Cyberknife, Art Collector among invitees for Pegasus World Cup
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. -- Cyberknife and Art Collector, Grade 1 winners each with more than $2 million in lifetime earnings, and Defunded, hero of the Grade 1 Awesome Again for two-time Pegasus World Cup-winning trainer Bob Baffert, headline a list of a dozen horses who have been tendered invitations to the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational to be decided at 1 1/8 miles on Jan. 28 at Gulfstream Park.
Cyberknife captured both the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby and Haskell prior to capping off his 3-year-old campaign finishing second, beaten a head by Cody’s Wish, in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile.
Art Collector won the 2021 Woodward at Belmont Park for his lone Grade 1 victory, with nearly half his $2.32 million in earnings coming from victories in the rich, Grade 2 Charles Town Classic in 2021 and 2022.
Defunded was second in the Grade 1 Gold Cup last spring at Santa Anita before returning on the same track four months later to register a wire-to-wire, 1 3/4-length decision over Country Grammer in the Awesome Again on Oct. 1
The invitation list for the Pegasus World Cup, which was valued at $12 million when won by Baffert with Arrogate in its inaugural running in 2017 and $16 million when captured by Gun Runner the following year, also features five horses currently based at Gulfstream Park, led by Grade 1 winner White Abarrio. The local contingent also includes O’Connor and Super Corinto, both Group 1 winners in Chile in 2022; Simplification, fourth-place finisher in last year’s Kentucky Derby; and Skippylongstocking, winner of the Grade 3 Harlan’s Holiday here last weekend.
Other invitees for the 2023 Pegasus include Proxy, hero of the Grade 1 Clark Handicap in his last start, Get Her Number, Last Samurai, and Stilleto Boy.
Eight other older horses were put on a reserve list for the Pegasus World Cup including Pioneer of Medina, who finished a game second behind Skippylongstocking in the Harlan’s Holiday.
Pegasus World Cup Turf
Invitations for the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf were also announced Wednesday, the list topped by Colonel Liam, who won the race each of the last two years and is on target to try for the three-peat later this month.
:: Get ready for Gulfstream Park racing with DRF Past Performances, Picks, and Clocker Reports.
The invitation list for the Pegasus Turf, also to be run at nine furlongs, features such notable grass specialists as Grade 1 winners Ivar and Speaking Scout, Breeders’ Cup Mile runner-up Shirl’s Speight, stablemates City Man and Decorated Invader, one-two finishers in last Saturday’s Grade 2 Fort Lauderdale Stakes, and Master Piece, winner of the Grade 2 Eddie Read last summer at Del Mar.
Never Surprised, runner-up to stablemate Colonel Liam in the 2022 Pegasus Turf, is one of 11 others listed on the reserved invitation list for this year’s edition of the event, which was won by Bricks and Mortar when contested for the first time in 2019.
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.