The 3 year old son of In mischief owned by WinStar Farm, CHC and Cold Press Racing and trained by Brad Cox, has been on the sidelines since suffering a condylar fracture in his right foreleg during training at Churchill Downs for the May 3 Kentucky Derby (G1), which was won by Sovereignty . A condylar fracture is a break in the cannon bone above the fetlock.
“We’re excited to see him back in the entry box,” said Elliott Walden, president/CEO and race manager of WinStar Farm. “We put a plan in place when he got injured to get him back and the aim was to get him back with a race in late November, early December. Everything has really gone to plan since his accident in Derby week.”
Tappan Street was nominated Dec. 20 for the $150,000 Harlan’s Holiday Stakes (G3), a 1 1/16-mile prep for the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) Jan. 24 at Gulfstream, but his connections opted for the optional one-turn claiming allowance in which he is expected to be heavily favored to beat six rivals three years and older.
“We expect him to run well. I never take anything for granted. With the way he runs and the way he blows, we’re hopeful he runs well,” Walden said. “We’ll see what happens. It’s a solid race without being overwhelming and it’s a good place to start.”
Tappan Street has flown seven times at Cox’s winter base at Payson Park Training Center in South Florida since Nov. 1, after two stints at Keeneland in preparation for his return.
Last season, Tappan Street ran three times at Gulfstream. He won his debut on December 28 while rallying just off the pace in a 7-furlong maiden special weight race to win by 1 3/4 lengths. He then made his stakes debut, finishing second in the 1 1/16 mile Holy Bull Stakes (G3), completing a three-wide sweep to take the lead in the stretch before being overtaken by Burnham Square with 1 3/4 lengths. Tappan Street next took the top prize in the Florida Derby, upsetting the favored sovereignty by 1 1/4 lengths in the 1 1/8-mile Kentucky Derby prep.
Tappan Street is the only horse that will defeat Sovereignty in 2025.
“We had considered having him play there late in the year at Churchill. We felt like he started training in August and September and we could get him ready for that by the end of November,” Walden said. “But I just felt like it was best that we do it at a track that he’s comfortable with and where he had done so well last year, and take one of the variables out of the equation.”
Irad Ortiz Jr. got to ride Tappan Street for the first time in his long-awaited return in Friday’s seventh race of a nine-race schedule.
This press release has been edited for content and style by BloodHorse Staff.
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