By Michael Domabyl
Six Speed officially punched his ticket to the Kentucky Derby by his finish in the Euro/Middle East Road to the Derby, but would’ve been safely in regardless after acquiring 85 points for his last couple runs.
Racing Record and Notable Performances
Six Speed will be making his first North American start in the Kentucky Derby as he’s raced exclusively in Dubai to this point. His racing career began with a third place finish on debut back in November of last year, but he was able to break his maiden at second asking before 2025 concluded. His 3YO campaign has been productive with back-to-back wins in the UAE 2000 Guineas Trial and the G3-UAE 2000 Guineas itself. In his final prep he found one runner better as Wonder Dean ran him down late in the G2-UAE Derby.
Pedigree and Connections
- Sire: Not This Time
- Dam (Damsire): Browse (Medaglia d’Oro)
- Owner: Brunetti Dugan Stables, BlackType Stables, Swinbank Stables, Steve Adkisson
- Trainer: Bhupat Seemar
- Jockey: TBD (Mickael Barzalona rode in last two)
Despite selling for just $50k as a yearling, Six Speed sports an excellent pedigree. His sire Not This Time is among the top stallions in the U.S. with a stud fee of $250k and his dam was SP while already producing two other six-figure earners in Paxsational and Pipit. His female family is littered with high class horses from the Phipps operation including second dam Daydreaming who won multiple graded stakes on dirt.
His human connections all have some Kentucky Derby weekend experience. The ownership group who bought into him privately before the 2000 Guineas has been seen here in the past with Derby entrant Join in the Dance and Oaks participant Sacred Wish. His trainer, while based in the Middle East, has brought a runner over before when Summer Is Tomorrow set the pace in the 2022 edition.
Final Prep Analysis
- Final Prep Race: G2 UAE Derby at Meydan (March 28th)
- Finish Position: 2nd out of 11
- Final Time: 1:59.19
- Beyer Speed Figure: N/A
Six Speed was stretching out past a mile for the first time in this race and showed his customary early foot to clear off by multiple lengths through most of the race. As they turned for home, only one horse seemed to present a threat as the top two put significant distance between them and the rest of the field. That other horse, Wonder Dean, stayed on through the final furlong much better than Six Speed going on to win by 2.5 lengths with another 6 lengths back to third.
Strengths and Concerns
Strengths: Six Speed has always presented as a horse who is quick from the gate which is a desired attribute to get away cleanly in the bulky Derby field. He possesses a high cruising speed which allows him to get position early in the race.
Concerns: The Middle East road to the Kentucky Derby doesn’t have a precedent for producing a Derby winner and this year’s crop doesn’t appear to be as strong as some in the past. The bigger concern is that Six Speed does his best running on or near the front end and the Derby pace routinely cooks these types of runners.
Expert Opinions and Odds
The overseas markets have this colt projected as one of the longest shots on the board at upwards of 50-1 and at face value, those odds are relatively commiserate with his chance to win. The recent trend is that win odds at the Kentucky Derby at the high end of the market have been compressed (Rich Strike effect). If you like this colt, I’d suggest playing around with him in the multi-race wagers including the special two-day bets that are on offer.
Conclusion
While we’ve had shockers in the Derby before, almost all of them were the result of a closer who gets a pace that melts down. Six Speed’s path to victory would have to be the exact opposite where he’d be allowed to set moderate fractions on the front end. Even with that advantage it would be hard to foresee him outkicking those at the top of the market down the lane. He’s more likely to be last across the wire than finish in the superfecta.
