We have an awesome day of racing today, headlined by the G1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes. It features two of the best horses in North America in Knicks Go and Life is Good. As of now, Knicks Go is the slight favorite at 6-5 with Life is Good right behind him at 7-5.
Check out my breakdown and picks below!
Race Information:
- Track: Gulfstream Park (Hallandale Beach, FL, USA)
- Event Grade: Grade I
- Race: 12
- Post Time: 5:34 PM ET
- Length: 1 1/8 Mile
- Purse: $3,000,000
- Division: Open | Four Years Old & Upwards
- Surface: Dirt
- Wagers: $1 Exacta | $2 Quinella | $.50 Trifecta | $.10 Superfecta | $1 Super Hi 5
TV Schedule:
- FS2 – 12:30 PM – 6:30 PM
- NBC – 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM
Field:
| PP | HORSE | JOCKEY | TRAINER | A/S | WGT | ML |
| 1 | Knicks Go | J. Rosario | B. Cox | 6/H | 123 | 6-5 |
| 2 | Chess Chief | R. Gutierrez | D. Stewart | 6/H | 123 | 10-1 |
| 3 | Stilleto Boy | K. Desormeaux | E. Moger Jr. | 4/G | 123 | 20-1 |
| 4 | Life is Good | I. Ortiz Jr. | T. Pletcher | 4/C | 123 | 7-5 |
| 5 | Empty Tomb | P. Lopez | R. Falcone Jr. | 6/H | 123 | 20-1 |
| 6 | Sir Winston | E. Gonzalez | M. Case | 6/H | 123 | 12-1 |
| 7 | Title Ready | T. Gaffalione | D. Stewart | 7/H | 123 | 20-1 |
| 8 | Endorsed | U. Rispoli | M. Maker | 6/H | 123 | 20-1 |
| 9 | Commandeer | J.Laparoux | J. Toner | 4/G | 123 | 30-1 |
Horse Preview:
(1) Knicks Go, is the morning line favorite opening at 6-5. He’s coming off a two month layoff last running in the G1 Breeders Cup Classic. In that race he lead the entire way with really no competition coming down the stretch winning by more than two lengths. He’s undefeated in his last four starts capturing the G3 Lukas Classic Stakes, the G1 Whitney Stakes, and the G3 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap. Knicks Go won this event last year as well. He looks to be in great form given his recent workouts so it’s really hard to see anyone beating him in this race. The only concern would be his post position on the inside but given his early speed he should be able to avoid getting trapped early. Joel Rosario has been his main jockey and will again remain in the saddle.
(2) Chess Chief, is coming off a win in the Tenacious Stakes at Fair Grounds back in December. That was his only win of the 2021 season besides the G2 New Orleans Classic Stakes which was at a mile and an eighth. Even in those two races he won, his speed figures do not even come close to what Knicks Go has produced. He faced the morning line favorite once before in the G3 Lukas Classic Stakes where he ran 5th. Chess Chief is by definition a closer but I’m just not sure he’ll have what it takes to catch Knicks Go if he gets out to an early lead. If he doesn’t and some how stumbles at the start, it might give him a glimpse of hope as they enter the back stretch. Gutierrez remains on the mount as they had success in his last race.
(3) Stilleto Boy, tried his luck in the G1 Malibu Stakes his last out only to end up finishing 3rd. He’s run at a mile + in most of his previous races but I guess they wanted to switch things up and run him in a 7F sprint. In that race he was beat my emerging superstar Flightline, who’s undefeated. Prior to that race, he competed against Knicks Go in the G1 Breeders Cup Classic where he ran 5th. This four year old gelding won two races in 2021 coming in the Iowa Derby and a Maiden Special Weight. His best finish in a G1 race was in the Awesome Again Stakes in October where he ran 2nd to Medina Spirit. I’m just not sure this horse has the class to compete in this race given the two morning line favorites.
(4) Life is Good, is the other morning line favorite opening at 7-5. He’s last ran in the G1 Breeders Cup Dirt Mile where he won by more than 5 lengths. In his six career starts he has 5 wins and 1 second place finish. His lone second place finish was in the G1 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes where he lost to Jackie’s Warrior by a nose. Something to note is that this will be the longest race he has run in his career. He ran a mile and a sixteenth back in March of 2021 where he won the G2 San Felipe Stakes. Life is Good is another early speed horse and we could very well see him and Knicks Go battle it out wire to wire. The question is, will he have enough in the tank?
(5) Empty Tomb, has his best two speed figures in his past two races. He was the runner up the Queens County Stakes his last out losing to Forewarned by a little over a length. That race was run at the same distance as the Pegasus, but the field will be much more loaded for this race. If you’re looking at finishing times, Knicks Go ran a mile and an eighth almost four seconds quicker. While Empty Tomb may be finding his stride late into his career, I just don’t see him competing in this race. This will also be the first G1 Stakes that he has entered in his career. In his only other graded stakes race, he ran 6th in the G2 Stephen Foster Stakes back in June of 2021.
(6) Sir Winston, is another horse that has had success late in his career. His most recent race was in December where he won the G3 Valedictory Stakes at Woodbine. Prior to that race he was the runner up in the G2 Autumn Stakes and G3 Durham Cup Stakes. Sir Winston actually won the G1 Belmont in 2019 upsetting favorite Tacitus. After that race he only captured one win in his next five starts winning an Allowance Optional Claiming race at Aqueduct. This is an interesting horse for sure, I just don’t know if he has what it takes to pull of an upset again.
(7) Title Ready, ridden by Tyler Gaffalione hasn’t shown much in his last three races. His last win comes four starts ago in the G3 Louisiana Stakes which was run at a mile and a sixteenth. He’s run in three G1 Stakes before finishing 11th in the Dubai World Cup, 10th in the Clark Stakes, and 7th in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Looking at his recent speed figures he appears to be a non factor.
(8) Endorsed, will look for his first win since May of 2020 where he won an Allowance Optional Claimer at Oaklawn Park. In his most recent race he took 2nd in the G3 Mr. Prospector Stakes. He’s traditionally a sprinter and will lengthen out quite a bit in this race. I’m not really sure what the thought process is here from his trainer but I guess we’ll see.
(9) Commandeer, enters this race winning his last two capturing back to back wins at a mile and a sixteenth in allowance races. This will be his first graded stakes race that he’s run in. I’m not sure exactly why he’s entered this race and if his trainer’s are maybe using this more as a measuring stick race. Personally I just don’t see how he makes an impact in this race especially given his running style.
Race Preview:
Front Runner(s): Knicks Go, Life is Good, Empty Tomb
Off the Pace/ Stalker(s): Stilleto Boy, Sir Winston, Title Ready
Closer(s): Chess Chief, Endorsed, Commandeer
Picks:
- BEST BET TO WIN: (1) KNICKS GO
- LONGSHOT TO WIN: (6) SIR WINSTON
- EXACTA: 1 / 4, 6
- TRIFECTA: 1/ 4, 6/ 2, 4, 5, 6
Best of luck, and as always you can find me on Twitter @GatorBetting and Instagram @Gator_Sports_Betting.
