With Ted Noffey about to be voted an Eclipse Award as champion 2-year-old male on Thursday night (Jan. 22), the unbeaten colt is back on the training trail working on his 3-year-old debut.
Winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) on Oct. 31 to close out a 4-for-5 campaign, Ted Noffey remains the early favorite for the $5 million Kentucky Derby (G1) at Churchill Downs on May 2.
With the Derby Future Wager Pool 3 complete, Ted Noffey is the 6-1 top choice among the 39 individual horses on the list. All other 3-year-olds are listed at 7-2.
Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, Ted Noffey posted his first workout since the BC Juvenile, breezing 3 furlongs in 37.01 seconds on Friday (Jan. 16) at Palm Beach Downs.
The target for his much-anticipated 3-year-old debut is the $400,000 Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) at Gulfstream Park on Feb. 28. The race is a Derby points-qualifier offering 50-25-15-10-5 to the top five finishers.
“It went super. Everything went great. He did it well in hand with good enthusiasm,’’ Pletcher said after the workout. “It seems like he’s maintained his fitness level fairly well, so we’re very pleased.”
Owned by Spendthrift Farm, which also owns Kentucky Derby contender Further Ado, winner of the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (G2), Ted Noffey has three straight Grade 1 wins – the Hopeful Stakes at Saratoga, the Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland, and the BC Juvenile at Del Mar.
“He’s put on some weight and filled out, but he was a pretty mature 2-year-old, physically,” Pletcher said. “He was a good-sized colt to begin with, so we’re pleased with the way he’s developed physically. It was nice to see him back working. He’s always been a good workhorse. He’s fun to watch.”
Ted Noffey is the Derby points leader with 40. Recent Lecomte Stakes (G3) winner Golden Tempo moved into second with 20 points for last weekend’s win at the Fair Grounds. For now, the Cherie DeVaux-trained Golden Tempo is 7-2 in pool 3 as part of the “all-others’’ group.
Paladin, who won the Remsen Stakes (G2) at Aqueduct for trainer Chad Brown, is 14-1 in pool 3, followed by Chief Wallabee at 17-1 for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott and Nearly ay 20-1 for Pletcher.
Chief Wallabee, with Junior Alvarado aboard, coasted home in his career debut at Gulfstream, a 7-furlong race on Jan. 10. Nearly is 2-for-3, most recently taking an allowance race at Gulfstream on Jan. 2, and is being pointed to the Holy Bull Stakes (G3) on Jan. 31.
Brad Cox, who trains Further Ado, has seven horses listed in pool 3, while six-time Derby winner Bob Baffert has five. The Cox horses other than Further Ado are Commandment (23-1), Cannoneer (24-1), My World (81-1), Thunder Buck (92-1), White Tiger (102-1), and Waymark (264-1). Baffert’s five are Brant (23-1), Boyd (34-1, Litmus Test (35-1), Desert Gate (58-1), and Buetane (78-1).
Pool 4 of 6 is scheduled for Feb. 13-15.
Richard Rosenblatt is an award-winning journalist and former Associated Press Horse Racing Editor. Currently, he serves as the news editor at US Racing, overseeing exclusive content from contributors worldwide.
