Thames should both get the jump on the two closers and at Gulfstream I must lean that way. I’ll take River Thames to sit the trip and get the jump on the closers.
Out west in The San Felipe the horse who tops my Kentucky Derby Radar, Journalism runs in The San Felipe. This race does not set up ideally for him
and Barnes looks awfully tough to catch here. That said, this could be an excellent building block and learning race for Journalism going forward.