The biggest day of the 2025-26 Thoroughbred meet at Tampa Bay Downs on Saturday promises excitement galore, with the added bonus of the emergence of one or more Kentucky Derby candidates from the Grade III, $400,000 ESMARK Tampa Bay Derby.
The ESMARK Tampa Bay Derby for 3-year-olds is the centerpiece of a glittering Festival Day 46 card offering five stakes races, four of which are graded, worth a combined $1,075,000 in purse money. Officials plan to get the day’s action underway at noon. The top five finishers in the ESMARK Tampa Bay Derby earn qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby on May 2 on a 50-25-15-10-5 scale.
The mile-and-a-sixteenth race over the Oldsmar main track has produced two winners of the Run for the Roses: Street Sense, who won both races in 2007, and Super Saver, who finished third in the 2010 Tampa Bay Derby before his victory in the world’s most famous race at Churchill Downs.
The other stakes on Saturday’s card are the Grade II, $225,000 Hillsborough Stakes for fillies and mares 4-years-old-and-upward at a distance of a mile-and-an-eighth on the turf course; the Grade III, $200,000 Florida Oaks for 3-year-old fillies at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on the grass; the Grade III, $125,000 Michelob Ultra Challenger Stakes for horses 4-and-upward at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on the main track; and the $125,000 Columbia Stakes for 3-year-olds at a mile on the turf.
Although it’s a little early to speculate on field sizes, the makeup of each of Saturday’s five stakes is taking shape. The 46th edition of the ESMARK Tampa Bay Derby is likely to have a bona fide standout in Further Ado, a colt owned by Spendthrift Farm and trained by Brad Cox. He has two victories from four starts, and both have been ultra-impressive: a 20-length maiden-breaking score on Oct. 10 at Keeneland, followed seven weeks later by a triumph in the Grade II Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs.
Both victories came at the mile-and-a-sixteenth distance. What’s more, Further Ado has been working exceptionally well for his 3-year-old debut, his most recent move a 5-furlong breeze Saturday in 49 2/5 seconds Saturday at Payson Park Training Center in Indiantown.
Another ESMARK Tampa Bay Derby probable is Canaletto, who established himself as a colt with an extremely bright future in his lone career start, an 8-length victory at a distance of a mile on Jan. 25 at Gulfstream Park. Chad Brown trains Canaletto for owners Mrs. John Magnier, Michael B. Tabor, Derrick Smith, Peter M. Brant and Brook T. Smith.
Other ESMARK Tampa Bay Derby probables at press time include The Puma, trainer Gustavo Delgado’s colt who finished third here in the Sam F. Davis Stakes on Feb. 7; trainer Patrick Biancone’s Florida-bred gelding Redland Rebels, who finished second on Jan. 31 in the Kitten’s Joy Stakes on the turf at Gulfstream; trainer Todd Pletcher’s colt Powershift, second in his only start on Feb. 7 in a Tampa Bay Downs maiden special weight; and conditioner Danny Gargan’s colt Talkin, who finished second in October in the Grade I Champagne Stakes at the Belmont At The Big A meet.
Two other probable starters as of now are multiple stakes-placed Roger That Dana, trained by Luis M. Ramirez, and trainer Whit Beckman’s colt Hulkamania, who broke his maiden here on Feb. 8 going 7 furlongs in his only career start.
Trainer Cox could also have the likely favorite in the Hillsborough Stakes in his 4-year-old filly Fionn, who posted a 7-for-11 mark in 2025 with earnings in excess of $2-million. She won five stakes races – four of the graded variety – including the Grade I Belmont Oaks Invitational on July 5 at Saratoga.
Another 4-year-old filly from the Cox barn, Destino d’Oro, is currently listed as a “possible” Hillsborough starter. Her biggest career victory came on Jan. 24 at Gulfstream Park in the Grade II Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf Invitational Stakes presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, her fifth career triumph from eight starts.
Probable Hillsborough starters, in addition to Fionn, include trainer Mark Casse’s 4-year-old And One More Time, winner of a Grade I stakes at Woodbine as a 2-year-old; trainer Bill Mott’s 4-year-old Scythian, a Grade II winner as a 2-year-old who finished third here on Jan. 31 in the Grade III Endeavour Stakes; stakes-winning 5-year-old mare Proctor Street, from the barn of Brendan Walsh; and Aunt Mo, a 4-year-old daughter of Uncle Mo trained by Arthur Agostini.
Currently listed as possible is 4-year-old Golden Sunshine, trained by Eoin Harty.
The probables list for the Florida Oaks is headed by Time to Dream, a stakes-winner trained by Todd Pletcher who finished third last fall in the Grade II Jessamine Stakes presented by Keeneland Sales at Keeneland.
Also expected to compete are Abigail, trainer Miguel Clement’s filly who is 2-for-2 over the Tampa Bay Downs turf course; Kokomotion, who turned in a memorable debut performance for trainer Whit Beckman by winning a Feb. 7 maiden special weight race at Tampa Bay Downs by 6 ¼ lengths; Laigina, a stakes-placed filly trained by Biancone; Backgammon, trained by Casse; Special Wood, a French-bred filly trained by Tom Proctor; Bramble Blast, trained by Mike Dini; and conditioner Philip Bauer’s Tam Tam.
Listed as possible for the Florida Oaks are trainer Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.’s Dandona and James Toner’s Tideoftime.
With three-time Michelob Ultra Challenger winner Skippylongstocking expected to compete Saturday in the Grade I Santa Anita Handicap on the West Coast, trainer Joseph is expected to start 4-year-old Florida-bred colt Neoequos at Tampa Bay Downs. Neoequos won the Sunshine Turf Stakes on Jan. 17 at Gulfstream Park in his most recent start.
Cox could have the Michelob Ultra Challenger favorite in 4-year-old colt Disco Time, who began his career with five consecutive victories, including the Grade III Lecomte Stakes at Fair Grounds last year.
The Michelob Ultra Challenger field is also expected to feature Pletcher’s 4-year-old colt Disruptor, a sharp allowance/optional claiming winner here on Jan. 31 going 7 furlongs; 4-year-old Racing Driver, a four-time winner for Gustavo Delgado; Catalytic, a Grade III-placed 5-year-old trained by Antonio Sano; Solo Venturi, a 4-year-old trained by Will Walden; and Paynter’s Prodigy, a 5-year-old gelding trained by Enrique Hernandez.
Casse and rival trainer H. Graham Motion are expected to start serious contenders in the Columbia Stakes. Casse is the conditioner of 3-year-old gelding Alpyland, who won the Dania Beach Stakes on New Year’s Day at Gulfstream, then settled for a third-place finish there on Jan. 31 in the Kitten’s Joy Stakes.
Motion is expected to send out Proton, who won the Laurel Futurity last fall and finished second on Oct. 31 at Del Mar in the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance Stakes.
Also expected to start in the Columbia are trainer Jose Francisco D’Angelo’s Bronze Bullet, who was disqualified to second from an apparent victory on Nov. 28 at Gulfstream in the Pulpit Stakes; trainer Lynn Rarick’s duo of Mr Mo’s Magic, who won a 1-mile allowance/optional claiming event here on Feb. 14, and Knick’s Honor; Vino Solo, who is 2-for-2 on the Oldsmar turf course for trainer Mario Roberto Lopez; and A Million Dreams, multiple stakes-placed for trainer Kevin Rice.
