Saturday’s Race Card Features the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park

The race card at Oaklawn Park this Saturday features the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes. Trainers such as Brad Cox and Steven Asmussen have three-year thoroughbreds entered in this race, and the prize purse is $1 million dollars.
There is my favorite, a trio of legitimate contenders and a live longshot highlighted in the Rebel Stakes.

The Favorite

Breaking in the No. 5 gate, Giant Mischief is trained by Brad Cox and ridden by jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. He placed first or second in three races as a two-year-old, including taking second in the 2022 Remington Springboard Mile on Dec. 17. Giant Mischief is going up in distance and grade, but he is bred to go over a mile on dirt. The Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park is the perfect debut for his three-year career.

Three Legitimate Contenders

The legitimate contenders are led by Reincarnate, breaking from the No. 6 gate in the Rebel Stakes. The Kentucky-bred colt finished first in the Sham Stakes at Santa Anita Park on Jan. 8 in his three-year-old debut. He also won a one mile Maiden Special Weight race on Nov. 25 at Del Mar. Reincarnate has gone one mile or longer in his five events, taking first or second place in every race.
Another strong contender is Confidence Game. Started in the No. 7 gate, he has Keith Desormeaux as his trainer and James Graham as the jockey. Sired by Candy Ride, he was in the money in five of six races in his career. He finished third at Fair Grounds in the Grade 3 Lecomte Stakes on Jan. 21 of this year. Instant Coffee won that race, and Two Phil’s placed second.
Powerful is trained by Steve Asmussen, and he has raced at Saratoga, Keeneland, and Churchill Downs as a two-year old. As a three-year old colt, he will start in the No. 2 position in the Rebel Stakes with jockey Isaac Castillo on board. He closed out his juvenile campaign with a win in the Ed Brown Stakes at Churchill Downs on Nov. 26. As a son of Nyquist, he could finish in the money in this race on Saturday.

The Live Longshot

Starting from the No. 1 gate in the Rebel Stakes, Verifying has Brad Cox as his trainer and Florent Geroux as his jockey. He won his first time out as a three-year old, taking first place in a one-mile Allowance race at Oaklawn on Jan. 14 in 1:37.23 over Gun Pilot and Two Eagles River. Sired by Justify, he has raced one mile or longer on dirt in his last three events. Verifying could keep it close in the backstretch as long as he gets offs to a strong start in the Rebel Stakes.