Kenny McPeek duo Liberty National, Sleepingonfreedom drill for Southwest Stakes

Kenny McPeek put two of his Southwest Stakes hopefuls through routine maintenance at Fair Grounds when Liberty National and Sleepingonfreedom each worked four furlongs on Monday, Feb. 2, tuning up for the Grade 3, 1 1/16-mile Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park. The drills matter because the Southwest awards a total of 42 Kentucky Derby qualifying points on a 20-10-6-4-2 scale and is an early proving ground for 3-year-olds chasing the first Saturday in May.

Liberty National covered four furlongs in 48.2 seconds, a move HRN noted as the fifth-fastest of 53 works at the distance that morning. HRN reported: “Liberty National, 10-1 on the morning line for the Southwest, worked four furlongs in 48.2 seconds. Most recently second behind Chip Honcho in the Gun Runner Stakes at Fair Grounds, Liberty National drew post 7 in the Southwest.” The son of Maxfield arrives off a runner-up effort to Chip Honcho in the Gun Runner Stakes on Dec. 20 and had worked four furlongs at Fair Grounds 10 days earlier, indicating a consistent short-range maintenance pattern designed to sharpen gate speed and race readiness.

Sleepingonfreedom logged a 49.6-second four-furlong move at the same Fair Grounds session. HRN reported: “Sleepingonfreedom, a 30-1 long shot from post 14 in the Southwest, worked the same distance at Fair Grounds in 49.6 seconds. He was last seen in the afternoon finishing fourth behind Strategic Risk in the Smarty Jones at Oaklawn.” Sleepingonfreedom’s post 14 draw and 30-1 morning-line price mark him as a long shot, but a clean work day keeps him in play for buyers of upset potential and exotics.

The Southwest drew a field of 13 expected starters after the scratch of morning-line favorite Litmus Test. America’s Best Racing wrote: “This year’s edition of the $1 million Southwest Stakes Feb. 6 at Oaklawn Park drew a highly competitive field of 3-year-olds, with 13 horses expected to start following the scratch of morning-line favorite Litmus Test. A total of 42 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve are on the line, distributed to the top five finishers on a 20-10-6-4-2 point scale. Since 1991, the Southwest has produced three Kentucky Derby winners. Lil E. Tee finished third in 1992 before going on to upset the Derby at odds of 16.80-1, while Smarty Jones in 2004 and most recently Mystik Dan in 2024 completed the Southwest/Derby double. This year’s 1 1/16-mile renewal shapes up as a compelling betting race and offers an early glimpse into the first Saturday in May with fewer than 100 days remaining until the 152nd running of the Kentucky Derby.”

Lightweight context from the workout circuit underlines the national Derby-futures picture. HRN’s roundup included Chief Wallabee, who worked four furlongs in 50.4 seconds at Payson Park, ranking 17th of 24 works there, and AMR called out other Southwest runners such as Baytown Dreamer and Soldier N Diplomat, with Jose Ortiz aboard Soldier N Diplomat.

One detail to confirm going into Oaklawn: the original report described both McPeek runners as having worked a “bullet.” HRN’s ranking shows Liberty National was fifth-fastest of 53 and HRN did not label either work a bullet, so verification of Fair Grounds’ official work chart is recommended before publishing the “bullet” designation. With 42 Derby points at stake and a $1 million purse, Liberty National and Sleepingonfreedom’s recent drills are meaningful positioning moves; Oaklawn’s Southwest will reveal whether those motions translate into a points-earning performance on Feb. 6.