Pirate's Punch eyeing Oklahoma Derby

Pirate’s Punch would seem to have a bright future as a half-brother to Girvin, and he suggested as much in his stakes debut earlier this month when he finished a gutsy third in the Grade 3, $300,000 Super Derby at Louisiana Downs.

The next stop could be the Grade 3, $400,000 Oklahoma Derby on Sept. 29 at Remington Park, according to trainer Grant Forster.

Pirate’s Punch won back-to-back starts coming into the Super Derby, including a first-level allowance Aug. 3 at Indiana Grand. He set quick fractions at Louisiana Downs while under pressure from Grade 1 winner Knicks Go and finished a length behind winner Rotation. For the effort, Pirate’s Punch earned a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 89.

“He did the hard work and kept on fighting to the end,” Forster said. “We were really, really pleased with how he ran. It was a big step up in class.

“He’s a horse that just seems like he’s improving by the minute.”

Robby Albarado was aboard Pirate’s Punch and has a tie to the horse’s family, Forster noted.

“Robby won the Haskell on Girvin,” he said.

Pirate’s Punch is now back home in Kentucky.

“Initially, we thought the Oklahoma Derby might be too much with the shipping and the heat and as hard as he ran, but he’s come out of the race so well it’s a possibility,” Forster said. “We’ll look at the field, see how he acts over the next couple of weeks.”

The other alternative would be an allowance at Keeneland, Forster said.

Pirate’s Punch is owned by Gulliver Racing, Craig W. Drager, and Dan Legan. He started his career in Southern California and came to Kentucky this spring with trainer Jeff Mullins, winning a maiden race in July at Ellis Park.

“When Jeff Mullins moved back to Del Mar for the summer, the owners wanted to keep the horse in Kentucky to see how he’d develop off that win,” Forster said. “I was fortunate to be the one they called.”

Pirate’s Punch, who is by Shanghai Bobby, is a half-brother to another notable runner in Grade 3 winner Cocked and Loaded. Girvin is a Grade 1 winner of $1.6 million.