After his final practice before the April 2 Florida Derby presented by Hill ‘n’ Dale at Xalapa (G1) was delayed by the heat, White Abarrio accelerated three furlongs in: 34.4 / 5 March 29 at Gulfstream Park in a shootout for the 1/8 mile race.
Coach Saffie Joseph Jr. said: “He has overcome the phenomenal phenomenon. “On the surface, he looks good. He is energy savvy. He looks fine too. I think we were more worried than him. As a coach, you’re always worried about something.”
La Milagrosa Stable’s C2 Racing Stable and White Abarrio trained for the Florida Derby after catching the match at Holy Bull Stakes (G3) on February 5 in Gulfstream, then spiked on March 22 before a the planned rush on March 27.
“We had to change things up,” said Joseph, noting that he pushed back the foal’s training by two days.
White Abarrio is one of the top prospects for the $1 million race, along with Simplify , Classic Road and Charge it . Post positions will be drawn at 1:00 p.m. ET on March 30, which will be streamed on GulfstreamPark.com and more Facebook.
“With the temper, that worries me, you never want to have collisions during the journey. With horses, you have to deal with that quite often,” Joseph said. “Sometimes when things go the way you want, it means you’re becoming complacent, because you can always see things at fault.”
