Barrera right in Iron Rob's wheelhouse

ARCADIA, Calif. – The Santa Anita Derby on April 9 ended for Iron Rob before it truly began. A longshot, Iron Rob struggled with the footing on a sealed and sloppy track and finished last of eight.

“He slipped coming out of the gate,” trainer George Papaprodromou said. “He didn’t get a hold of the track.”

On Saturday, Papaprodromou and owner Rustin Kretz will send out Iron Rob in the $100,000 Lazaro Barrera Stakes for 3-year-olds at seven furlongs. This time, the weather is not expected to be a factor, the competition not as difficult, and Iron Rob will be sprinting, which is his strength.

Earlier this year, Iron Rob won consecutive sprints for 3-year-olds here on the main track – the Baffle Stakes at 6 1/2 furlongs on Feb. 21 and the San Pedro Stakes at six furlongs on March 20. The start in the Santa Anita Derby was a calculated gamble to test Iron Rob against some of the best 3-year-olds in California. Exaggerator won the Santa Anita Derby and was second to Nyquist in the Kentucky Derby last Saturday.

The Grade 3 Barrera will be a test in itself for Iron Rob, a colt by Twirling Candy who has won 3 of 11 starts and earned $157,665. The field is expected to include Denman’s Call, who was third in the Grade 2 San Vicente Stakes in February behind Nyquist and Exaggerator, and Smokey Image, the California-bred champion 2-year-old male of 2015.

Iron Rob, who will be ridden by Stewart Elliott, is expected to race near the front. Papaprodromou said a win could lead to another start in a two-turn race, perhaps in the $100,000 Affirmed Stakes at 1 1/16 miles for 3-year-olds on July 2.

“Down the road, I’d like to give him another shot going long,” Papaprodromou said.