Knicks Go Stakes 2026: Full Race Recap and Winner Analysis

All in lineard. They're off. Dragoon guard broke very well right alongside Beu's got some early speed too, but starts to drop back. And now tour player will move up with will take it and Scotland on the outside. So the field racing out of the chute and onto the main track here and Scotland has gone up to take charge here. It leads a length and a half to will take it in second. Tour player is third. Prince of Power is fourth by two. Then comes Banjo Crystal on the inside of Dracoon Guard. Outside of them, Capital Idea Beu and then the trailer Moonlight as they head up the backstretch. Scotland in front. Ran a 22.75 opening quarter mile. It leads by a length and a half to take it. Tour player is third to the outside. Prince

of Power is fourth with a half mile to go outside of Dragoon Guard. Banjo Chris is down at the rail being ridden along to keep up. Five and a half lengths off the lead as they make their way around the far turn. Then comes Capital Idea to the outside. Beu is splitting horses with five to gain. He's starting to pick up some stride. Meanwhile, Moonlight is still at the back of the pack yet to be unleashed though. And he is still in the hunt as they make their way to the top of the stretch here. Tour player turning for home with a two-length lead with 316 of a mile to run. Moonlight, who was dead last early, is closing down the middle. Dragoon Guard is there. will take it down toward the inside, but it

is still tour player. Tour player and Flavian Brad with the rail in the lead from Moonlight. Dragoon Guard and will take it. Tour player by three on the wire. Moonlight was second and then came Dragoon Guard and we'll take it. No doubt about it. It is Tour Player, a horse that was formerly trained by D. Wayne Lucas. gave the late great trainer his final career victory last year and now wins on derby day. How poant is that? How amazing is that? That is so cool. We're all celebrating the memory of D. Wayne Lucas here in the first Derby without Wayne who obviously passed away last summer and tour player just knows how to win. He's won now five

of his last six starts. Flavian Pratt had him perfectly placed just behind the leader Scotland moved up to take a man at the top of the stretch. Dragoon guard the white horse in the middle there was getting bounced around a little bit a couple of times but squeezed through. Matty source moonlight making a run on the outside but it was all over. I mean Tour player just kicked clear very impressively. Pratt's been on him now for his last two victories. Whit Beckman the trainer. Great job here. Daylight win for Tour player in the next scope. A horse that was bred and formerly owned by Bob Baffford and his wife Jill. Now with Whit Beckman gets his sixth career start. Flavian Pratt aboard. Who is it with? Donna

Flavian, you win another race. It's a good time to be on a roll. Your second win right in a row. And that's you. It also makes you two for two on this horse right now. Do you just have a magical connection with him? Oh, no. I think he's just a good horse and he's been showing it for the past years. does. I mean, he's very straightforward and uh yeah, he's short talent. Flavian, as you know, this horse gave coach Wayne Lucas his last winner. How fitting is it for this horse to win on Kentucky Derby Day? And you know, we're all thinking about coach still.

No, absolutely. Uh unfortunately, I didn't had the chance to ride much for him, but uh just, you know, he's big part of uh the history of our game and the history of the derby and history of the derby. like you say it's a I mean that was one of his biggest weekend and something that he really cherish. So it's a good uh good way of you know for two player win and kind of winks at him. Congratulations here. Stay on a roll. You've got a long day ahead and a big race ahead of you. Thank you Donna. All right guys, Donna thanks now tour player really likes Churchill Downs.

Yeah, what's interesting here? I mean, this is literally Bob Baffford written all over it. This a son of American Pharaoh Baffford's 2015 Triple Crown winner. The Dam Insanity was raced by owned by Bob's wife Jill, trained by Bob. A lot of times these trainers as a reward uh from the owner for their success in training horses are given breeding rights like maybe a couple of breeding rights a year to their trainee when he retires to stud. So now you got American Pharaoh at stud and a Baffford mayor. Bob, you don't see many horses bred by Bob Baffford, but that's the backstory here for Tour Player. And he's a nice horse.

Trained now by Whit Beckman, who is a Louisville native. And so good to see a Louisville native get a win on Derby Day. But yeah, Tour player now five for six in his career at Churchill Downs gets a win in the fifth running of the Knicks Go. Live racing has lived up to the billing so far. Some positive momentum as you roll into the Derby 152 and maybe some positive momentum for Vavian Pratt aboard one of the top choices in emerging market for the Derby tonight gets a win in the Knicks