Warrant wins first stakes in Texas Derby
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas -- Warrant became a stakes winner Monday, when he forged to a three-quarter-length win over Mr. Wireless in the $300,000 Texas Derby, one of five stakes on the Lone Star Million Day card at Lone Star Park. It was another length back in third to Rightandjust.
The 1 1/16-mile race was run on a sealed track upgraded to muddy after a mid-card rainstorm had left the main track sloppy and forced the card’s two turf stakes to dirt.
Purses for the stakes totaled $1.1 million to make for the richest card of the meet at Lone Star.
Warrant ($7.80), the narrow favorite, settled in fifth off the pace set by Dreamer’s Disease, who was a clear leader through fractions of 23.43 seconds for the opening quarter, 47.15 for the half-mile, and 1:11.41. Warrant launched a three-wide move around the final turn, came four wide into the stretch, and moved to the fore in the final sixteenth. He then worked his way past Mr. Wireless and Rightandjust, covering the mile and a sixteenth in 1:45.03, earning a 90 Beyer Speed Figure..
“My horse was fighting – he didn’t want to give up,” winning rider Joel Rosario said in a post-race interview at Lone Star.
Brad Cox trains Warrant for Twin Creek Racing Stables. The horse came into the race off a runner-up finish to stablemate Fulsome in the $300,000 Oaklawn Stakes on May 1, and on Saturday, Fulsome came back to win the Matt Winn at Churchill Downs.
It’s My House and Get My Number jogged in, with the trainer of the latter claiming foul against fourth-place finisher Super Stock for an incident in the first turn. There was no change made to the order of finish.
Warrant is a son of Constitution. He is now 2 for 5.