Journalism wins Santa Anita Derby, will be likely favorite for Kentucky Derby

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Journalism rallied to win the Santa Anita Derby on Saturday and stamped himself as the favorite for next month’s Kentucky Derby.

Before the race, Journalism was the 5-1 favorite in the final Kentucky Derby Future Wager.

Journalism and jockey Umberto Rispoli rallied from last on the backstretch to win the $500,000, Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby and clinch 75 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby on May 3 at Churchill Downs.

“Had me worried for a jump or two there,” trainer Michael McCarthy said. “A special horse.”

Journalism covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.56 and paid $4 to win on a $2 wager as the even-money favorite.

Baeza finished second and was followed by Westwood, Citizen Bull and Barnes. Citizen Bull and Barnes are both trained by Bob Baffert.

Citizen Bull, the 2-year-old champion, set fractions of 47.14 for the half-mile and 1:11.42 for three-quarters before fading. Baeza was the first to catch Citizen Bull before Journalism cruised past.

“Had a little trouble there around the far turn,” McCarthy said. “Took him a little while to get to his gears. As you saw around the rest of the turn, he started slowly picking off horses. … It was a hard-fought battle, but I thought he was very, very good. Definitely took something away from this today.”

A son of Curlin out of the Uncle Mo mare Mopotism, Journalism improved to 4-0-1 in five career starts and will take a four-race winning streak into the Kentucky Derby. He entered off a victory in the Grade 2 San Felipe on March 1 at Santa Anita.

Journalism will be the second Kentucky Derby starter for McCarthy, who finished ninth with Endlessly last year.

Tuesday's Blue Grass at Keeneland will be the final major prep race before the Kentucky Derby.

Rodriguez wins Wood Memorial

Bob Baffert trainee Rodriguez went straight to lead the from the rail and never looked back in winning Saturday’s $750,000, Grade 2 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, clinching a spot in the Kentucky Derby.

Rodriguez and jockey Mike Smith won by 3 1/2 lengths and covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:48.15 and paid $9.30 to win on a $2 wager.

"I think they realized he just wants to be left alone," Smith said of going to the lead. "I could tell that warming up. Every time you did something with him, he'd get uptight. That's just it. If you get him to breathe, he's going to run, man, and that's what he did today."

Rodriguez earned 100 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby.

It was the third Wood Memorial victory for Baffert and first since Bob and John won in 2006. Baffert will be making his first appearance in the Kentucky Derby since 2021 after serving a 3 1/2-year suspension from the track.

"I've always been very high on him," Baffert said of Rodriguez. "He's just had some rough trips here in California. I knew the added distance would be a big factor for him. I thought he'd love stretching out and going a mile and an eighth."

Grande finished second and earned 50 qualifying points toward the Kentucky Derby. Trainer Todd Pletcher indicated Grande likely will head to the Kentucky Derby.

“That’s why we were here today, to see if he belonged,” said Pletcher, who’s had a least one starter in the Kentucky Derby every year since 2004. “I think he showed he does. We’ve always felt like he’s a horse that will handle added distance. Still lightly raced and a lot of experience today that he hadn’t had in his first two starts.”

Rodriguez, stalked by 9-5 favorite Captain Cook, set early fractions of 23.31 seconds for the quarter-mile, 47.44 for the half-mile and 1:11.25 for three-quarters.

Grande and third-place Passion Rules made late runs as Captain Cook faded to fourth.

A son of 2020 Kentucky Derby winner Authentic, Rodriguez improved to 2-2-1 in five career starts. He entered off a third-place finish in the Grade 2 San Felipe on March 1 at Santa Anita Park.

Admire Daytona wins UAE Derby

Admire Daytona won Saturday’s UAE Derby by a nose and will head to Louisville for the first Saturday in May.

Admire Daytona held off Heart of Honor by the slimmest of margins to capture the $1 million, Group 2 UAE Derby at Meydan Racecourse.

Admire Daytona moved to the top of the Euro/Mideast Road to the Kentucky Derby standings, and trainer Yukihiro Kato confirmed the horse will run in the Kentucky Derby.

“For sure he can go to Kentucky, but it is such a difficult race to win,” jockey Christophe Lemaire said. “It is one of the most iconic races in the world, and we have to go if we can.”

Admire Daytona was sent to the front out of the gate and held off late challenges from Heart of Honor and Don In The Mood.

Admire Daytona covered the 1 3/16 miles in 1:59.14.

“Honestly, I thought I’d won but it was very tight so you never get too happy, too early,” Lemaire said. “The Japanese horses come here with quite a bit of experience at home. For us, they arrive near their best this early in the season — not too much racing but also with plenty of experience. I think they like the Meydan dirt track, too.”

Flood Zone, who entered off a victory in the Grade 3 Gotham for trainer Brad Cox, finished seventh.

“Disappointed to be honest,” jockey Florent Geroux said. “He broke well. I thought I was going to be in a good spot. I let the speed go, I tucked behind the two leaders and got down to the rail. From there, as soon as we hit the first turn, he never travelled, never grabbed the bit and just kept going backwards. It was too bad to be true.”

Admire Daytona, who improved to 2-2-0 in six career starts, is one of two horses from Japan scheduled to run in the Kentucky Derby.

Luxor Café, who has a four-race winning streak, earned a spot via the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby.

How to watch 2025 Kentucky Derby

Last May, NBC Sports announced a partnership with Churchill Downs to present the Kentucky Derby on NBC and Peacock through 2032.

The extension includes multiplatform rights to the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky Oaks and Derby and Oaks Day programming, which will be presented on NBC, Peacock, USA Network and additional NBCU platforms.

You can stream the 2025 Kentucky Derby on Fubo and Peacock.

What time is the Kentucky Derby?

While not yet official, the post time for the 151st Kentucky Derby will be about 6:57 p.m. on Saturday, May 3.  

Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; follow on X @KentuckyDerbyCJ.

More horse racing: Which horses are in or on bubble for May 3 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs?