Talk about a quick dividend.
In his first race since being purchased privately, not only did Flood Zone land in the winner's circle at 17-1 odds, he earned a spot in the Kentucky Derby (G1).
Not a bad turnaround, eh?
Purchased after posting a quick 5 1/4-length victory in a Jan. 4 Florida-bred maiden race that garnered stellar speed figures, Flood Zone justified the faith of his new connections by edging clear in the final eighth and posting a 3 1/4-length victory over favored Sand Devil in the $300,000 Gotham Stakes (G3) for 3-year-olds March 1 at Aqueduct Racetrack.
And so, in one fell swoop, owner Wathnan Racing, the stable of the Emir of Qatar His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, recouped a chunk of the purchase price and the ownership group and trainer Brad Cox picked up a horse who should have enough qualifying points to run in the Kentucky Derby.
As part of the Road to the Kentucky Derby, the Gotham netted Flood Zone 50 qualifying points, which has always been enough to start in the May 3 Run for the Roses.
"We're excited about the win," said Case Clay, the American racing manager for Wathnan Racing and son of prominent owner and breeder Robert Clay. "He ran a great number in his second start before we bought him and he's out of a Curlin mare. He's got a lot of Curlin in him and we thought the Gotham would be the natural next step."
Of course, without a two-turn race under his belt after winning the flat mile Gotham, the son of Frosted out of the Curlin mare Curls for Girls will need a 1 1/8-mile race March 29 or April 5 to convince his connections that he's ready for a the 1 1/4-mile Triple Crown test.
"We're going to take him back to Florida, enjoy this win, and then decide where to go," Cox said. "It was a question mark as to how far he wants to go, because he was a young horse with just two starts when we got him but he looked very good throughout today. It was a good performance and I'm very proud of the horse."
Jockey Reylu Gutierrez, who rode Flood Zone in the Gotham for Cox as well as in his first two starts for trainer Victor Barboza Jr., believes Flood Zone will be "even better at two turns."
"If they move forward and try the Kentucky Derby, that's up to (the connections). I'm just happy to be on him, but going two turns, in my opinion, he is going to be even better," Gutierrez said. "He's got good tactical speed and the gears to go the distance."
For Gutierrez, who won just his seventh graded stakes in a career that dates back to 2017, the opportunity to stay on Flood Zone after the barn switch was euphoric.
"I can't believe it," Gutierrez said. "They're the best connections in the world. Brad Cox is a multiple Eclipse Award-winning trainer. They could get any jockey in the country and for some reason they decided to keep Rey Gutierrez on this horse. I'm extremely humbled and grateful. This horse did all of it. It's all about the horse."
Flood Zone, sent off at 17-1 odds ($37.60). showed speed throughout in the Gotham as he vied for the early lead with 7-5 favorite Sand Devil and 22-1 shot Normandy Coast through fractions of :23.86 and :47.97.
As Normandy Coast faded to last in the field of nine, the Gotham became a two-horse race between the undefeated New York-bred Sand Devil and Flood Zone.
Flood Zone, bred in Florida by Al Figliolia Westbury Stables, drew clear approaching the eighth pole and then pulled away in the stretch to cover the mile in 1:39.62.
Sand Devil, a Chester Broman Sr. homebred son of Violence trained by Linda Rice, held second by 1 3/4 lengths over Juddmonte's Garamond, a homebred son of Uncle Mo making his second career start for trainer Chad Brown.
"It was a good race," Rice said about Sand Devil, who tackled open company for the first time after three state-bred wins. "You always want to win, but he put in a good effort and (the April 5) Wood Memorial is still in play for him."
Sand Devil picked up 25 qualifying points and Garamond 15. Behind them My Mitole received 10 for finishing fourth and McAfee, the half brother to 2024 Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna, picked up five for finishing fifth.
