ARCADIA — Trainer Phil D’Amato calculated that Stronghold needed to finish at least third in the Santa Anita Derby to earn the points needed to advance to next month’s Kentucky Derby.
The colt did much better than that. Now he’s not just going to Louisville, he’s going there like a horse that deserves respect.
Confirming the improvement D’Amato had seen in morning practice, Stronghold used a strong run from Antonio Fresu to take on favorite Imagination and win Saturday’s $750,000 Grade I Santa Anita Derby.
Stronghold paid $6.40. Imagination finished a neck behind, denying jockey Frankie Dettori a seventh winner of the day, a Santa Anita record. EJ won the Cup, 3 1/4 lengths back in third, and Curlin’s Kaos, leader Tapalo, Wynstock, McVay and Tessuto, rounded out a tight field.
Winning a Santa Anita Derby means a lot in itself, especially if you both own and breed the horse, as Rick and Sharon Waller did with Stronghold, a son of Ghostzapper out of the couple’s mare Spectator.
“We’ve won some big races, but nothing like this,” Sharon said as they took the elevator up to the winner’s circle after watching the Santa Anita Derby from the press box.
Winning also means you will compete in the Kentucky Derby on May 4, the first leg of the Triple Crown.
After other races on the final day of major Derby preparations – the Blue Grass Stakes won by Sierra Leone at Keeneland and the Wood Memorial won by Resilience at Aqueduct – a third place in the Santa Anita Derby by Stronghold would indeed have added enough qualifications. points to his total to clinch a spot in the 20-horse Kentucky Derby field.
None of the other Santa Anita Derby runners competed in the Kentucky Derby. Imagination and Wynstock were ineligible for points as trainer Bob Baffert’s Churchill Downs ban, resulting from Medina Spirit’s 2021 Derby disqualification, was extended for a third year.
The other California horse competing in the Kentucky Derby is Endlessly, the Michael McCarthy-trained colt who won the Jeff Ruby Steaks at Turfway Park.
This will be the first Kentucky Derby for Fresu, D’Amato and the Wallers.
D’Amato, one of Southern California’s leading trainers, is best known for his success with turf course specialists, but has no trouble getting Stronghold to peak at the right time. A win at the Sunland Derby in New Mexico put the colt on the map. The recent fast training sessions have put him on edge.
On Saturday, Fresu placed him fourth early in the race, then battled Tapalo and Imagination at the top of the stretch before battling Imagination the rest of the way.
“Today he turned out to be a very good horse,” Fresu said.
Dettori, who has won five straight races and six overall from 11 mounts on the 12-race card, said he was forced to push Imagination earlier than expected when Mike Smith moved with EJ and won the Cut to the second round.
“In the sequence I was vulnerable for a rapprochement,” Dettori said. “When he passed me, my horse continued to fight back. We were face to face, and he was too strong for me all the way.
Stronghold completed the 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.98, covering the final eight in 13.10. D’Amato called it the ideal setup for the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby.
“I trained him exactly the same way he performed this afternoon, putting him behind (the other horses) and having him come and get them,” D’Amato said. “He’s what you’re going to need to win big races like the Kentucky Derby, and he’s becoming that horse.”
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