Road to the Kentucky Derby 2022: Rebel Stakes

Rebel:

The Rebel

is held at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Because of the fifty points awarded to the winner, the Rebel Stakes almost guarantees the winner a spot in the starting gate at Churchill Downs come May. This year’s stakes were held on a sloppy day.

Un Ojo made a splash on the Kentucky Derby leaderboard last month when he won the Rebel stakes on the 26th of February. Un Ojo, which means “an eye” in Spanish, is often described as a long shot because he only has one eye. He currently has 54 points, and is ranked second on the leaderboard. I hope for the best for Un Ojo, but often the owners of one-eyed race horses don’t like sending them to major races. 

Un Ojo stuck to the middle of the pack before narrowly pulling out a victory in the homestretch from Ethereal Road. Ethereal Road stuck to the outer back of the pack, before moving into the lead at the far turn. Barber Road, the third-place finisher, was just a nose behind Ethereal Road. Barber Road started in the back of the pack, moved to the middle in the backstretch, and pushed for the front in the homestretch. Kavod, the fourth place finisher, ran in the front the entire race, but fell behind in the homestretch.