Further Ado, 20 lengths the best against maidens in his first route last fall at Keeneland, will look to impress once again at the Lexington oval where he battles eight other 3-year-olds as the 8-5 morning-line favorite in the $1.25 million Blue Grass Stakes (G1) April 4.
The richest race on Keeneland's spring calendar, the Blue Grass drew three horses ranked in BloodHorse's Derby Dozen: Class President (fifth), Further Ado (eighth), and Reagan's Honor (12th).
Other notable entrants include Talkin, Great White, Creole Chrome, and Ottinho—all of whom are either stakes placed or stakes winners. Two maidens, Ocelli and Moonstrocity, complete the field in the 1 1/8-mile dirt race. Ottinho and Ocelli are cross-entered in Saturday's Wood Memorial Stakes (G2) at Aqueduct Racetrack.
WinStar Farm, First Go Racing, and CHC's Class President and Spendthrift Farm's Further Ado are graded stakes winners, with the former edging Silent Tactic by a nose in the March 1 Rebel Stakes (G1) in his most recent start and the latter taking the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (G2) last fall at Churchill Downs after his blowout score at Keeneland. Further Ado ran second to eventual Florida Derby runner-up The Puma in his lone start as a 3-year-old when returning from a short layoff in the March 7 Tampa Bay Derby (G3).
Trainer Todd Pletcher, a four-time Blue Grass winner, gives a return ride on Class President, a son of Uncle Mo, to fellow Hall of Famer John Velazquez. The rider and trainer entered this week with 499 stakes wins together during a long association going back to the 1990s.
Velazquez and Pletcher teamed to win the 2005 Blue Grass together with Bandini, then the 2015 race with WinStar Farm's and Stonestreet Stable's Carpe Diem . Pletcher's other Blue Grass wins came with the Edgar Prado-ridden Monba in 2008 and with the Luis Saez-ridden Tapit Trice in 2023.
Brad Cox, trainer of Further Ado, is also a past Blue Grass winner, taking the 2021 running with dual champion Essential Quality , who showed via the disqualification of Medina Spirit in the Kentucky Derby (G1) before capturing the Belmont Stakes (G1) five weeks later.
Cox said of Further Ado, "He's doing very well, and I feel like he's moved forward since the Tampa Bay Derby. He obviously likes Keeneland and we're looking forward to giving him an opportunity in a grade 1 on Saturday."
Reagan's Honor, an up-and-coming son of Honor A. P. owned by West Point Thoroughbreds, David Ingordo, and Gabriel "Spider" Duignan, races in stakes company for the first time after winning a pair of routes against easier competition at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots this winter. Those races followed a debut fourth in a sprint there.
The Cherie DeVaux trainee nearly broke the Fair Grounds track record for 1 1/16 miles in his last start Feb. 19 when he blitzed the distance in 1:42.02. Jose Ortiz, aboard for that race, returns aboard the colt, who figures to show early speed, as should Class President and Creole Chrome.
The Blue Grass, the final race on Saturday's 11-race card at Keeneland at 6:22 p.m. ET, has produced 23 Kentucky Derby winners, though none since Street Sense ran second in the 2007 Blue Grass ahead of winning the first leg of the Triple Crown. It offers qualifying points toward the May 2 Run for the Roses on a 100-50-25-15-10 scale to its top five finishers.
There is a threat of rain in the long-term weather forecast for Saturday. High temperatures are expected to climb into the upper 70s.
Keeneland, Saturday, April 4, 2026, Race 11Entries: Toyota Blue Grass S. (G1)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 Talkin (KY) Joel Rosario 123 Danny Gargan - 2 Class President (KY) John R. Velazquez 123 Todd A. Pletcher - 3 Great White (KY) Alex Achard 123 John Ennis - 4 Reagan's Honor (KY) Jose L. Ortiz 123 Cherie DeVaux - 5 Creole Chrome (LA) Tyler Gaffalione 123 Joe Sharp - 6 Further Ado (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 123 Brad H. Cox - 7 Ocelli (KY) Joseph D. Ramos 123 D. Whitworth Beckman - 8 Moonstrocity (KY) Jose E. Morelos 123 Jena M. Antonucci - 9 Ottinho (KY) Flavien Prat 123 Chad C. Brown -
