Brad Cox didn’t win the Kentucky Derby, didn’t win the Preakness, but don’t shed a tear for the man. Cox comes into summer with a typically loaded stable that includes leading older dirt-route horse in both the female and male divisions. Two of them, First Mission and Idiomatic, had been scheduled to work Friday at Churchill Downs before a wet track pushed their breezes back a day. No worries there: Idiomatic already has breezed back since a winning 2024 debut in the Grade 1 La Troienne Stakes earlier this month, and First Mission doesn’t race until the Stephen Foster on June 29. First Mission has yet to work since his sharp victory May 3 in the Alysheba Stakes, where he earned a 106 Beyer Speed Figure, the second-highest older-male dirt-route figure this year behind Skippylongstocking’s 107 in the Oaklawn Handicap. The two horses are scheduled to meet in the Foster. “He’s got eight weeks between races – plenty of time to get ready,” Cox said. Idiomatic overcame a tricky trip winning her 5-year-old debut by 3 1/4 lengths with a 95 Beyer, her first race since a victory in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff. Idiomatic stands over a lot of ground and is very tall, but her lanky body has filled out since 2023. “She’s bigger by far this year,” said Cox, who said Idiomatic remains on target for the Ogden Phipps on June 8 at Saratoga. While First Mission leads Cox’s older male squadron, Hit Show might not be far behind. Fifth in the 2023 Derby and fourth in the Belmont, Hit Show ended his 3-year-old campaign finishing sixth in the Oklahoma Derby, a colt who looked worn out at the end of a long season. Hit Show returned revitalized from a layoff to win a third-level allowance May 11 at Churchill by 2 1/2 lengths, earning a 95 Beyer. “He could have a really big year,” Cox said. Hit Show came out of his comeback race in good shape, and while Cox said there are no set plans for the Candy Ride colt, the July 6 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker is a leading candidate for his next start. Cox, meanwhile, has not lost confidence in Just a Touch despite the colt’s last-place finish in the Derby, a race where many fancied him off an encouraging second in the Blue Grass. Cox is drawing a line through the Derby dud. “Got shuffled back, didn’t get the trip he needed,” said Cox, who got Just a Touch back on the work tab with a half-mile drill May 17. Just a Touch remains eligible for a first-level allowance and could run in such a race sometime during the Churchill meet. Tarifa, a disappointing ninth in the Kentucky Oaks, her first start since winning the Fair Grounds Oaks, also worked May 17 and is pointed toward the Acorn on June 7 at Saratoga. Impel, runner-up in the Eight Belles on May 3, could run in the Indiana Oaks July 6 or the Wilton July 12 at Saratoga. And, finally, 3-year-old filly Almostgone Rocket, 2 for 2 to start her career after a sharp May 3 allowance win at Churchill that yielded a 93 Beyer, could next start in the Jersey Girl on June 6 at Saratoga or the Leslie’s Lady June 9 at Churchill. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.