Discreetness, Collected Face Off in Southwest

Everyone wants a run at the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), and points to be gained in Arkansas are in high demand with a field of 14 lined up for the $500,000 Southwest Stakes (gr. III) Feb. 15 at Oaklawn Park. To quote Stefon of Saturday Night Live fame, this Presidents' Day race "has everything."

Xpress Thoroughbreds' Smarty Jones Stakes winner Discreetness from the far outside and the required Bob Baffert-trained invader—this year Speedway Stable's Sham Stakes (gr. III) winner Collected from the rail—share highweight assignment of 122 pounds. Siding Spring gets his first start for trainer Mark Casse since a 10th in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I). Whitmore, who ran fifth in the Delta Downs Jackpot (gr. III) and came back to win a Jan. 16 allowance at Oaklawn, takes another shot at graded company.

And that's just four from the crowded sophomore field. The race has also drawn an intriguing contender in Pennsylvania Nursery Stakes winner Bird of Trey, who ran fourth last out in the Jerome Stakes (gr. III) for trainer John Servis and ships to Oaklawn for his first start away from Parx Racing and Aqueduct Racetrack. 

In addition, the 1 1/16-mile Southwest gives the chance for another run at Discreetness to runners who missed close calls to him in the past. For Clever Trevor Stakes winner Suddenbreakingnews, it's an opportunity to avenge a nose loss in the Dec. 13 Springboard Mile. Gordy Florida, who lost by a neck after dueling for the lead in the one-mile Smarty Jones, and third-place Smarty Jones finisher Synchrony are also back in against the Discreet Cat   colt—as are Luna de Loco, fourth in the Smarty Jones, and Cutacorner, fourth in the Springboard Mile and a recent allowance winner Jan. 21 at Oaklawn.

Completing the field are maiden winners War Stroll, Z Royal, Torrontes, and American Dubai. Suddenbreakingnews and Synchrony run as a coupled entry, as do American Dubai and Torrontes.

The Southwest Stakes awards points to the top four finishers on a 10-4-2-1 scale toward a spot on the Kentucky Derby leaderboard and a place in the 20-horse starting gate.