HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Six years after City of Light won the then-$9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational on dirt, one of his progeny will try to win the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf at Gulfstream Park. Formidable Man, who at age 4 will be the youngest among the dozen runners expected to go postward in the Pegasus Turf, brings a three-race win streak into the race, highlighted by a Grade 1 victory in the Hollywood Derby on Nov. 30 at Del Mar. Michael McCarthy, who trained City of Light for Suzanne and William Warren Jr., trains Formidable Man for those same connections. McCarthy said he sees similarities between father and son. “He’s a little bit like his father, with every race he’s gotten a little bit more professional finishing things off,” McCarthy said. “Whether he’s been on the pace, off the pace, what have you, he’s been very amenable to whatever Umberto [Rispoli] asked him and he’s just an improving horse.” :: Play Gulfstream Park with confidence! DRF Past Performances, Picks, and Clocker Reports available now. Formidable Man, who is 3 for 4 at the Pegasus distance of 1 1/8 miles, drew post 2 but will move to the rail as Seige of Boston will scratch. That scratch allows Fort Washington to draw into the field, giving trainer Shug McGaughey three runners in the race. McGaughey also sends out Integration, the beaten favorite in this race last year, and Battle of Normandy. Integration came into the 2024 Pegasus Turf 3 for 3 but finished fifth, beaten 1 3/4 lengths. McGaughey said there was some indecision amongst the connections last year whether to run in the Pegasus, which may have impacted the way he trained the horse toward the race. Following Integration’s two-length win in the Grade 2 Red Smith on Nov. 9 at Aqueduct, Saturday’s Pegasus was always the plan. “He’s trained well at Payson this winter. He breezed on the dirt the other day and went really well with Battle of Normandy,” McGaughey said. “If this weather straightens up and we get a decent turf course and he gets a good trip, I think he fits.” Rain Wednesday and Thursday morning prompted Gulfstream officials to cancel turf racing those days. Drier but relatively cool conditions – temperatures in the mid 60s – were expected Thursday afternoon through Saturday. Battle of Normandy brings a four-race winning streak into the Pegasus Turf, capped by a 1 3/4-length victory in the Grade 3 River City on Nov. 9 at Churchill Downs. “Battle of Normandy has done really well all winter,” McGaughey said. “He had a really good summer and fall culminating with the race at Churchill, where he ran terrific. I’m hoping he can follow up on that.” Nations Pride, who defeated Integration in the Grade 1 Arlington Million at Colonial Downs in August, will likely go favored in the Pegasus Turf. This, despite the fact he finished 10th in the Bahrain International Trophy in November. Nations Pride, trained by Charlie Appleby for Godolphin, has twice run poorly in Bahrain, but is 10 for 17 otherwise. “I don’t know if it’s a matter of going right-handed, or the end of a long season,” said Chris Connett, an assistant to Appleby. “If you put a line through that, which I think the team has, and you go off his Arlington Million win, it puts him right there with every chance.” :: Get Gulfstream Park Clocker Reports from Mike Welsch and the Clocker Team. Available every race day. At 1 1/8 miles, the Pegasus Turf is the shortest distance Nations Pride has run since he finished third, beaten three-quarters of a length, in the Group 1 Dubai Turf in March 2023. Appleby is adding cheek pieces to Nations Pride’s equipment to have him a little sharper for the cutback in trip. Major Dude won the local prep for this race when he got up late over Fort Washington in the Grade 2 Fort Lauderdale here Dec. 21. That was his second straight win and third from his last four starts for the son of Bolt d’Oro trained by Todd Pletcher. “This is obviously a pretty strong contest, looking for a similar trip,” Pletcher said. Pletcher also is sending out Grand Sonata, who finished fourth in the Fort Lauderdale, beaten 1 1/2 lengths. Pletcher ran Grand Sonata in blinkers for that race, but he’s taking them off Saturday. “I thought he was maybe a little too close” to the pace, Pletcher said. “Don’t have a great post [10], hopefully Johnny can get over and save some ground.” In addition to Formidable Man, Balnikhov and Mi Hermano Ramon are in from Southern California for the Pegasus Turf. Balnikhov, trained by Phil D’Amato, is coming off a runner-up finish when he rallied from last in the Grade 2 Hollywood Turf Cup on Nov. 29. “He’s just a better older horse, he carries his weight better now, he’s a little bit more consistent,” D’Amato said. “We figured out his style, the way he needs to run. I think all those things combined have helped him improve. He’s going to have to improve again, but I really think his ‘A’ race puts us in the mix.” Mi Hermano Ramon, trained by Mark Glatt, won the Grade 2 Seabiscuit on Nov. 30 before finishing second, beaten three-quarters of a length by Eclipse finalist Johannes, in the Grade 2 San Gabriel Stakes on Dec. 26. Win for the Money won the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile and most recently finished third in the Fort Lauderdale. Spirit of St Louis and Chasing the Crown complete the body of the field. Paros would need one more defection from the field to get in. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? 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