Encino, with Lexington win, makes case for Derby berth

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Encino dug in in the stretch to turn back The Wine Steward by three-quarters of a length in the Grade 3, $400,000 Lexington Stakes on Saturday at Keeneland, a victory that may earn him a shot at Triple Crown competition.

It was a strong effort by both colts. Encino ($8.62), winner of the John Battaglia Memorial at Turfway Park in his prior start, was making just his fourth career start, first on dirt, and his graded stakes debut. The Wine Steward, sent away favored, was making his first start since finishing second in the Grade 1 Breeders' Futurity in early October at Keeneland.

The Lexington was the final race in the qualifying series for the Kentucky Derby, awarding points to its top finishers on a 20-10-6-4-2 scale. If Deterministic, eighth in last week’s Grade 2 Wood Memorial, defects, as is likely, then Encino would be in the 19th and final Derby spot on points – one spot in the field of 20 has been awarded to T O Password, who led Japan’s Road to the Kentucky Derby series. Grand Mo the First, who has the same point total, 40, as Encino, but who loses the tiebreaker based on non-restricted stakes earnings, would become the horse on the bubble. Derby hopefuls are closely monitoring the status of Endlessly, whose connections are continuing to deliberate between the Derby and the Grade 2 American Turf.

Brad Cox, who trains Encino for owner-breeder Godolphin, said immediately postrace that he was "not sure" yet about pressing on to the Derby, and indicated the connections would continue to monitor the development of the field and how their colt emerges from this race in the coming days.

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"We'll have to see what happens over the next few weeks," Cox said. "The Preakness would obviously be a spot we could look at as well. We'll ship him to Churchill in the next few days, start preparing him for either the Derby or the Preakness. I think one of those would be the logical spot moving forward."

The Lexington-to-Preakness route is one Godolphin and Cox tried last year, after winning at Keeneland with the lightly raced First Mission. He was ultimately forced to scratch from the Preakness.

Encino put himself in a position to move into the this year's classics by breaking quickly from post 7 in the field of nine starters under Florent Geroux, and dictating the terms on a track that has favored forwardly placed runners.

“My horse just broke like a shot,” Geroux said. “He took everybody by surprise, including me.”

The colt got an opening quarter of 23.55 seconds and half of 47.28 seconds while tracked by longshot How's Ur Attitude a length back in second. The Wine Steward, who broke from post 2 under Luis Saez, saved ground in the early going, sitting fourth with Lucky Jeremy to his outside.

The Wine Steward tipped off the rail and engaged Encino leaving the far turn, and the two colts slugged it out to the wire in close quarters. The Wine Steward drew within a half-length, but no closer, as Encino dug in and inched away again at the wire.

“When he felt the horse outside of him, he dug in,” Geroux said.

The final time for the 1 1/16 miles on the fast track was 1:43.93.

After the top two, it was 8 1/4 lengths back to Dilger, who rallied from eighth after the opening half. He was followed, in order, by Secret Chat, Footprint, Liberal Arts, Hades, Lucky Jeremy, and How's Ur Attitude.

No other horse emerging from the Lexington is likely to have enough points to make the Derby field. Hades, who controlled his destiny coming in, never threatened after coming wide into the stretch, a second disappointing effort after he was fifth in the Florida Derby on March 30.

“We had to take a shot [to make the Derby], and we did,” trainer Joe Orseno said of Hades. “It might have been too much to [run back] in two weeks. We’re going to regroup. … All we can do is get him ready for another race, another day.”

Trainer Mike Maker was pleased with the effort by The Wine Steward in his first outing in six months. The colt won his first three starts last year, including the Bashford Manor against open company and the Funny Cide against New York-breds, before his Grade 1 placing at Keeneland. He had subsequently been scratched from the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

"He never disappoints us," Maker said. "He ran hard. He's probably going to move forward off the race. No complaints from us."

Maker said a number of options, including the Preakness Stakes, would be under consideration for The Wine Steward's next outing.

"Everything's on the table," he said.

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