Only one horse can win the Pegasus World Cup bet on January 29 presented by 1 / ST BET (G1) winner Life is good and that is Jackie’s Warrior . The two fought each other in the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes (G1) last August at Racecourse Saratoga, with Jackie’s Warrior gutting to win by neck. A continuous season of impressive races – topped by his Jerkens performance – has led Jackie’s Warriors to be named the 2021 champion men’s sprinter.
Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen trains Jackie’s Warrior for J. Kirk and Judy Robison.
“He was very excited to watch,” Asmussen said last season. “He’s a very special horse. He was running some game races… He ran very bravely with Life Is Good. Both ran a very good race that day. “
Jackie’s Warrior won or made six of his seven starts during his 3-year-old season last year. In May, he dug deep to stay with a head of the Pat Day Mile Equity presented by LG&E and KU (G2) at Churchill Downsthen go down by neck Discharge the watch in the Stephens Woody Shares presented by the Nassau County Industrial Development Authority (G1) next month at Belmont Park. The third-place finisher lost 7 1/4 of his length.
Turning the tide on Drain the Clock, Jackie’s Warrior recovered to win the August Amsterdam Stakes (G2) in Saratoga, trailing his opponent 7 1/4 seconds. The Music by Maclean colt later became popular after Life Is Good in the Jerkens. He hit the pace of his favorite game, dominated for the time being, and retained Life Is Good when that opponent fought back. Behind that pair of horses is 8 3/4 the length back to the next horse.
“‘Jackie’ continues to make us proud,” Asmussen said after that performance. “He’s incredible. What you love about him is his demeanor and how he deals with things.”
Jackie’s Warriors scored his fourth-placed win of the season at Gallant Bob Stakes (G2) in September at Racing Parx, easy point 6 3/4 length. In the final start of the year, he faded to sixth at the Qatar Racing Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1) at Del Mar. His earnings for the season were $1,051,400.
J&J Stables bred the Kentucky Jackie Warrior from AP Five Hundred mare Unicorn girl , winner of 19 races and earned $483,508. He was purchased for $95,000 from a Taylor Made Dealership at the September 2019 Sale at Keeneland.
