Classic Causeway, Nations Pride Meet Again in JC Derby

For Classic Causeway, the Triple Crown was not a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The son of Giant's Causeway is that rare 3-year-old who competed in two Triple Crown series and was victorious in one of them. Most Triple Crown enthusiasts will recall that back in mid-March, Kentucky West Racing and Clarke Cooper's homebred Classic Causeway was one of the hottest prospects for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) and the American Triple Crown after winning a pair of graded stakes to open 2022. Fortune shied away from him after that as he finished 11th in both the Curlin Florida Derby Presented by Hill 'n' Dale Farms at Xalapa (G1) and the Kentucky Derby, the opening leg of the Triple Crown. After those debacles, he was sent to trainer Ken McPeek who saw green in the speedy colt's future. Green as in turf. McPeek, inspired by what he perceived as a turf foot, entered Classic Causeway in the $1 million Caesars Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T), the mile-and-a-quarter first jewel in the Caesars Turf Triple for 3-year-olds. Capitalizing on a lack of speed in the field of 12, Classic Causeway controlled the pace and prevailed by three-quarters of a length over Nations Pride (IRE). "He's a legitimate grade 1 runner on turf," McPeek said. After Godolphin's Nations Pride flipped the script and won the shorter, 1 3/16-mile Caesars Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T), with Classic Causeway settling for third, the two rivals will meet in a rubber match Sept. 17 in the $1 million Caesars Jockey Club Derby Invitational Stakes (G3T) on the first weekend of action at Aqueduct Racetrack, home of the Belmont at the Big A meet. "This is another good spot for him and he'll be highly competitive," McPeek said. "It should be a better pace scenario than the Saratoga race but we're still trying to get him to learn how to relax." While the longer, mile-and-a-half distance of the Jockey Club Derby might seem to work against a front-runner such as Classic Causeway, with just five rivals in the final leg of the Caesars Turf Triple the fractions promise to be easier Saturday than they were at Saratoga in the second leg of the Caesars Turf Triple. With racing shifted to Aqueduct due to construction at Belmont Park, the Jockey Club Derby will be contested around three turns at the Big A. "The circumference of Saratoga is different than Belmont Park as we all know, but I still think he ran a good race and (jockey Julien Leparoux) did a good job with him," McPeek said about the son of the Thunder Gulch mare Private World. "The three turns probably resembles Keeneland at a mile-and-a-half, but they all have to deal with it. We're excited to run him back in another big one." McPeek expects to run Classic Causeway one more time before his 3-year-old season ends, though he ruled out the Breeders' Cup. He did toss out the possibility of shipping overseas to Ascot to run on QIPCO Champions Day in either the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes Sponsored by QIPCO (G1) at a mile or the QIPCO Champion Stakes (G1) at a mile-and-a-quarter. "The mile at Ascot is straight (no turns) and that might be best for him," McPeek said. Nations Pride is already versed in international competition as the son of Teofilo (IRE) is also a stakes winner in Great Britain and Dubai. He made his seventh career start for trainer Charlie Appleby, and first in the United States, with his runner-up finish in the Belmont Derby. He followed that up with an even better performance in the Saratoga Derby, rating in third behind Classic Causeway in the early stages before taking charge in the stretch and winning by 1 3/4 lengths over Annapolis. Classic Causeway was a head back in third. "The entire trip, the horse has gone from strength to strength. You can see that in his runs," said Appleby's assistant, Chris Connett. "Physically, he's matured into his frame. He really switches off now and is really taking it all in very well." Frankie Dettori, who rode Nations Pride at Belmont, will handle him Saturday. Appleby and Godolphin won last year's Jockey Club Derby with Yibir (GB), who went on to take the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T) and be named the champion grass runner of 2022. The only other stakes winner on turf is Bennett Racing PYT's Ardakan (GB), a group 2 and 3 winner in Italy who will be making his U.S. debut for trainer Markus Klug.