Outside post shouldn't hinder Deep Flame in Perryvile

Only one 3-year-old has earned a higher Beyer Speed Figure this year than the 110 Deep Flame got in the Allen Jerkens Stakes on Aug. 29 at Saratoga. And only one horse – any age, any sex – has gotten a higher Beyer in a sprint race during 2026.

The one horse in both categories is the same horse, Englishman, and unfortunately for Deep Flame, he, too, ran in the Allen Jerkens.

The bad news for Deep Flame, at least in the longer term, is that Englishman is still around. The good news is he’s running in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint and not the Perryville Stakes on Saturday at Keeneland.

With Englishman away, Deep Flame should play – if not pay. He’s listed as the 7-5 morning-line favorite in the Perryville and could easily go to post odds-on for owner-breeder Juddmonte, trainer Brad Cox, and jockey Irad Ortiz Jr.

Cox has targeted the Grade 3, $350,000 Perryville since shortly after the Jerkens, but Deep Flame didn’t scare anyone away. He drew the far outside post in a 12-runner field, though that’s not a bad place to be racing seven furlongs at Keeneland.

Englishman had won the Woody Stephens in June at Saratoga with a 115 Beyer, and Cox was under no illusions going into the Jerkens.

“I thought if that horse ran the race we saw from him Belmont week, he’d be awfully tough, and he was,” Cox said.

Deep Flame gave gallant chase. Englishman’s elite brilliance comes from his ability to go a fast pace and still finish strong. He had 2 1/2 lengths on Deep Flame at the stretch call and won by 3 3/4. Deep Flame, coming off a seven-furlong win in his stakes debut, the Maxfield at Churchill, finished almost eighth lengths in front of third-place Local Knowledge, who had won the Amsterdam in his previous start.

“I like the seven furlongs for him and just thought this race made sense. He’s had a couple good breezes and is acting like he’s set up for a big run,” Cox said.

Deep Flame ran a winning race but finished second over the Keeneland surface in a maiden race this spring. He’s had a nice break between starts, and Cox has spaced his races throughout the summer and fall. He’s a formidable favorite, especially with Ortiz able to eye the other pace players and pick his spots accordingly.

Those pace players start on the rail, with Solitude Dude, who didn’t come close to his best form over the small Charles Town oval last out, but finished second by a head in the Amsterdam. In September, Solitude Dude was moved from trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. to Joe Sharp, for whom he makes his first start. The rail draw spells trouble.

Roscoe’s Brother set a withering pace en route to a second-start, first-level allowance romp Aug. 29 at Del Mar, which came 27 days after his debut victory. Roscoe’s Brother, sent out by Mark Glatt, harks back to the Glatt-trained Dr. Venkman, who won his first won his first two starts, also at Del Mar, before finishing second by a head in the 2023 Perryville. Roscoe’s Brother arrived at Keeneland on Tuesday night and shipped well.

“He has a lot more speed than Dr. Venkman,” Glatt said. “We’ve been pretty high on him from the get-go. He hasn’t really had a lot of adversity in those first two races, pretty clean trips, so he has a bit of seasoning to overcome.”

American Man also will want to show speed, and Deep Flame should be set up for a stalk-and-pounce trip. He may have to contend with Obliteration, who missed second by a nose in the Woody Stephens, losing a bob to Crude Velocity, who had defeated Englishman in the Pat Day Mile. Obliteration ran below his best on Kentucky Downs turf last out, but also in the Amsterdam, where he went one-paced to the wire after finding room past the three-sixteenths marker.

Doublecents hit a peak winning the seven-furlong Harrods Creek last out at Churchill but still requires substantial improvement to contend. Dr. Kapur has gone from a front-runner to a one-run closing sprinter, and closed good ground to finish second last out in the six-furlong Gallant Bob at Parx Racing, but the speed figures say he’s too slow. Chief Wallabee, a troubled fourth in the Kentucky Derby, got the cutback to one turn that trainer Bill Mott thought he might need but finished second Sept. 19 in a first-level Belmont allowance and was fading at the wire.

Deep Flame? He’s still a hot commodity.