The Hell We Did, Desert Gate trying to get back on track in Iowa Derby
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Trainer Todd Fincher doesn’t blame his horse, his jockey, the distance, the track, the trip, or the competition for The Hell We Did’s seventh-place finish in the Preakness Stakes, the colt’s only unplaced effort.
“I blame it on myself,” Fincher said. “I told [jockey Luis Saez] I didn’t want to be in the mix early on because on paper there were [several] just super-fast horses. I just didn’t see it being a good idea going 22 and change, being up on the lead.
“I think, on that track, you need to be somewhat close to the lead and closer to the rail, but I’m going to blame that on me, because the horse was doing great, and he just really ran flat. Luis said I had horse. He just wouldn’t go anywhere. So I don’t know if out there in the middle of a track it was just not good footing, or what the deal is on that track, but yeah, that was my fault.”
The Hell We Did, who stalked the pace in his prior outing, was ninth after the opening six furlongs of the Preakness. Meanwhile, Napoleon Solo, Iron Honor, and Chip Honcho were second, third, and fourth, respectively, behind Taj Mahal after six furlongs. While the leader wilted, the other three maintained their running order to the wire and finished first through third.
The Hell We Did hits the reset button in the $250,000 Iowa Derby on Saturday night at Prairie Meadows. He and Desert Gate, the beaten favorite in the Grade 3 Ohio Derby last month, are the only horses in this nine-horse field with graded stakes form. Desert Gate was cross-entered in Saturday’s Grade 3 Indiana Derby but the plan is to run in Iowa, trainer Bob Baffert said this week.
The Lone Star Park-based The Hell We Did returned to the work tab in early June in preparation for his next road trip.
“He’s been good and happy, and I’m hoping he’s ready for another race,” Fincher said. “Not real happy about the one hole, but somebody’s got to have it. We travel quite a bit, and I just kind of let him down and then brought him back up again, and hopefully he responds.”
This could be a key race in determining the future for The Hell We Did, the Peacock family’s homebred Authentic colt who is a half-brother to Senor Buscador. He made his first three starts at six furlongs, with two wins and a runner-up effort in the Zia Park Juvenile. In his first try around two turns, he was second after tracking the pace in the Grade 3 Lexington Stakes at 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland. In the Preakness, he faced stiffer competition at 1 3/16 miles. He goes 1 1/16 miles again in the Iowa Derby.
“I just hope it’s my fault and not the horse’s performance,” Fincher said of the colt’s two-turn ability. “We don’t know if we’d let him bounce out there close to the lead if he had run good or not, because he probably would have still been stuck a little bit wide.”
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The Hell We Did, who will have Ramon Vazquez in the irons, could be closer to the pace on Saturday. Fincher said he will leave it up to the break and to the rider to read the race, but he’s not likely to be on the lead. That role should go to Desert Gate, a Grade 3-winning and multiple Grade 1-placed juvenile who won back-to-back stakes on the front end with flashy Beyer Speed Figures this spring.
Desert Gate took the one-mile Hot Springs at Oaklawn Park by 9 3/4 lengths and the 1 1/16-mile Texas Derby by 6 1/4 lengths. In the Grade 3 Ohio Derby, stretching out to 1 1/8 miles, Desert Gate pressed the pace on the outside of Robusta, briefly led, then faded to fourth.
Desert Gate could be joined up front by Crupper, who set the tempo winning the Bathhouse Row at Oaklawn. He was 13th in the Preakness after being quite unsettled pre-race.
Keeping the leaders honest, or even joining them, the second flight could get crowded. J J Grey tracked the pace before winning the Prairie Mile locally, with Canned Heat on his heels for second. Bricklin, returning from a fourth-place finish in the Long Branch, is another tracking type. He is cross-entered in Indiana, but trainer Rodolphe Brisset said Wednesday he will run in Iowa.
Chad Allan and the maiden Maximum Effort were second and third, respectively, in the Texas Derby. Outmatch, an Iowa-bred sprint allowance winner, completes the field.
Iowa Sprint
An accomplished group of older horses will line up in the $100,000 Iowa Sprint. The six-furlong race has attracted Grade 1 winner Nakatomi, who has earned more than $2 million; graded stakes-winning millionaire Surveillance; three-time graded winner Booth, who is less than $5,000 shy of millionaire status; and graded stakes winner Speed King.
The class relief is only on paper for the veteran Nakatomi, whose biggest win came in the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt in 2024. Since winning the Grade 2 Ogden Phoenix last October, he has finished ninth in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint and fifth in the Group 1 Golden Shaheen in March in Dubai.
Booth looked like one of the best sprinters in the country when he won four straight races in 2025, ending with the Grade 3 Maryland Sprint. He hasn’t won since but has been relatively consistent, especially if one tosses his recent effort on turf.
Hola Joey is 5 for 6 at Prairie Meadows, including a win in the Ed Skinner last month.
◗ Rounding out the stakes action on the Cornhusker undercard is the $100,000 Prairie Gold Juvenile. The filly Waggley looks for a second stakes win against males after taking the Kentucky Juvenile at Churchill Downs in late April.
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