El Gato Malo Listed As 2008 Kentucky Derby Contender

2008 Breeders' Cup World Championships at Santa Anita Park

The 2008 Breeders' Cup, thoroughbred racing's most prestigious event, consisting of 14 Breeders' Cup races and $25.5 million in purses, will be held on October 24-25, at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California.

With filly Zenyatta remaining undefeated as the 2008 Breeders' Cup Ladies' Day concludes, see the October 24 Breeders' Cup results & Payouts. Breeders' Cup Day Saturday will be highlighted by the Breeders' Cup Classic where Horse of the Year Curlin will defend his title against Casino Drive of Japan, Raven's Pass of Europe and other horse racing stars.

Posted on Thursday, January 17th, 2008

San Rafael Stakes winner, El Gato Malo, “The Bad Cat” has been listed as one of the 2008 Kentucky Derby contenders.

The currently unbeaten El Gato Malo holds a race record of 3-0-0 and has a graded stakes earnings of $90,000. His first win was in the Maiden Special Weight last year where he rode out to victory at Hollywood Park on November 18. El Gato Malo’s next win came from the Gold Rush Stakes at Golden Gate Fields on December 15. While in the San Rafael Stakes last January 12, El Gato Malo burst out and dominated Santa Anita Park with an irrefutable 6 1/4 length victory.

El Gato Malo is being trained by Craig Dollase for West Point Thoroughbreds. His sire, El Corredor, never ran past a mile. He scored his most notable victories at that distance, in the Cigar Mile Handicap (gr. I) and consecutive runnings of the Del Mar Handicap (gr. II), but also captured the seven-furlong Pat O’Brien Handicap (gr. II) in a blazing 1:20 2/5 at Del Mar.

A half brother to Dominican who stayed 1 1/8 miles well enough to deny subsequent Kentucky Derby hero Street Sense in last year’s Blue Grass Stakes (gr. I), but was a well-beaten 11th when trying 1 1/4 miles in the Run for the Roses.

Superior racehorses are capable of outrunning their pedigrees, but El Gato Malo will have to earn his way into that category if he has any pretensions of staying 1 1/4 miles on the 2008 Kentucky Derby to be held at Churchill Downs on May 3.

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"El Gato Malo Listed As 2008 Kentucky Derby Contender" was posted on Thursday, January 17th, 2008 at 9:24 pm and is filed under Horse Racing Industry, Horses, Kentucky Derby, Stakes Races, USA Horse Racing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Leave a response, or trackback from your own site.