Sunland Derby

Notes:
The 800,000 Sunland Derby is the final Road to the Roses prep worth 85 qualifying points awarded to the top four finishers on a 50-20-10-5 basis and, predictably, drew a number of shippers. But the locals could have a say in this outcome, as the top three from the Mine That Bird Derby all return for another tussle. Dry Summer proved best in the Mine That Bird and is unbeaten in two starts since moving from the Jeff Mullins barn in Southern California to that of Joel Marr in New Mexico. Show Some Magic was no match for Dry Summer in the stakes, but did win the 1m Riley Allison Futurity over this surface to end his two-year-old season in late December. Stormdriver came up a neck short for 2 nd in the Mine That Bird and has hit the board in all three of his Sunland starts. G2 San Vicente S. hero Shakin It Up headlines the invaders as he stretches out past 7f for the first time in his four-race career. Bob Baffert s charge wasn t flattered when San Vicente runner up Treasury Bill flopped in the G2 Rebel S. at Oaklawn Park last weekend. Stablemate Govenor Charlie gives Baffert another shot in this G3 and exits a key maiden race from which the runner up returned to win. Saint Prado also comes in from Southern California, where he took a 7f Santa Anita maiden race on 2/16 in his first start back from a lengthy layoff. As a juvenile, he was 2 nd in a June maiden race at Golden Gate Fields before running 3 rd in the Lost in the Fog S. there a couple of weeks later. Just Win Baby rounds out the Santa Anita maiden winners in this bunch and was 6 th behind Saint Prado before winning at 1 1/16m on 2/28. Aqueduct maiden winner Mudflats has been off the board since a private sale sent him to Doug O Neill s barn, but he was only beaten 2 lengths when 5 th in the San Vicente. Abraham travels with pilot John Velazquez from South Florida, where he won his 2 nd start, a 1 1/8m maiden race in the slop.
Sunland Derby is a horse racing event that is organized at Sunland Park. It has a purse value of 800,000. 3 years old horses that can cover a distance of 9 furlong may participate in the race.