Mohaymen, Zulu likely to clash again in Florida Derby

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Mohaymen and Zulu, the one-two finishers in the Fountain of Youth Stakes on Saturday at Gulfstream Park, both came out of the race in good condition, their trainers reported on Sunday morning, and both could meet again in the Grade 1, $1 million Florida Derby on April 2, a race that is also the next scheduled start for last year’s champion 2-year-old male, Nyquist.

Mohaymen is certain for the Florida Derby. It has been part of his planned schedule all winter, and trainer Kiaran McLaughin said there was no reason to deviate from the plan.

“We’re here, we’ve been pointing to that all along,” McLaughlin said. “We had a plan. Sometimes you have to adjust, but so far we haven’t.”

McLaughlin loves the spacing of five weeks from the Fountain of Youth to the Florida Derby, and then five weeks from the Florida Derby to the Kentucky Derby on May 7 at Churchill Downs.

What he’s not crazy about is having to face Nyquist, who, like Mohaymen, has never lost. Not that McLaughlin lacks confidence in Mohaymen.

“It’s just too bad we have to first meet five weeks from now instead of 10 weeks from now,” McLaughlin said.

Mohaymen got a Beyer Speed Figure of 95 in the Fountain of Youth, equal to the figs he was given for his victories in both the Holy Bull and Remsen. The Fountain of Youth was the first main-track race run in 3 hours 44 minutes on Saturday after six consecutive grass races. It was a dry day, low humidity, temperatures in the low 70s, with some wind, so it’s possible the surface changed from earlier in the card, when the 3-year-old filly Cathryn Sophia and ace sprinter X Y Jet won stakes in consecutive races.

Mohaymen has now won all five of his starts. His Fountain of Youth victory was worth 50 points on the system used by Churchill Downs to determine the field for the Derby, giving him a total of 70, which puts him at the top of the table.

McLaughlin said Mohaymen would have two or three workouts between now and the Florida Derby, all at Palm Meadows, where he is based.

Zulu was making his third start, but first in a stakes and first around two turns on Saturday. While he ran well, he displayed some signs of immaturity during the post parade after conducting himself admirably in the paddock.

“We’re still working on a few things,” said his trainer, Todd Pletcher. “He got a little excited in the post parade and a little excited in the gate. They drag the post times out a little bit here and he got a little anxious in the post parade, but it’s good for the long run and we’ll keep working on that and hope he can improve.”

Zulu has made all three of his starts at Gulfstream Park, which is one factor Pletcher analyzed when weighing the pros and cons of running back in the Florida Derby.

“It could be a short field with the contenders who say they are pointing for that and you get to stay home a little longer. There are some advantages to that,” Pletcher said. “With him still learning some things, we felt staying closer to home was better for him right now when we chose this spot. The negative is you’ve got to meet Mohaymen again.”

As for Nyquist, he will do all his serious training for the Florida Derby at Santa Anita, where he is based with trainer Doug O’Neill.

On Saturday night, O’Neill said he expected Nyquist to have his final work for the Florida Derby around March 25 or 26, and he expected Nyquist to travel to Florida around March 28. O’Neill said Nyquist would be stabled at Gulfstream Park during his visit here, as opposed to going to Palm Meadows.

- additional reporting by Mike Welsch

Both Nyquist and Zulu could earn a $1 million bonus for winning the Florida Derby, as both were purchased as 2-year-olds from a sale run by race sponsor Fasig-Tipton.