One of the biggest stories in horse races in the past year has been the rise of the creator of social media content Griffin Johnson As one of the most active and passionate ambassadors in the sport. Johnson burst on stage for the first time about a year ago after he became a co-owner of Sandman, a talented 2-year-old Colt who flashed potential in the fall and winter of 2024. Johnson signed with America’s best racing ‘a stake in Stardom’ program with ownership interests in Racehorses to influence influencers to influence to influence to influence to influence, and he was quickly tackled after meeting the Gorgeous.
Sandman this year met expectations at the age of 3 and won the $ 1.5 million Arkansas Derby, which was presented in the Kentucky Derby by Woodford Reserve and finished third in the Preakness Stakes.
Johnson’s journey with Sandman fascinated millions and introduced many Gen Z-ers to horse races. But it was just the beginning. Now, due to his association with West Point Thoroughbreds, Johnson has a ownership interest in two more talented 2-year-olds you would not know, both racing this Saturday!
Ewing is expected to start in the $ 650,000 CLAIBORNE BOODERS ‘FUTURITY ON KEENELAND RACE COURSE in Kentucky, while Curtain Call is set in the $ 500,000 champagne stakes in Aqueduct (Belmont called Big A this fall) in New York.
These are very prestigious and important races for two reasons. First of all, they are “win and you’re in” Challenge series preps for the $ 2 million Fanduel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, which will be held in Del Mar in California on 31 October. The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile usually determines which 2-year-old male Renpaard champion is voted for his racing period … So if Ewing or Curtain Call deserves a berth this Saturday in the Juvenile and then winning that race, they will probably become a champion!
Equally important, both the Futurity of the breeders and the champagne are early preparation races for next year Kentucky Derby May 2 in Churchill Downs. The winner of each of these races earns 10 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby from 2026, and horses that end up second to the fifth earn fewer points. The banking of some Kentucky Derby points so early in the preparatory race season will be very beneficial for both Colt, since their owners (including Johnson) plot their training and preparation race schedule in the coming months.
Let’s learn a little about both talented prospects:
Ewing
Named after the Hall of Fame NBA center that patrol the paint for the New York Knicks in the 1980s and 1990s, Ewing is 2-out-2 so far. Both his victories came in Saratoga in Upstate New York in Saratoga in Sprintraces on 5 ½ Furlongs and 6 ½ Furlongs (there are eight furlongs – 220 meters each – in a mile). His race prior to the start of Saturday in the futurity of the breeders came in the Saratoga Special Stakes, which he won with a length.
This early mature foal is already a winner of the bet, but the futurity of the breeders is a poles of grade 1 – the highest level. It is also held on 1 1/16 miles (8 ½ Furlongs) and will be around two turns, so it will be interesting to see how Ewing deals with it at a distance. His pedigree (genetic bloodline) suggests that he can walk well in longer races, because his father Go Go won the 1 ¼-Mijl Breeders’ Cup Classic in 2021, along with various other large races. Ewing’s biggest obstacle on Saturday figures such as the presence of Ted Noffey, who also comes to Keeneland from Saratoga, where he de Hoop 1 of Grade 1 dominated hopeful commitment.
Post time for the Futurity of Claiborne Breeders is planned at 5:16 pm et, and the race is broadcast on CNBC and Fanduel TV and streamed on Peacock.
Curtain call
This Colt bred in Florida started his racing career at Churchill Downs in June, where he finished a promising second behind the next winner of the deployment called Obiteration, who later finished second behind Ewing in the Saratoga Special. Curtain call then he shipped to Saratoga for his second start, a six-Furlong race that he impressively won with 8 ½ lengths.
Subsequently, the Curtain Call in the aforementioned degree 1 hopeful commitment ran, and he was not a party for Ted Noffey together with any other competition in that race. Yet he did not stop and finished third in the Zeven Furlong race. This competition will have to improve on Saturday in the Champagne Stakes, a degree 1 race, but he is certainly eligible to do this. He will try to win a mile in the champagne, which will still be held around one turn because of the configuration of the circuit at Aqueduct.
Just like with Ewing, Curtain Call’s bloodlines should help him succeed in longer varieties, perhaps in Saturday, but also in the future. He is a son of the winner of Belmont Stakes and the second place of Kentucky Derby, the law and he is related to a champion Merrieveulen named Banshee Breeze on the side of the Van his Dam family (mother).
Post time for the champagne is 3:20 pm et and that race is broadcast on FS1.
Exciting times are approaching fast, and by Saturday evening we will know much more about the horses of Griffin Johnson and how they form among their fellow 2 year olds prior to the Breeders’ Cup less four weeks and the Kentucky Derby on the road.
#Great #Saturday #horses #Griffin #Johnson