Saffie Joseph Targets GII Oaklawn Handicap with White Abarrio

Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. confirmed Wednesday that White Abarrio will ship to Oaklawn Park to target the GII Oaklawn Handicap on April 18. "White Abarrio is going to come for the Oaklawn Handicap. That's the plan. Dubai is still in play for Skippy, but we haven't come up with a plan yet," Joseph said after the veteran finished second to stablemate Skippylongstocking in the GI Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park on 1/24/2026, a race in which White Abarrio returned a figure of 101.

White Abarrio arrives at Oaklawn with a resume that includes the 2023 GI Breeders' Cup Classic, which he won at Santa Anita on 11/4/2023 in 2:02.87, and a series of high-level victories across the United States. Equibase and pedigree records show the 7-year-old son of Race Day also won the 2025 Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park on 1/25/2025 with a figure of 110, the 2023 Whitney at Saratoga in 1:48.45, and the 2022 Florida Derby. Horseracing Nation lists owners as C2 Racing Stable LLC, Gary Barber and La Milagrosa Stable LLC and breeder as Spendthrift Farm, LLC.

Joseph is managing competing international and domestic options for his stable after the Pegasus result. BloodHorse recorded Joseph saying, "Nothing's signed yet. Just talking it over briefly, something like the Oaklawn Handicap comes into play for one of them," and added that "the Dubai World Cup, but nothing's really been decided yet. We're going to sleep on it and then decide." The Dubai World Cup is scheduled for March 28 at Meydan Racecourse, creating a calendar squeeze between the March international target and Oaklawn's April 18 G2 renewal.

Horseracing Nation's Stakes Tracker lists White Abarrio as a possible for both the 3/28/26 Dubai World Cup and the 4/18/26 Oaklawn Handicap, a detail that sits alongside TDN and BloodHorse reporting which frame Dubai primarily as an option for stablemate Skippylongstocking. The difference in how sources present Dubai underscores a key operational decision for Joseph: whether to split his top older horses between an overseas assignment at Meydan and a domestic assignment at Oaklawn Park.

Field composition at Oaklawn could acquire added lustre if last year's Champion 3-year-old and Horse of the Year Sovereignty (Into Mischief) enters, a prospect TDN flagged as "also possible for the Oaklawn Handicap." A Breeders' Cup Classic winner such as White Abarrio meeting Sovereignty would boost Oaklawn Park's stakes profile and likely drive wagering interest on April 18.

Connections have signaled intent but not final entries, jockey assignments or ship dates; Equibase charts and the trainer's remarks provide the public timeline to monitor. With White Abarrio's recent runner-up performance to Skippylongstocking in the 1/24/2026 Pegasus and a career that includes major wins at Santa Anita, Saratoga and Gulfstream, Joseph's final call between Oaklawn and any international plan will shape the spring campaign for one of the sport's most accomplished older dirt horses.