Everything worked out perfectly for White Abarrio in last year's Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1).
A sharp, closing second in the 7-furlong Mr. Prospector Stakes (G3) had him primed for a dominant 6 1/4-length romp in the $3 million Pegasus.
This year? Not so much.
Getting to the post for the Jan. 24 edition of the 1 1/8-mile stakes at Gulfstream Park has been tumultuous—to say the least—for a horse owned by C2 Racing Stable, Gary Barber, and La Milagrosa Stable.
"He was coming into the Pegasus off a good second last year, and this year he's coming in off a scratch at the Breeders' Cup during the post parade," said trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. "It's a different way to bring him into the race."
On paper, the 7-year-old son of Race Day has not raced since the Aug. 31 Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1). But if you want to list the last time he had a clean run in a race, that would be a fourth in the Aug. 2 Whitney Stakes (G1). In the JCGC, he lost all chance shortly after the start when he was bumped hard, and jockey Edgard Zayas came out of the irons.
Then came a fiasco in the Nov. 1 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) when he was a gate scratch.
Joseph entered the multiple grade 1 winner in the Dec. 27 Mr. Prospector at Gulfstream, but scratched him when he felt the $7.1 million earner was not ready for the race.
So, in his bid to become the first repeat winner of the Pegasus, the son of the Into Mischief mare Catching Diamonds will be racing as the 4-1 second choice after a lengthy hiatus from competition.
And he also drew post 11 in the overflow field of 14 for a two-turn stakes that is notoriously tough on horses breaking from the outside posts. Posts 9-12 are 1-for-31 in the Pegasus.
"The circumstances are definitely different this year," said Joseph, who will also be running his other 7-year-old multi-millionaire, Skippylongstocking.
On the plus side, though White Abarrio has not raced since August, he has been in steady training for the past few months.
"We ran out of time for the Mr. Prospector, but things have gone well since then," Joseph said. "He never stopped training. It isn't like it's a layoff. It's not ideal to come into a race like this without running in 5 months, but we do know he runs well fresh. He was always training, training, training. So, you hope he's fit enough. He was ready for the Breeders' Cup."
A big advantage on Saturday for White Abarrio and his stablemate Skippylongstocking is that Gulfstream is their home track.
"It is always an advantage when you don't have to ship and run on your home track," Joseph said.
White Abarrio, in particular, adores Gulfstream. He has raced there 10 times with 8 wins and 1 second for earnings of $2.6 million, and will be making his third start in the Pegasus.
Skippylongstocking has won 4 of his 12 starts at Gulfstream and is on track for a fourth straight appearance in the Pegasus. The son of Exaggerator has nearly $560,000 in earnings at the Hallandale, Fla., track and was a career-best third in last year's Pegasus.
Together, the pair of 7-year-olds have $10.8 million in career earnings, while White Abarrio holds the distinction of being the lone horse to win the Florida Derby (G1), Whitney, Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), and Pegasus.
"We've had them since they were 2, and they are 7-year-olds now and still running in the top category. It's been a great run. This is probably their last year, but to be racing for this long, it's a credit to their soundness and the owners," Joseph said. "We've had some great moments with them."
Skippylongstocking (post 5, 15-1) bounced back to top form after sub-par efforts in the Charles Town Classic (G2) and Whitney with a head victory in the Dec. 20 Harlan's Holiday Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream.
"'Skippy' is coming off a win, getting back on track after a poor performance in the Charles Town Classic. He should move forward off that race, and if he does, he'll be right there," Joseph said.
The Pegasus promises to be a test of class for 8-5 morning-line favorite Disco Time (post 1), who is a perfect 5-for-5 in his career but has yet to race in a grade 1 stakes.
Juddmonte's 4-year-old homebred son of Not This Time is exiting a 9 3/4-length score in the Nov. 8 Dwyer Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack for trainer Brad Cox.
His only graded stakes win came last year in the Jan. 18 Lecomte Stakes (G3). Hind-end issues then sidelined him for eight months.
Cox also trains WinStar Farm, CHC, Cold Press Racing, and Qatar Racing's Tappan Street (post 7, 6-1), who was sidelined for nine months after winning the Florida Derby. The Into Mischief 4-year-old returned with a length win in a Dec. 19 allowance optional claimer at Gulfstream.
The field, which includes two also-eligibles, also features 2024 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner Full Serrano (post 3, 12-1), Cigar Mile Handicap (G2) runner-up Mika (post 10, 10-1), and Madaket Road (post 6, 10-1), Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert's hope for a fourth Pegasus victory.
Gulfstream Park, Saturday, January 24, 2026, Race 13Entries: Pegasus World Cup Invitational S. (G1)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 Disco Time (KY) Flavien Prat 123 Brad H. Cox - 2 British Isles (KY) Diego A. Herrera 123 David Fawkes - 3 Full Serrano (ARG) Joel Rosario 123 John W. Sadler - 4 Banishing (KY) Jose L. Ortiz 123 David Jacobson - 5 Skippylongstocking (KY) Tyler Gaffalione 123 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. - 6 Madaket Road (KY) Mike E. Smith 123 Bob Baffert - 7 Tappan Street (KY) Luis Saez 123 Brad H. Cox - 8 Poster (KY) Junior Alvarado 123 Eoin G. Harty - 9 Captain Cook (KY) John R. Velazquez 123 Todd A. Pletcher - 10 Mika (KY) Manuel Franco 123 Michael J. Maker - 11 White Abarrio (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 123 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. - 12 Brotha Keny (KY) Javier Castellano 123 Jose Francisco D'Angelo - 13 Lightning Tones (FL) Jose E. Morelos 123 Jose M. Castro - 14 Catalytic (KY) David Egan 123 Antonio Sano -
