Only half an hour after Essential Quality won the first Kentucky Derby prep of the day, Greatest Honour jumped to the top of the Kentucky Derby leaderboard when winning the Fountain Of Youth (G2) to give TAPIT a sweep of the weekend’s Kentucky Derby preps.
A 5 ¾ length winner of the Holy Bull (G3) last out, Courtlandt Farms homebred Greatest Honour was ready to take his second step on the Kentucky Derby trail in this 1 1/16 mile race.
Breaking from one of the outside gates as the race favorite, Greatest Honour was content to have only a few horses beat as he galloped along relaxed under Jose Ortiz. It looked like the colt may be in trouble entering the turn but Greatest Honour quickly showed he was just waiting for the right moment as he started his run up the outside.
Flipping through his gears, Greatest Honour hit his highest one as they raced down the stretch and blew past the longtime leader inside the final furlong. Showing he’ll easily get more distance, he pulled away to win by 1 ½ lengths and stay undefeated in stakes company with the Florida Derby (G1) the next race on his radar.
“It’s very exciting,” said owner Donald Adam. “Being a horse that I bred and the history by which I came by him is very gratifying. I was a little concerned in this one. It looked like he wasn’t in the best position, but this will be the shortest race he runs in a long time. And the longer he goes, the better he will be.”
One of the best-bred colts on the Kentucky Derby trail, the Shug McGaughey trainee has classic success running through his pedigree.
His dam is a half-sister to the Belmont Stakes (G1) winning duo of Rags To Riches and Jazil with her granddam winning the Kentucky Oaks (G1). Peeping Fawn also brings in European classic success under that mare as a winner of the Irish Oaks (G1) who was second in the Epsom Oaks (G1). Others who were Grade 1 winners under Greatest Honour’s first three dams include Streaming, Thewayyouare, and Paris Lights.
The sire of 87 graded stakes winners, TAPIT’s current 3-year-old crop includes nine stakes horses and four stakes winners led by Grade 1 winner Essential Quality and Grade 2 winners Greatest Honour and Thoughtfully.