Ny Traffic's strong Louisiana Derby performance clouded by uncertainty

HALLANDALE BBEACH, Fla. – Under normal circumstances, trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. would be elated over Ny Traffic’s second-place finish in Saturday’s Grade 2 Louisiana Derby. But these aren’t normal times in the world, and Joseph readily admitted he had mixed emotions when talking about the performance shortly after training hours at Gulfstream Park on Sunday morning.

“He’s got 50 qualifying points with the 40 he earned yesterday and the 10 he already had, and every year 50 points normally means automatically qualifying for the Derby,” said Joseph. “But this year things are different because by the time they run the Derby, he’s likely going to need more points to get in. And even assuming he’s got enough to get in and you believe you’ve got a horse who is qualified to run in the Kentucky Derby, which is such a great accomplishment, you still can’t really enjoy it because there are so many bigger problems in the world to worry about. You just have to stop and put everything in perspective.”

Ny Traffic, a New York-bred son of Cross Traffic, finished 1 1/2 lengths behind Wells Bayou after chasing the winner from start to finish in the 1 3/16-mile Louisiana Derby while earning a career-best 89 Beyer Speed Figure in the process. In his previous start, Ny Traffic finished third after setting a contested pace in a division of the Risen Star. Luis Saez was originally named aboard Ny Traffic in the Louisiana Derby but chose not to make the trip from South Florida in deference to the coronavirus pandemic, with Joe Bravo picking up the mount.

“Watching the race, it’s obvious he’s still a little bit green when it comes to passing horses,” said Joseph, who, like Saez, did not make the trip to the Fair Grounds. “Joe said he didn’t want to go by the horse in front of him so he hit him left-handed several times trying to get him away from that horse in hopes it might make the difference. We’ve been working with him passing horses in the morning and now, the way things are, with the Derby so far off, we’ll have plenty of time to work on it some more.”

Joseph said “in a perfect world” he’d probably give Ny Traffic a little break before running him again, and that he’d like to have two more starts prior to the Derby, now scheduled for Sept. 5. But as everybody well knows, the world is far from being perfect right now.

Joseph also had to deal with the news Sunday morning that the Dubai World Cup had been canceled, leaving him without answers as to what may become of his Grade 1 winner Math Wizard, whom he shipped over for the main event earlier in the week.

“I heard a rumor about it when I got to the barn this morning so I texted my guy with Math Wizard at the track and he said he didn’t know anything about it,” Joseph said “Then I saw it confirmed in the Racing Post a few minutes later. I’m clueless at the moment what will happen with my horse or my help. All I know is that they want everyone out within 48 hours and obviously, the quicker we can get them back the better.”