Kentucky Derby winner Mage will run in the Preakness at Pimlico

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Mage #8, ridden by jockey Javier Castellano crosses the finish line to win the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 06, 2023 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Sam Mallon/Getty Images)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Kentucky Derby winner Mage will run in the 148th Preakness following an encouraging workout at Churchill Downs, its co-owner said.

Mage galloped about 1 1/2 miles at a brisk pace with exercise rider J.J. Delgado aboard on a cloudy but mild Friday morning at the track. Co-owner and bloodstock agent Ramiro Restrepo said the chestnut colt was "thriving" with good energy levels after his latest training session since winning the 149th Derby, paving the way for the horse to enter the Triple Crown's second jewel at Pimlico in Baltimore.

"He’s had a magnificent week of training," Restrepo said with co-owner Chase Chamberlin, co-founder and racing director of partner CMNWLTH. "(Trainer) Gustavo Delgado (Jr.) was just really pleased and over the moon of how he’s come back. He’s shown all the positive signs. So, it’s on to Baltimore and crab cakes, here we come."

Mage is coming off a one-length victory over Two Phil's in the Derby at 15-1 odds after charging into contention entering the stretch. The son of Good Magic and Puca by 2008 Derby and Preakness winner Big Brown earned a signature win after running second and fourth in the Florida Derby and Fountain of Youth, respectively. He didn't run as a 2-year-old but won his debut at Gulfstream by nearly four lengths.

Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit dies during workout

Medina Spirit, the Kentucky Derby-winning horse that failed a drug test afterward and cast a cloud over the victory, died Monday during a workout at Santa Anita race track. "Following the completion of a routine morning workout, Medina Spirit collapsed on the track at Santa Anita Park and died suddenly of a probable cardiac event according to the on-site veterinary team who attended to him," track officials said in a statement. The horse, trained by Bob Baffert, won the Kentucky Derby in May but later tested positive for the steroid betamethasone, leading to challenges to the validity of the victory. Officials at Churchill Downs announced that Medina Spirit would be disqualified if the test was confirmed, and it suspended Baffert for two years.

Mage will run in the 1 3/16th mile Preakness on May 20, just two weeks after covering 1 1/4 miles in the Derby in 2:01.57. Restrepo said the horse has done everything he did before the Derby, with his recovery being monitored after his longest trip.

He will train again on Saturday morning before being driven to Baltimore with another workout planned on Monday. Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano, who won his first Derby in 16 attempts, will again have the mount.

"We’ve been just monitoring that situation with all the love that he’s shown us on the racetrack," Restrepo added. "We’re trying to bestow that upon him and give him the time to show us what’s up and everything that he did prior to the Derby.

"It’s continued all the way through, so that type of consistency merits a shot at the Preakness."

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