Overview
- Ridden by Florent Geroux, Plutarch edged Intrepido by three-quarters of a length in 1:37.02 for his first stakes win and first victory on dirt.
- Geroux shifted his base to Santa Anita this week in search of a Derby prospect and said the colt finally put things together.
- Bob Baffert called Plutarch “legit,” likened him to 2020 Derby winner Authentic, and said added distance should pose no problem.
- Morning-line favorite Desert Gate missed the break from the rail and finished fourth, with Secured Freedom third and Baffert’s Cherokee Nation fifth.
- On the same card, Baffert’s Splendora won the newly renamed D. Wayne Lukas Stakes, while other weekend preps left Renegade and Silent Tactic leading the Derby standings with 25 points.