In his international racing debut Feb. 24 in Saudi Arabia, Japan-based Kentucky Derby (G1) hope Forever Young arrived just in time.
After a bit of a slow start and spotting a pair of American runners three lengths entering the long King Abdulaziz Racecourse stretch, Forever Young launched a sustained wide rally to just catch United States-based Book’em Danno in the final strides to secure a nose victory in the $1.5 million Saudi Derby (G3) and extend his perfect record to four races.
Even with Forever Young’s impressive outside rally, it was clear that Atlantic Six Racing’s Book’em Danno also was traveling well on the lead and the race was in doubt until the photo flashed a few moments after the race to reveal the outcome of the two runners who were three or fourth paths apart at the wire.
In landing his first group or graded stakes win, Susumu Fujita’s Forever Young completed the one-turn mile on a fast track in 1:36.17—shattering the track record for the distance by about two seconds. After rolling to three clear victories in Japan, the son of Real Steel—Forever Darling, by Congrats, showed his heart Saturday.
“It was a rough (start) but he ended up well. So we’re happy” said winning trainer Yoshito Yahagi. “We didn’t want to deal with kickback so the jockey (Ryusei Sakai) kept him outside.”
The outcome proved a heartbreaker for trainer Derek Ryan and the connections of Book’em Danno, who sent their horse halfway around the world after his 12 1/2-length score in the Pasco Stakes Jan. 13 at Tampa Bay Downs improved his record to four wins—including three stakes scores—from five starts.
Forever Young will now point to the UAE Derby (G2) in five weeks at Meydan Racecourse. That race awards the top five finishers qualifying points (100-50-25-15-10) in Churchill Downs’ main Road to the Kentucky Derby. Forever Young does have qualifying points on Japan’s Road to the Kentucky Derby, where he currently ranks second.
“Unfortunately, (the Saudi Derby) is not a qualifier for the Kentucky Derby but we look forward to taking him to the UAE Derby,” Yahagi said. If the plan comes together, Forever Young will be racing in a fourth different country if he starts on the first Saturday in May.
Leon King Stable’s Florida-bred Bentornato , who won the first four starts of his career including clear victories last year in the first two Florida Sires Stakes series races, stalked the pace early and seized the lead from Set Up in the turn. He would briefly open a clear advantage under Luis Saez. But coming out of that New Jersey-bred Book’em Danno would engage his fellow U.S. runner and opened a clear advantage in the stretch for Irad Ortiz Jr. before Forever Young’s record-breaking heroics.
Bentornato, who is trained by Jose D’Angelo, held third. Before the Saudi Derby, the connections of runner-up Book’em Danno said they were leaning toward a return to the U.S. for a possible start in the Pat Day Mile (G2) on the Derby undercard at Churchill.
Katsumi Yoshida purchased Forever Young’s dam, Forever Darling, after her victory in the 2016 Santa Ynez Stakes (G2). Bred by Yoshida’s Northern Farm, Forever Young is the first stakes winner for his dam, who has produced four winners from as many starters.
Forever Young is not the only runner from the family on this year’s Triple Crown trail as Forever Young’s second dam Darling My Darling, a stakes winner who placed in two grade 1 races, also is the dam of grade 1 winner Heavenly Love, who is the dam of this year’s impressive Risen Star Stakes (G2) winner Sierra Leone .
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