Six Speed should start fast, but who knows how long he can keep going in the 1 ¼-mile Kentucky Derby (G1)? This son of successful sire Not This Time comes to Churchill Downs from Dubai, where he’s won three of five races with a second and third for trainer Bhupat Seemar. He’ll likely need a sixth speed to keep up.
In the UAE Derby (G2) at Meydan Racecourse, Six Speed held a nice lead midway through the stretch but was eventually collared and beaten by Japan’s Wonder Dean by 2 ½ lengths.
In the Derby, he’ll have another sixteenth of a mile to travel ... can he hold on? Unlikely, but he still qualified for the 20-horse field as the second invitee from the Euro-Mideast RTKD prep season.
Six Speed is a Kentucky-bred who was purchased for $304,680 at the Tattersales Craven Breeze Up Sale in 2025 by the ownership group of Brunetti Dugan Stables, Black Type Thoroughbreds, Steve Adkisson and Swinback Stables. All his races have been in Dubai.
After the UAE Derby defeat, trainer Bhupat Seemar said: “He just didn’t stay. He doesn’t help himself. He’s got so much speed, but he needs to learn to relax.”
Added jockey Mickael Barzalona: “We knew there was a chance he might not stay because he has so much speed, but I let him roll on the way he likes. At the end he was very tired and it was his heart that kept him in it.”
Barzalona has been aboard Six Speed in his last two races, but that could change Saturday when the post-position draw takes place.
Six Speed was 50-1 in the final Derby future wager and will likely be at higher odds when the Derby rolls around on May 2.
Yes, he’s been consistent at Meydan Racecourse, even winning the UAE Two Thousand Guineas (G3) by five lengths on Jan. 23.
The Kentucky-bred has run well from the front but getting to or near the leaders in a 20-horse field will present a serious challenge, especially for a colt who had to travel more than 7,000 miles for his first race in the United States.
He may be near the front and give his connections a thrill into the first turn but can’t see how he continues on against what looks like one of the most competitive Derby fields in years. Will he relax? Don’t think so.
- All five career races have come at Meydan, including a victory in the UAE 2000 Guineas on Jan. 23 prior to the UAE Derby.
- Horses who enter the Kentucky Derby after prepping in the UAE Derby are 0-for-21. Forever Young had the best finish, taking third in 2024.
- In the 2022 Derby, Seemar and Mickael Barzalona teamed up with Summer Is Tomorrow, who sped to the front with fractions of 21.78 seconds for the quarter-mile and 45.36 seconds for the half before fading to last (Rich Strike rallied from the back and won at 80-1 odds.)
The writing team at US Racing is comprised of both full-time and part-time contributors with expertise in various aspects of the Sport of Kings.
