Prevalence Looks for Stakes Success in Commonwealth

After delivering in his previous start the type of dominating victory that had Gulfstream Park buzzing in early 2021, Prevalence  will enter the $300,000 Commonwealth Stakes (G3) in top form.

The Godolphin homebred will try to secure the first stakes victory of his career in the Commonwealth, a seven-furlong test for older horses April 9 at Keeneland. Nashville , a stakes winner on the Keeneland surface, is expected to be favored in the expected field of 11.

Prevalence, a 4-year-old son of Medaglia d'Oro  —Enrichment, by Ghostzapper  , posted an 8 1/2-length victory in his maiden debut in January 2021 at Gulfstream and followed with a three-length score in an allowance level race there in March 2021. An attempt to stretch out didn't work out when he finished off the board in the Wood Memorial Stakes (G2).

This season Prevalence opened with an off-the-board finish in a seven-furlong allowance race, but trainer Brendan Walsh saw reason for optimism in that effort after he rallied from ninth to fifth after a slow start. In his second race of the year, Prevalence returned to his spectacular form, drawing off in the stretch to post a 4 3/4-length victory in a one-turn mile allowance-optional claiming race. 

"We were a little unlucky the first race. He had a little stumble leaving the gate and he got a little far back," Walsh said. "I don't think he'd ever experienced kickback and was a little unsure, but he came with a nice run at the end. It was a sneaky-good race. Then it was great to see his race last-out, and he's been working well since then."

In that latest effort March 5 at Gulfstream, Prevalence seized a forward position early under regular rider Tyler Gaffalione then took command in the stretch. Gaffalione will be aboard Saturday when Prevalence cuts back slightly from the one-turn mile to seven furlongs.

"I think these are the distances he likes," Walsh said. "We tried to stretch him out last year for obvious reasons to see if he could do it. ... I think the seven furlongs (or) one-turn mile, is his thing and we're looking to have a good run."

Lightly raced Nashville has a career record similar to Prevalence in that he's delivered some huge efforts but has come up short in his two most recent stakes tries. Also like Prevalence, Nashville enters off a dominating victory as he opened a 6 1/2-length advantage at the first call of a March 18 allowance-level race at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots and cruised home to an easy win.

Campaigned by CHC and WinStar Farm and trained by Steve Asmussen, Nashville will be returning to the track where he scored his lone stakes win. In 2020 on the Breeders' Cup Saturday undercard, the son of Speightstown   opened a six-length advantage in the six-furlong Perryville Stakes and cruised home well in front.

Breaking from the outside Saturday will be grade 2-placed O Besos , who earned a fourth-place finish in last year's Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) (after the disqualification of Medina Spirit) and enters off a fourth-place finish in the Mineshaft Stakes (G3) at Fair Grounds.

Entries: Commonwealth S. (G3)

Keeneland, Saturday, April 09, 2022, Race 5

• Grade III
• 7f
• Dirt
• $300,000
• 4 yo's & up
• 2:45 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Manny Wah (KY)	Florent Geroux	118	Wayne M. Catalano	15/1
2	2Long Range Toddy (KY)	Paco Lopez	118	Dallas Stewart	20/1
3	3Sir Alfred James (KY)	John McKee	118	Norman L. Cash	10/1
4	4Three Technique (KY)	Rafael Bejarano	118	Jason G. Cook	50/1
5	5Nashville (KY)	Luis Saez	118	Steven M. Asmussen	1/1
6	6Surveillance (KY)	James Graham	118	J. Keith Desormeaux	30/1
7	7South Bend (KY)	Flavien Prat	118	William I. Mott	8/1
8	8Endorsed (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	118	Michael J. Maker	8/1
9	9Atoka (KY)	Luis Contreras	118	D. Wayne Lukas	30/1
10	10Prevalence (KY)	Tyler Gaffalione	118	Brendan P. Walsh	5/1
11	11O Besos (KY)	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	118	Gregory D. Foley	5/1