The Puma Upsets G3 Tampa Bay Derby, Earns 50 KY Derby Points

The Puma rallied from the far outside to edge clear by three-quarters of a length in the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Derby at Tampa Bay Downs, earning 50 Road to the Kentucky Derby points and vaulting to second on the leaderboard with 56 points. The chestnut colt, ridden by Hall of Famer Javier Castellano and trained by Gustavo Delgado, finished the 1 1/16-mile test in 1:43.23 before an on-track crowd of 9,070.

The Puma broke alertly from the far outside post, settled off the pace down the backside and steadily advanced on the far turn, reaching the leaders at the top of the lane, putting his head in front, then dueling with Further Ado and Canaletto before edging clear at the wire. Further Ado, trained by Brad Cox and ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr., was second, and Canaletto, the 1.50-1 favorite ridden by Flavien Prat, finished a head behind him in third. TDN-style charting shows The Puma carried 122 pounds.

Pace fell to long shot Redland Rebels, listed at 38.80-1, with Junior Alvarado setting early fractions of 23.07 and 46.48 seconds for the first half-mile on the fast main track, a sequence that set up the late run by The Puma. The final margin, the fractional pace and Castellano’s patient ride combined to produce the upset in the nine-horse field.

The 50 points for winning the Tampa Bay Derby give The Puma the bulk of the 56 points he now has after previously earning six points for a third-place effort in the Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs on Feb. 7. That total places him behind Paladin, listed atop the leaderboard with 60 points, and is described as sufficient to secure a spot in the starting gate at Churchill Downs on May 2. The Derby points distribution for the Tampa Bay Derby was 50-25-15-10-5 to the top five.

Pedigree and purchase details underline the colt’s upside: The Puma is by Essential Quality out of Eve of War, bred by Hidden Brook Farm and Brian Kahn in Kentucky, and was a $150,000 purchase by Marquee Bloodstock, agent, at the OBS April 2-year-old sale after RNAing for $95,000 as a yearling at Keeneland September. He is the first graded stakes winner from Essential Quality’s first crop, a stallion standing in Kentucky for $25,000. TDN chart notes list The Puma’s lifetime record at 3 starts: 1-1-1 and career earnings of $244,280, with the winner’s share shown as $210,000.

Connections celebrated the breakthrough, with assistant trainer Gustavo Delgado Jr. saying, “Even before the first time he ran, I remember, 'This is a Derby horse,' I kept telling everyone.” Co-owner Randy Guy of High Step Racing added, “I don't know how much more excited we could be.” The Tampa Bay Derby purse is reported differently in available race-line summaries, listed as $350,000 on chart-style entries with a $210,000 winner’s share, while some accounts list $400,000; the official chart should be consulted to reconcile that discrepancy.

The Puma’s victory keeps Tampa Bay Derby’s reputation as a springboard intact, joining past participants who reached the Kentucky Derby winner’s circle, and now sends connections who were part of the 2023 winner back toward Churchill Downs for a shot at a repeat appearance.