Cannoneer Bounces Back with Friday Feature Victory

Saturday’s Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool Estimated at $600,000
G1 Curlin Florida Derby Anchors All-Stakes Sequence
Commandment, Chief Wallabee, Nearly, The Puma to Clash
Jackpot Pool Estimated at $2.5M for Sunday’s Mandatory

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – St. Elias Stable and Stonestreet Stables’ Triple Crown-nominated Cannoneer, unraced since running fourth as the favorite in the Jan. 31 Holy Bull (G3), returned with a popular and powerful performance to win Friday’s feature at Gulfstream Park.

Ridden by Edgard Zayas for trainer Brad Cox, Cannoneer ($3.20) registered a front-running 9 ¼-length score in the entry level optional claiming allowance for 3-year-olds, covering the one-turn mile in 1:36.23 over a fast main track.

It was the second win from four starts for Cannoneer, a $1.75 million yearling of 2024 that was cutting back off the 1 1/16-mile Holy Bull, won by Nearly, who returns as one of the top contenders in Saturday’s $1 million Curlin Florida Derby (G1) presented by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms at Xalapa.

“We kind of were scratching our heads after the Holy Bull. Obviously, there were some hot fractions that day and he just didn’t go on,” Cox said. “We backed off on him a little bit and wanted to target one-turn races moving forward. I didn’t feel like there was any rush with him. The ownership group is patient. We didn’t stop on him, we just kind of backed off of him a little bit looking for something around one turn, either seven-eighths or a one-turn mile. This race was in the book, it went, and we’re glad it did. We were happy to be part of it and he ran big.”

Cannoneer broke alertly under Zayas and was sent to the lead, racing in the two path through a quarter-mile in 24.03 seconds and a half in 46.11 pressed by Lincoln’s Law, a six-furlong debut winner Feb. 28 at Gulfstream making his second start. Cannoneer began to inch away from Lincoln’s Law leaving the far turn, then opened up once straightened for home to win under wraps.

“His talent and ability kind of showed up there at the three-eighths pole and he was able to kick on down the lane,” Cox said. “Not sure where we’ll go from here. I’ll talk with the ownership team about the logical spots. I think one goal would to be to try to get into the Woody Stephens. Whether he has a race between now and then will be up to him and the owners. We’re happy with the performance today.”

The seven-furlong Woody Stephens (G1) is set for June 6 on the Belmont Stakes (G1) undercard at Saratoga.

Cox will send out four horses Saturday at Gulfstream – Coolmore Fountain of Youth (G2) and Mucho Macho Man winner Commandment in the Curlin Florida Derby; 3-year-old filly Prom Queen, an eight-length last out maiden winner at Gulfstream in the $275,000 Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2) presented by City National Bank; Yes It Tiz, Grade 3-placed on dirt returning to the turf in the $175,000 Sand Springs; and 3-year-old colt Sovereign Law, sixth in his Feb. 28 unveiling sprinting six furlongs, stretching out in a one-turn maiden special weight.

“I like the filly in the Oaks and the colt in the Derby. I know they’re set up for big efforts. Obviously you’ve got to have the trips and some racing luck, but they’re both training as well as they can train, so I think we’re in with two live shots there,” Cox said. “We’ve also got a good filly going back to the turf in Yes It Tiz and a maiden that hopefully will improve with a little more ground.”

Saturday’s Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool Estimated at $600,000

The 20-cent Rainbow 6 jackpot pool is expected to grow to an estimated $600,000 Saturday at Gulfstream Park, where the popular multi-race wager’s all-stakes six-race sequence will be anchored by the $1 million Curlin Florida Derby (G1) presented by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms at Xalapa.

The 75th running of the Curlin Florida Derby will headline Saturday’s 14-race program with 10 stakes, five graded worth $2.675 million in purses. First race post time is 11:30 a.m. ET

The $275,000 Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2) presented by City National Bank, a 1 1/16-mile Kentucky Oaks (G1) prep for 3-year-olds fillies, will kick off the sequence that will span Races 9-14. She Be Smooth, undefeated and untested in two starts that include a six-length romp in the Davona Dale (G2) last time out, is the 7-5 morning-line favorite in a field of seven. The Calumet Farm homebred daughter of Lexitonian, who is trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, will stretch out around two turns for the first time after dominating over a one-turn mile in both her starts. Brad Cox-trained Prom Queen, who finished second by 2 ¼ lengths behind She Be Smooth in her debut, graduated impressively in a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight by eight lengths last time out.

A pair of Brendan Walsh-trained Irish imports are slated to make their respective U.S. debuts in Race 10, the $175,000 Sanibel Island presented by Surfside, a 7 ½-furlong turf stakes for 3-year-old fillies in Race 10. Secret Hideaway and group stakes-placed Smexy have been training over the turf at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream’s satellite training facility in Palm Beach County, in preparation for their 2026 debuts. Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained Secane, a multiple stakes-placed filly on dirt, has been working sharply on Gulfstream’s Tapeta course in preparation for her turf debut. George Weaver-trained Vekoma View and Phillip Bauer-trained Tam Tam are set to make their stakes debuts following maiden special weight victories on turf.

A well-matched field of 10 older horses should test Rainbow 6 bettors in Race 11, the $175,000 Army Mule, a seven-furlong sprint on the main track. Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott will saddle Scotland for his 2026 debut. The Good Magic gelding had four graded stakes-placed finishes last year, including a runner-up finish behind Eclipse champion sprinter Book’em Danno in the Forego (G1) at Saratoga. Rohan Crichton-trained Macho Music, the winner of the Pat Day Mile (G2) at Churchill Downs last year, is also slated to make his 2026 debut. Dale Romans-trained Jake’s Promise is coming off a three-length romp in the Gulfstream Park Sprint.

Undefeated in two starts when saddled by Walsh, Sweet Rebecca is a tepid 5-2 morning-line favorite in Race 12, the $175,000 Sand Springs presented by MyRacehorse, a 1 1/16-mile turf stakes for older fillies and mares. The daughter of American Pharoah won her March 10, 2024 debut at Gulfstream for Walsh before making five starts for trainer Chad Brown, only to return to Walsh for a winning 2026 debut. Candy Quest, a multiple graded stakes-placed filly trained by Brown, and Joseph-trained Silver Moonlight, third in the Honey Fox (G3) last time out, will likely draw attention from Rainbow 6 bettors.

The field for the $225,000 Pan American (G3) presented by Rood & Riddle in Race 13 will be headed by Miguel Clement-trained Far Bridge, who won the 1 ½-mile turf stakes for older horses for his trainer’s late father, Christophe, last year. The Grade 1-winning 6-year-old son of English Channel will be making his 2026 debut in the Pan Am. Trainer Brian Lynch, who has saddled nine stakes winners during the Championship Meet, will send out Dashman, last year’s McKnight (G3) winner, for his second start off a long layoff.

The 75th running of the tradition-rich Curlin Florida Derby, the definitive Kentucky Derby (G1) prep, will close out the Rainbow 6 and a world-class day of racing in Race 14. Brad Cox-trained Commandment, who captured the Coolmore Fountain of Youth (G2) last out, will seek to follow Tappan Street into the Gulfstream winner’s circle and give Cox back-to-back victories in the Curlin Florida Derby. Chief Wallabee, the Coolmore Fountain of Youth runner-up who is the narrow 2-1 morning-line favorite, will make his third start for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. Nearly, who has won three races at Gulfstream by a total of 20 lengths, looks to follow up his impressive Holy Bull (G3) victory and give Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher his record-extending ninth Curlin Florida Derby victory. Trainer Gustavo Delgado, who has saddled three Curlin Florida Derby runners-up, will seek a breakthrough victory with The Puma, who is coming off a victory in the Tampa Bay Derby (G3).

The Rainbow 6 went unsolved Friday for the sixth racing day in a row.

A mandatory payout of the 20-cent Rainbow 6 jackpot pool is scheduled for Sunday, closing day of the 2025-2026 Championship Meet. In the Rainbow 6, the jackpot pool is only paid out when there is a single unique ticket sold with all six winners. On days when there is no unique ticket, 70 percent of that day’s pool goes back to those bettors holding tickets with the most winners while 30 percent is carried over to the jackpot pool. On mandatory payout days, the entire pool is disbursed to the bettor or bettors holding tickets with the most winners in the six-race sequence.

The Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool is expected to grow to an estimated $2.5 million Sunday should it go unsolved Saturday.

NOTE: Jockey Diego Herrera, who moved his tack from California to Gulfstream Park in mid-March, picked up his first local winner on 4-year-old colt Step Slow ($16.60) in Race 2 Friday, a six-furlong claiming event for 3-year-olds and up. The 21-year-old Herrera had one second and two thirds from his first 11 mounts – including British Isles in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup (G1) – before breaking through.