Jockey Jose Ortiz Working Sandman on the grass on the Oklahoma Turf Training in Saratoga. (Tim Wilkin photo)
Casse finds 3.5 million reasons to run on grass in Ky Downs’ DK Horse Nashville Derby
Story of Mike Kane
Franklin, Ky. – Early in what a Hall of Fame career became, Werper Mariano Rivera again found himself from a starter to a Reliever. On Saturday in Kentucky Downs, Sandman -wiens name makes a direct connection to Rivera’s walk-in song, Sandman Binnen-Zal will be confronted with a transition test that can change his career.
After 11 races on dirt, garnished by the victory in the G1 Arkansas Derby, Sandman will try peat for the first time in the $ 3.5 million G3 Nashville Derby, the selection framework of the Stakes-Heavy program. The son of Tapit is part of a field that includes three other foals that ran in the G1 Kentucky Derby. With his late-rays style, Sandman finished seventh in the derby and third in G1 preakness. He wore blinking in the G2 Jim Dandy in Saratoga for the first time and was much more ahead than normal but weakened and finished last of five.
Following the Jim Dandy, Sandman’s Connections, DJ Stable, St. Elias Stable, West Point Thoroughbrreds and CJ Stables and trainer Mark Casse decided to try something else. They chose to bypass the $ 1.25 million G1 Travers Stakes in Saratoga last weekend and to aim their gray to the 1 5/16-MIJL Nashville Derby at All-Grass Kentucky Downs. Jose Ortiz has the Berg.
“It is clear that the top 3-year-olds on the dirt have separated themselves on this point of the year, so it is not necessary to keep our heads against the wall,” said West Point President Terry Finley. “The tapits have done well on the grass over the years.”
Before he was introduced in the Nashville Derby, Sandman gave his connections some confidence with two works on the grass in Saratoga.
“We are enthusiastic about it,” said Finley. “It looks like a really cool race with very beautiful horses.”
Rivera started 10 games for the New York Yankees in 1995 and the rest of his 1,115 Major League performances were relieved, mainly as a closer. In 1999 he started using Metallica’s Enter Sandman as the music that played at the Yankee Stadium when he came in from the Bullpen. Jon Green of DJ Stable named Sandman because he is a Rivera fan.
Casse said that the experiment with the surface switch is useful.
“His family tree says Turf,” Casse said. “There are three and a half million reasons to give it a try. I love the distance, and I just think it is that time for him to do it. He struggled in his last start. He has to have some pace because he does not accelerate enough on the dirt. I hope he can get a little better on the grass.
Sandman threw half a mile on the Oklahoma Training Training Turf Course on 10 August in 49.70 seconds.
“You just want to see how they get over it,” Casse said in Saratoga. “The turns are a bit sharp here for him. He was struggling a bit with turn, but then I had told Jose the last eighth of a mile, let him fall a bit his head and pick it up. And he said, if he had done that, he wouldn’t do him. Better about the turf too.”
On August 22, Sandman handed in a work of 48.70, the fourth fastest of 64 in the distance that morning, and he was on his way to Kentucky Downs, where he will race without blinking.
Sandman’s last run on the grass is getting ready for the Nashville Derby on August 30 pic.twitter.com/uvs6z20xpq
– Griffin Johnson (@lmgriffjohnson) August 27, 2025
Sandman was bought for $ 1.2 million as a 2-year-old on OBS March and earned $ 1,494,595. His performance in the Nashville Derby can determine his future on the circuit and as a stallion.
“He is a degree 1 winner on the dirt,” said Finley. “If he could be the winner of degree 1 on the end of the year, I think that would be very impactful for a horse like him.”
#Sandman #peat