Cairo Prince’s toughest competition will most-likely come in the form of Fountain of Youth (G2) winner Wildcat Red and runner-up General A Rod. This will make the third time the pair has met this year. In both prior meetings the pair battled heads apart through most of the race. In the Gulfstream Park Derby Jan. 1, General A Rod got a head in front at the wire to take victory over Wildcat Red. However, it was Wildcat Red that won the head-bob over General A Rod in the Fountain of Youth (G2). The duo boasts the top Brisnet speed figure of 100 among the field and will likely be the early pace setters.
General A Rod reunites with jockey Joel Rosario, who took last year’s Florida Derby winner Orb to victory in the Kentucky Derby. Wildcat Red saddles his fifth different jockey when John Velazquez, winning rider in last year’s Florida Derby, steps into the irons.
Plotting the race out on paper, it appears Wildcat Red and General A Rod will lead the field early while Cairo Prince and Todd Pletcher’s Constitution sit just off the pace. There are really no deep closers in the field, so if Wildcat Red and General A Rod don’t battle it out for another head victory/loss, one of the aforementioned pacers would be in perfect contention to move on the tiring duo. Watch out for Nick Zito’s Swale (G2) winner who will also settle in mid-pack.
The field of eight from the rail out, with odds, is Wildcat Red 3-1, Matador 15-1, Cairo Prince 9-5, Constitution 4-1, East Hall 20-1, General a Rod 7-2, Allstar 30-1, and Spot 8-1.
The Florida Derby is the 14th and final race on Gulfstream Park’s Saturday’s card with a scheduled post time of 6:48 p.m. EST. It can be seen on NBC Sports Network (programming runs 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.), HRTV, and TVG. Free PPs provided by Brisnet.
Photo: Courtesy NYRA.com
