Gormley

5 Facts

1. Owners Jerry and Ann Moss won the Derby with Giacomo in 2005. (Jerry is a former record executive.)
2. Victor Espinoza is his jockey, and Victor is the winner of 3 KY Derbys -- War Emblem, California Chrome, and Triple Crown winner American Pharoah.
3. Trainer John Sherrif was the trainer of the famous Hall of Fame mare, Zenyatta.
4. He is named after a British sculptor named Antony Gormley.
5. He lives in barn 42, stall 20 -- the same stall that once housed Secretariat!

Horse Bio

The West Coast trail toward the Kentucky Derby is usually a strong one, and Gormley has already proved himself one of the better horses of his generation in California.

Trained by John Shirreffs, Gormley led all the way to win the FrontRunner Stakes (G1) before finishing seventh in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) after bobbling at the start and being caught four wide in midfield throughout.

On his first race as a 3-year-old, he narrowly beat the highly-rated American Anthem after a lengthy duel on the speed in the Sham Stakes (G3), the pair finishing 13 lengths clear of their opponents.

Bred by Castleton Lyons and Kilboy Estate, Gormley is raced by Jerry and Ann Moss. He is by Malibu Moon, sire of 2013 Kentucky Derby winner Orb, out of the Bernstein mare Race to Urga, a winner of five. Her family has found its primary success on turf; Race to Urga’s dam Miss Mambo was third in the French 1,000 Guineas, and her third dam Estrapade was a multiple grade I winner on turf in the U.S., and stayed 1-1/2 miles comfortably.

Gormley has raced predominantly on the speed – the one ace where he didn’t was the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, his only failure – but his pedigree suggests that he has good prospects of staying the Derby trip of 1-1/4 miles.

Gormley was rated an 18-1 chance when betting closed for Pool 3 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager. With solid form in California and a pedigree suggesting he can stay, he rates as one of the better options for punters.