Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. has rightfully received the praise for Mystik Dan's success after his daunting move along the rail to squeeze through a tight opening and surge forward to win the May 4 Kentucky Derby (G1) at Churchill Downs. However, there is another jockey from Louisiana who is playing a large role in the colt's development behind the scenes.
Robby Albarado had one of the most successful careers of any jockey in recent history, winning 5,222 races from 34,114 rides that accumulated more than $221.5 million earned by his horses. Albarado's mounts hit the board three times in the Derby, but the jockey never had the good fortune to visit the winner's circle. Now, 2 1/2 half years after his retirement, he is working with a Derby winner as a key member of the Kenny McPeek team.
"It's a personal enjoyment that I have that I was part of that," said the 50-year-old. "I don't need to be in the winner's circle and all that. For me, it's a joy I have for the horse and the entire team."
Albarado, who has ridden the Mystik Dan in the mornings—"most of anyone," he said—since the colt was a 2-year-old, was aboard Mystik Dan for a 1 3/8-mile gallop May 9 at Churchill Downs as he prepares for a potential start in the May 18 Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico Race Course.
In Lexington Thursday morning, McPeek was not on-site at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.
"He felt pretty dang good to me," Albarado said after the exercise. "He just ran a mile and quarter, something he's never done before and probably ran the race of his life. You expect him to be a little groggy, but once I jogged him off and he took off, he was fine.
"After the first little quarter of a mile, he got into his rhythm, and he does his job. He knows what he has to do, and he does it. There's no downside to him coming back (in the Preakness)."
"We're just following our normal training routine," McPeek told Churchill Downs publicity. "That's really going to be the sign for me if we'll run in the Preakness. We won't do anything special, just let him show us he's back to his normal self going through our training routines. We'll probably make a decision on the Preakness later this weekend."
Entries for the Preakness, the second jewel of the Triple Crown, will be taken May 13. If Mystik Dan competes, two of his most formidable rivals would appear to be the uncoupled Bob Baffert-trained duo of Muth and Imagination.
According to a social media post from Daily Racing Form's David Grening, Louisiana Derby (G2) third-place finisher Tuscan Gold is also confirmed for the Preakness. The Medaglia d'Oro colt will scratch from the May 11 Peter Pan Stakes (G3) at Aqueduct Racetrack and point to the Preakness for trainer Chad Brown, Grening posted on X.
#KentuckyDerby winner #MystikDan on the @ChurchillDowns track Thursday morning beneath Robby Albarado.
— Sean Collins (@BH_SCollins) May 9, 2024
Albarado said, “he felt pretty dang good to me.” pic.twitter.com/tSIjXezSeq
The Derby experience has been rewarding for Albarado, who has been on the Mystik Dan bandwagon since seeing him as a weanling at Magdalena Farm.
"From the beginning, I was with this horse," Albarado said. "I watched him become who he was. You could tell he had it in him to be this kind of classic horse. It's like having one of your kids become a professional athlete."
In addition to exercise riding, Albarado has taken on an advisory role for McPeek by analyzing 2-year-olds through their early development steps toward becoming race horses.
"At one point, I stayed the winter in Florida at (McPeek's Silverleaf Hills Training Center in) Summerfield," Albarado said. "(McPeek) had 100 2-year-olds there. I tried to get on every single one of them and grade them, see where we were with them. The good thing is that Kenny respects my opinion."
Already aware of Mystik Dan from the time he was a weanling, Albarado was impressed immediately by what he saw in the early days of his training.
"I worked against him his first three-eighths of a mile. I got back to the barn and said, 'I want that one. I'm going to be on him from now on,'" Albarado said. "He's impressed every time. We thought he had some talent. He's got many gears to him. He can stop and go, stop, go. That's impressive for a young 3-year-old like him."
Albarado was so confident in Mystik Dan's abilities that he began predicting that the son of Goldencents would wear the Derby roses as early as January.
"I remember telling (Hall of Fame jockey) Gary Stevens coming off the track in January," Albarado recalled. "I said, 'This is the Derby winner right here.' He said, "This ain't no Derby winner.' I said, 'Yes, it is.'"
Albarado knows what it takes to win one of the American classics, having piloted two-time Horse of the Year Curlin and 2020 champion 3-year-old filly Swiss Skydiver to victory in the Preakness. Steve Asmussen trained the former, McPeek the latter.
Asked about what makes a champion, "They're just different, there's a different air around them," Albarado said. "They have a silent confidence within them that's hard to explain. The way they move, the way they act, there's something to be said about all that. You can tell from a young age."
Mystik Dan checks all those boxes for Albarado, as does Kentucky Oaks (G1) winner Thorpedo Anna.
"(Thorpedo Anna) was a monster from the go," Albarado said. "I don't want to jump to conclusions and say she's as good as Swiss Skydiver, but she's not far off of her."
Albarado said he has already been asked to accompany Mystik Dan to Baltimore should the decision be made to enter the Derby winner in the Preakness and race him back on two weeks of rest.
"I'm looking forward to next week," Albarado said. "Kenny gave me a call and said, 'Rob, I need you at Pimlico.' Me and Kenny got a little luck in Pimlico. We're trying to do this Swiss Skydiver thing over again."
"I don't want to jump to conclusions (about Mystik Dan's Preakness status). Obviously, he feels good. If he does go, I'm on the trip. I feel good going to the Preakness, I feel really good about him."
In 2020, McPeek had Albarado aboard Swiss Skydiver several times for gallops in the morning prior to the Preakness, building the jockey's confidence in his filly. Hernandez got aboard Mystik Dan for gallops ahead of the Derby and will likely get on him before the Preakness as well. Albarado credits their background as a reason for McPeek's willingness to let the jockeys gallop his horses, something not all trainers would do.
"Coming up in Louisiana, you have to gallop a lot of horses as a jockey," Albarado said. "You don't just come out and breeze horses, you have to gallop."
In addition to his work for McPeek, Albarado began a new career as a jockey agent this winter with apprentice rider Joseph Bealmear, who finished 12th by wins and 14th by earnings in the 2023-24 Oaklawn Park meet jockey standings.
"He's a throwback," Albarado said. "He listens. We're excited about his career moving forward."
Since picking up Bealmear's book, Albarado has picked up opportunities to represent other riders. The retired jockey says that being an agent is a great way to keep his competitive nature satisfied while also being where he loves, the backstretch of a racetrack. He considers his experience as a jockey an advantage to beginning his new career, especially when it comes to teaching a young rider.
"I was able to work horses against (Bealmear) and be right next to him," Albarado said. "Tell him what he can and can't do. ... I could physically show him.
"I believe in the kid; all it takes is one person to believe in you to keep you moving. I believe in him; I think he's the future of Kentucky racing."
His strong belief extends from Bealmear to Mystik Dan, and even to McPeek.
"Kenny buys the best (horses), undoubtedly," Albarado said. "It's such a pleasure to get all these good horses that he buys. He buys an athlete, you can tell.
"He's a great horseman, he's got a great eye for a horse. It's been a pleasure the last few years. This is the reward, having one like Mystik Dan."
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