SA Derby (Grade 1)- $500.000 Purse
SA- For Three Year Olds
One Mile and One Eighth on the Dirt
April 5, 2025

After winning the BG Stakes, there was more work to be done for Mb Stables out west in the SA Derby, as the trainer had three entered in the SA Derby. In the end, he would see one of his horses, The Golden Age, pick up the win, giving him five horses in the top nine of the KYD leaderboard. Altogether, Mb has eight in the top 20, so he could start 40% of the field next month if he was able to. Ultimately, he will have a tough decision to make, but it’s one that the rest of the us would love to deal with. As for the SA Derby, it’s the fifth time that he has won the race, and the second such win for jockey I Ortiz Jr. Congratulations to them! The time of the win was 1:48.07, which is among the better such times. Let’s take a look at it now:

(½ Mile- :47.04)- Sincere Breeze breaks well from the gate and takes the early lead for Asgar, and right to his inside, he has one of the Mb Stables entries, this being Virtual Sport. Grit And Grind, the Mb Stables entry of choice by the betting public is third, half a length over Team 7 Illusions- trained Royal Devil. High Voltage’s Moonligtonthewbash is within a length on the rail, and right there with them is Martyparty’s Candy Fear Party. Behind those stalkers, Dragon (Nakamura Stables) runs by himself in the middle of the pack. Next in line is Dimholt Road (Alydar Stables), who is five lengths behind the leader while on the rail. Nearby to him, Mr Cockypants (La Canada Racehorses) and Clever (D J C Racing Stables) run together. Running in eleventh, and eight lengths off the lead is where we find our eventual winner from Mb Stables, The Golden Age. Earlier in the day, Mb Stables won the BG Stakes in wire-to-wire fashion with Obi Wan, and here The Golden Age would look to win in a much different manner. Poor Scoer (Hippyheart), the post time favorite, was at the back.

(3/4 Mile- 1:11.23)- As the field works their way down the backstretch and enters the turn, Virtual Sport looks to make the pass of Sincere Breeze on his inside, but these two remain the leaders. The four stalkers continue to do their thing right behind them, with Royal Devil gearing up to make a run on the outside. For now, Grit And Grind, Moonligtonthewabash, and Candy Fear Party are content to hold their position. A little further back, Dimholt Road gains a little ground on Dragon, as he pulls a length on front of Mr Cockypants and Clever. Behind them, The Golden Age would make a sweeping move to the outside to potentially go by those two, and potentially more, while in the turn. Poor Scoer remained at the back, and was glued to the rail.

(Top of Stretch, 1.5F To Go)- Things have certainly tightened up as the field hits the top of the stretch. Sincere Breeze and Virtual Sport are still out front for now, but they have their work cut out for them. Royal Devil is in the third position, though he drifts out a little more than seemed necessary. Hopefully that slight little bit will not cost him in a tight photo for the win or anything. Candy Fear Party was more than happy to see that, as now he had a perfectly clear lane in front of him. Grit And Grind did not have a lot of running room to work with here, and the same could be said for Moonligtonthewabash. Dimholt Road and Dragon still ran together. Further back, The Golden Age had not passed anyone yet but made up some ground on those at the front and could fly by the field on the outside in the stretch if he had the ability to do so. Poor Scoer was looking to do the same on the rail, so don’t forget about him.

(Finish- 1:48.07)- Approaching the wire, the field was very close together, and the crowd roared as the post time favorite, Poor Scoer was flying on the inside and looked like he might come away with the win. On the other side of this pack was The Golden Age, doing similar on the outside. Royal Devil led by half a length as he tried to hold off the hard chargers as his supporters cheered for the wire to hurry up and get there. It would a photo finish, and a very close one at that, but in the end, it would be The Golden Age getting the head bob slightly over Royal Devil. That’s a 50-point swing and will send The Golden Age to the KYD if Mb Stables opts to send him. Royal Devil’s 50 points is all he has, and he’s 18th on the board. Considering that four horses above him won’t go unless Mb sells them, Royal Devil is likely also headed to the KYD without worry about the Lexington next week. Third place Poor Scoer has 75 total points and will send Hippyheart to the KYD. Sincere Breeze runs fourth, and has 30 points, and still looks like a good one to watch as the year goes on even if he won’t be in the big race. Candy Fear Party, the fifth-place finisher, ends up with 10 points. The rest of the order, not getting on this day, are Dimholt Road and Virtual Sport in a dead heat, then Dragon, Grit And Grind, Clever, Mr Cockypants, and Moonligtonthebeach.

About The Winner- The Golden Age, trained by Mb Stables and ridden to the victory by I Ortiz Jr, is a three-year-old gelding by Heffalump Hanny and is out of Dalaska. He was bred by Jive Inc as a first quarter two-year-old in New Mexico and was acquired by Mb Stables for $145.000 in a January 2025 private sale. The win is his fourth in nine starts, his third stake win and second graded win. His career earnings are now $669.960.

Track: Fast
Time: :47  1:11¹  1:35⁴  1:48

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 8 – 9 Paid 99.40
$1 Trifecta: 8 – 9 – 7 Paid 385.20

Scratched: Pincay, Spirit Day

— NS

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES