Mage, Forte Showdown Could Take Place in Preakness

A third meeting between 3-year-old racehorses Forte  and Mage  has the potential to materialize at Pimlico Race Course in the May 20 Preakness Stakes (G1), the second jewel of the Triple Crown.

Mage, the Kentucky Derby (G1) winner under Javier Castellano, and Forte, who had been the Derby favorite before he was scratched over a regulatory veterinarian's concerns related to a mending bruise in a right front foot, are two of the potential competitors in the 1 3/16-mile classic. Both would need to be healthy and train well in the interim to participate, representatives from the horses said.

The Preakness starting gate will likely be filled mostly with 3-year-olds who are new shooters to the Triple Crown, with quick Lexington Stakes (G3) winner First Mission  chief among them.

Of the losing Kentucky Derby participants, Rebel Stakes (G2) winner Confidence Game , 10th in the Run for the Roses, appears at this early juncture to be the horse most likely for the quick turnaround to the Preakness. 

Speaking outside Mage's barn on the Churchill Downs backstretch May 7, bloodstock agent Ramiro Restrepo, one of the owners in Mage along with OGMA Investments, Sterling Racing, and Commonwealth, said trainer Gustavo Delgado Sr. and his son, assistant Gustavo Delgado Jr. would "go over the horse" before a firm decision on the Preakness is made. But he said the Good Magic   colt could run absent a reason to bypass the race.

Later in the morning, the elder Delgado said, "The horse is looking very good. I checked with the vet, and he's fine."

Restrepo said the best interests of Mage would come first, in keeping with their management of the horse. After a Jan. 28 debut maiden win at Gulfstream Park, the 3-year-old ran fourth in the March 4 Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) and second in the April 1 Florida Derby (G1) at Gulfstream to qualify for the Kentucky Derby. He was fourth in the Fountain of Youth and second in the Florida Derby to Forte, last year's champion 2-year-old male.

"He's taken us race to race. We never pushed him or forced him to do what he didn't want to do," Restrepo said. "We put the horse before (our desires)."

Provided a Derby winner is healthy, he typically returns in the Preakness in pursuit of the prestigious Triple Crown, a three-race series over five weeks that only 13 horses in history have swept. The Triple Crown concludes with the Belmont Stakes (G1) at 1 1/2 miles at Belmont Park June 10. Horses able to sweep the Triple Crown become part of racing history and see their eventual stallion value rise.

Last year's Derby winner Rich Strike  was one of the few healthy Derby winners to skip the Preakness, and he later returned in the Belmont Stakes, finishing sixth.

Forte "looked good this morning" training the day after his pre-Derby scratch, Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher said. The Violence   colt has never missed training since a foot bruise developed last week.

Watch: Pletcher Discusses Forte, His Two Kentucky Derby Runners

"I think that he would have performed well yesterday," Pletcher said while also acknowledging that he was "understanding what the veterinarians were seeing" and the collective effort for equine health.

"Right now, everyone is doing everything they can to make sure that the horses are going out there in the safest possible condition," he said. "Still, we had two fatal breakdowns (in earlier races) yesterday. It's something that as a trainer keeps you up at night."

Amid tight veterinary scrutiny following numerous fatalities at Churchill Downs over the past two weeks, there were five scratches from Saturday's Kentucky Derby, with Forte the lone race-day scratch.

Pletcher's two Derby starters, Tapit Trice  (seventh) and Kingsbarns  (14th), are not pointed to the Preakness. Pletcher said with regard to Tapit Trice, a son of Tapit   with a style and pedigree for distance success, that he would "strongly believe the Belmont is his next start."

Plans are not as solidified for Kingsbarns, who chased a hot pace in the Derby before fading, though Pletcher said he "wouldn't rule him out of the Belmont."

Trainer Brad Cox, like Pletcher, is typically reluctant to run his horses on two weeks' rest and does not have any of his four Derby participants aimed at the Preakness. His Derby competitors—Angel of Empire , Hit Show , Verifying , and Jace's Road  ran third, fifth, 16th, and 17th, respectively, in the 18-horse field.

His Preakness hopeful is Godolphin's up-and-coming First Mission, a winner of two of three starts, including a half-length triumph in the 1 1/16-mile Lexington at Keeneland April 15, three weeks before the Kentucky Derby.

"I think he matches up well with the top 3-year-old colts around two turns. I really do believe that," Cox said of the son of Street Sense  , who is scheduled to have one more breeze before the Preakness.

He worked five furlongs in a swift :59 4/5 at Churchill Downs the morning of the Derby.

Angel of Empire and Hit Show would be the two from Cox's stable most likely to pursue the Belmont. The former would likely be one of the race favorites after starting as the Forte-less public choice at 4-1 odds in the Derby. He closed ground to finish 1 1/2 lengths behind Mage.

There are no plans immediately drawn up for Derby runner-up Two Phil's , trainer Larry Rivelli informed Churchill Downs publicity. Two Phil's was the only horse that raced within three lengths off a fast early pace to contend in the race's final stages. He led in midstretch before losing by a length to a rallying Mage.

Confidence Game followed Two Phil's stalking bid, moving up to fourth after a mile, but came up empty in the Kentucky Derby's closing quarter mile, losing by 14 1/2 lengths.

"Fast pace but he hung in there the best he could," trainer Keith Desormeaux wrote via text message. "I take the blame for putting too much speed in him during his works. He was a bit too keen."

After racing in the Kentucky Derby following a 70-day layoff, the Candy Ride   colt was fresher than some of his counterparts.

The Preakness, which Desormeaux won in 2016 with Exaggerator , could be next. "Will decide in one week," the trainer texted.

Many other Derby horses that shipped to Churchill Downs for the Derby are headed back to their regular training bases, including foreign competitors Derma Sotogake  and Mandarin Hero . The Derby's sixth- and 12th-place finishers depart for Japan May 8. 

This story will be updated.