The Holy Bull Stakes was named in 1996 for the Eclipse Award winning Horse of the Year and Hall Of Fame thoroughbred, Holy Bull. This 1 and 1/16 mile dirt race for 3 year-olds is held annually at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, FL and has a rich history of producing KY Derby entries and winners. Today’s edition (Saturday, February 5, 2022), is the 11th race on a card of 12. The purse is $250,000 for the Holy Bull posting at 5:10 PM ET. KY Derby prep points 10-4-2-1 will be awarded to the top four finishers of the race, in respective order.
More importantly, check out the nine entries by post position/horse’s name/owner/jockey/trainer/and morning-line odds:
- Galt/OXO Equine/William Mott/Junior Alvarado/15-1
- Mo Donegal/Donegal Racing/Todd Pletcher/Irad Ortiz, Jr./5-2
- Eloquist/Cash IS King, LLC. and LC Racing/Robert Reid, Jr./Frankie Pennington/20-1
- Simplification/Tami Bobo/Antonio Sano/Javier Castellano/4-1
- Cajun’s Magic/Stonhedge LLC./Michael Yates/Jesus Rios/8-1
- Tiz the Bomb/Phoenix Thoroughbred, LTD./Kenneth McPeek/Brian Hernandez, Jr./6-1
- Spin Wheel/BBN Racing, LLC./George Arnold, II/Julien Leparoux/20-1
- White Abarrio/C2 Racing Stable, LLC. and La Milagrosa Stable, LLC./Saffie Joseph, Jr./Tyler Gaffalione/6-1
- Giant Game/West Point Thoroughbreds and Albaugh Family Stables, LLC./Dale Romans/Luis Saez/7-2
Next, read along for some more details on these KY Derby entry hopefuls. Each of these male thoroughbreds is lightly evaluated including the (state where bred), sire – dam: (starts:wins-2nds-3rds) and more:
Galt (KY) Medaglia d’ Oro – Ivanavinalot : (3:1-0-0). Galt broke his maiden in his last start, winning at Gulfstream Park. Prior he finished sixth at both Saratoga and Belmont. His jockey, Alvarado, won the Holy Bull in 2016. Additionally, Alvarado’s first win in the U.S. was at Gulfstream.
Mo Donegal (KY) Uncle Mo – Callingmissbrown : (3:2-0-1) Mo Donegal has raced 3 times in New York. Twice raced at Belmont, he broke his maiden in the later race. More recently he gathered 10 KY Derby prep points, winning the Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct. His trainer, Pletcher, won the Holy Bull in 2012 and 2018.
Eloquist (KY) Nyquist–Our Gal El : (5:1-0-0) Eloquist raced at Gulfstream less than a month ago. He finished sixth. He was also sixth in his first two starts, at Monmouth and Parx. In his third race ,additionally at Parx, he broke his maiden. Next, competing in the Remsen, he did not earn prep points, finishing fifth.
Simplification (FL) Not This Time – Simply Confection : (4:2-1-0-0) Simplification raced all four of his career entries at Gulfstream. He was the winner of both his second and final start. His last race was Listed, the Mucho Macho Stakes. His jockey, Castellano, won in 2012 and 2018.
Cajun’s Magic (FL) Cajun Breeze – Mollie’s Magic : (5:2-3-0) Cajun’s Magic is a gelding. He has raced five times total and every race was at Gulfsteam. He broke his maiden in his second start. His last three races were all Black Type Stakes.
Tiz the Bomb (KY) Hit It a Bomb – Tiz the Key : (5:3-1-0) Tiz the Bomb raced at four different KY race tracks before shipping to California for his second place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf. His career began at Churchill Downs with a disappointing seventh place finish. He has since excelled, winning at Ellis Park, winning a Black Type Stakes at Kentucky Downs and winning a Graded Stakes at my home track, Keeneland. Tiz the Bomb’s trainer and jockey combo, McPeek and Hernandez Jr., won the Holy Bull in 2019.
Spin Wheel (KY) Hard Spun –Zinzay : (3:1-0-0) Spin Wheel began his career in Saratoga, finishing sixth. He found success shipping to KY. He finished in the money at Keeneland and won in his last start at Churchill Downs. The pictures in this posting are all of Spin Wheel at Keeneland this past Fall meet. His jockey, Leparoux, won the Holy Bull in 2009 and 2011. The latter was a speed record for the race.
White Abarrio (KY) Race Day – Catching Diamonds : (3:2-0-1) White Abarrio is the eye catcher of this race. He is a beautiful pale gray. His first 2 starts were right at Gulfstream and he won them both. In his last race, he earned KY Derby prep points, showing in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs.
Giant Game (KY) Giant’s Causeway – Game For More : (3:1-0-2) Giant Game picked up KY Derby prep points in his last start. He finished third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Stakes at Del Mar. His career began at Churchill Downs where he was likewise, third place. In between he was a winner at my favorite track, Keeneland! Giant Game’s jockey, Saez, won the Holy Bull in 2014.
As you can see, there is plenty that is hinging on the Holy Bull. Thank you for your continued dedication to reading and sharing my posts. I have not been writing as often as I would like to but I hope to find more time to create for Thoroughbred U. Stay safe and enjoy this weekend’s fine racing.
Share This: