Luck usually travels full circle.
Even if it takes plenty of time. Say, three years.
But it will eventually complete that tumultuous 360-degree journey.
Gustavo Delgado Jr. and his father, Gustavo, will surely nod in agreement about that in talking about the Aug. 29 Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course and their 3-year-old colt The Puma.
Back in 2023, luck smiled on them at the Kentucky Derby (G1) when the race favorite Forte was scratched on race day because of a bruised right foot. That was the same Forte who on two occasions that year had beaten Mage , the 3-year-old trained by the elder Delgado with his son serving as the assistant trainer.
"We expected Mage to run well, but it was different without Forte in there," Delgado Jr. said.
Without the Todd Pletcher-trained Forte in the field, Mage notched a cherished 15-1 upset in the Run for the Roses.
Now turn to the 2026 Kentucky Derby. The Delgados had one of the top contenders in The Puma, who was beaten by a slim nose in the Florida Derby (G1), one of the top bellwether preps for the Run for the Roses..
Then luck revisited them in a rather crushing manner.
On race day, The Puma had a swollen leg that was initially blamed on an infection but turned out to be an abscess.
As the wheel of fate and fortune turned, it was the Delgados who were saddled with the Derby Day misfortune and scratched their grade 1-placed colt the morning of the race.
"After The Puma was scratched, we were rooting for (the Pletcher-trained) Renegade," Delgado Jr. said. "Todd has a good relationship with my dad and we know people who work for him. They were kidding us that we found out how they felt three years ago. You need to have luck stay with you."
Instead, their luck went on tilt.
"It was unfortunate because he was looking so good. Now we've been on both sides of the coin," Delgado Jr. said. "These things happen in horse racing and after being on both sides of it, you understand how people feel."
The leg issue knocked The Puma out of the Triple Crown and made the Midsummer Derby, aka the Travers, the new target for the colt owned by the Delgados' OGMA Investments, High Step Racing, TCC Stables, YNG Stables, and JR Ranch.
"The day we had to scratch out of the Derby, we scratched a line through the Triple Crown," Delgado Jr. said, "and worked on a plan to get to the Travers."
Nearly four months later, it may not have been easy, but The Puma is indeed among a field of 10 in Saturday's $1.25 million Travers.
Though he has just one win in five career starts, efforts such as the Florida Derby and a victory in the Tampa Bay Derby (G3) have the son of the Declaration of War mare Eve of War bred by Hidden Brook Farm and Brian Kahn pegged as the 8-1 co-fourth choice.
"He's doing well. He likes it here at Saratoga. Everything has changed about his energy and demeanor up here," Delgado Jr. said. "It's really been pleasing to see how he has adapted to being up here. He looks like a happy horse."
The biggest question mark surrounding The Puma involves his lone race since the March 28 Florida Derby. He ran fourth by 4 1/4 lengths behind fellow Travers starters Baby Vino and Napoleon Solo in the July 18 Haskell Stakes (G1).
The son of 2021 Belmont Stakes (G1) and Travers winner Essential Quality bobbled at the break, was seventh and last in the early stages, and never posed a serious threat on a sloppy, sealed surface.
Was that the perfect tightener to prepare for a 1 1/4-mile showdown with the two classic winners and a total of four grade 1 victors, including Kentucky Derby runner-up Renegade?
Delgado Jr. believes it was.
"Going into the Haskell, we were fully aware the horse had not run in four months. We had decided the perfect scenario was to bring him back in the Haskell and then take him to Saratoga to prepare for the Travers. So we knew that he might need the race, but the way he was training so well for the Haskell, we thought he could win it," he said.
Knowing what the 3-year-old was up against, the connections saw some silver linings in what happened at Monmouth Park when he was sent off as a surprising second choice in the wagering.
"He didn't disappoint us because of the time off and the track, not just for him but everyone in the field," Delgado Jr. said. "By the time he finally got confidence on the track, it was too late for him. He came back to the barn with a lot of mud in his face. He stumbled at the gate and that added to a series of factors that hurt him. His regular rider who knows him so well (Javier Castellano) was not on him, but will be back for the Travers. Sometimes you have to go with the flow and you realize what he was up against and still only got beat by (4 1/4) lengths. All things considered, he ran very well."
Now, after spending the past month at the Spa under the discerning eye of the elder Delgado, the connections believe the $150,000 purchase at the 2025 Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale is primed and ready for the biggest test of his career.
"We like what we see and the challenge of having a horse that is a contender in a race like the Travers is so great and something to savor," Delgado Jr. said.
While winning the Kentucky Derby bestowed fame on the family stable, it has not turned the operation upside down. The Delgados have only 17 horses in training, but Saturday could change that if they upend the stars of the 3-year-old division with a colt they bought for a relatively small price tag.
"We hoped the barn would attract new owners after winning the Derby, but we only picked up a few. But we'll see what happens now. This is a horse we found ourselves, owned ourselves, trained ourselves. We paid just $150,000, which is a lot of money to have in your bank account, but is below average at the sales. It's tough to beat the big guys when they team up and buy a million-dollar horse, but it's not impossible. I hope sooner rather than later we get the attention of one of the big guys, and winning or doing well in in a race like the Travers would really help."
Can it happen?
Perhaps ... if luck takes a spin in a more coveted direction for The Puma and the Delgados.
