Golden Tempo bursts onto the scene with a last-to-first rally in Lecomte

Jan 17, 2026 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Golden Tempo wins the Lecomte at Fair Grounds. (Photo by Hodges Photography)

Phipps Stable and St. Elias Stable’s homebred Golden Tempo announced himself as a major player on the Road to the Kentucky Derby with a last-to-first rally in Saturday’s $250,000 Lecomte (G3) at Fair Grounds.

Golden Tempo spearheaded a one-two finish for trainer Cherie DeVaux, as stablemate Mesquite closed well on the outside to snare second. Both were making their stakes debuts off convincing maiden wins.

Indeed, bettors preferred the DeVaux entrants to the horses coming out of the first Fair Grounds prep, the Dec. 20 Gun Runner S., and made her duo the top two choices in the wagering.

Golden Tempo was particularly impressive in his unveiling earlier on the Gun Runner card. As a son of Hall of Famer Curlin and the Grade 3-winning Carrumba, by champion Bernardini, Golden Tempo is bred for classic distances. He was therefore likely to find a six-furlong maiden too short for him. Yet he uncorked a monster move from last to win decisively.

Stretching out to 1 1/16 miles for the Lecomte would only benefit Golden Tempo. Mesquite already won over this trip, having broken his maiden in a similarly deep-closing style at Churchill Downs.

Jockey Jose Ortiz had ridden them both, but opted to stick with Golden Tempo, who was dispatched as the 2.70-1 favorite. Mesquite ranked as the 4.20-1 second choice.

Golden Tempo once again took time to find his rhythm and settled near the back of the pack early. Mesquite wasn’t as far behind in seventh.

Up front, a contested pace unfolded. Crown the Buckeye and Carson Street sparred, with Chip Honcho, the Gun Runner winner, attending on the outside.

After forcing the issue through fractions of :23.72 and :47.11, Carson Street put his head in front at the six-furlong mark in 1:11.89. He began to edge clear in the stretch, as Crown the Buckeye faded, and Chip Honcho plugged on.

Meanwhile, Golden Tempo found himself last in the 10-horse field entering the far turn. But he soon got into gear. Despite his inexperience, the bay maneuvered to the inside like a seasoned professional and gained momentum.

In deep stretch, Golden Tempo surged to prevail by three-quarters of a length in a final time of 1:44.98. He garnered 20 points toward the Kentucky Derby (G1), propelling him to second on the leaderboard behind divisional leader Ted Noffey.

A @reredevaux exacta in the G3 Leocomte! 🏆 @fairgroundsnola

GOLDEN TEMPO comes up the rail after being last to earn 20 @kentuckyderby points! @jose93_ortiz was aboard! 🌹

🎥 #TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/ZYTBtAaRzS

— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) January 18, 2026

Mesquite also rolled late to collar Carson Street for runner-up honors (10 points). Carson Street ran a fine race in his stakes debut to hold third (six points).

Chip Honcho checked in another three-quarters of a length astern in fourth (four points for a total of 14). Quality Mischief, who raced in tandem with Golden Tempo at the rear early, got up for fifth (two points for a total of four).

Next came Exosome, Stop the Car, Crown the Buckeye, White Tiger, and Thunder Buck. The lone scratch was Ocelli, who ran instead in a maiden on the undercard and placed third.

Now 2-for-2, the Kentucky-bred Golden Tempo has bankrolled $183,000.

Ortiz knew that the Lecomte represented a big step up from his maiden score, and he gave Golden Tempo high marks for making the grade:

“The horse broke a little slow, like he did the first time. Sometimes, as a rider, you get your hands tied. I knew that the track was playing forward (catering to on-pace horses), but if I have a horse like him that doesn't have early speed, what can you do?

“I was just very patient. I followed Mesquite until the three-eighths pole – he went outside, and I went inside. Luckily, I got an opening, and the horse did the rest.

“I’m very impressed,” Ortiz summed up. “I was a little bit worried because you never know how a horse is going to react going two turns for the first time, and he was facing stakes horses for the first time.”

Golden Tempo promises to keep progressing, making him an exciting colt to follow on the Derby trail and beyond.

Hear from @jose93_ortiz and @reredevaux about GOLDEN TEMPO'S win in the G3 Lecomte on the Road to the Kentucky Derby! @JoeyDaKRacing pic.twitter.com/xFaJF0loD4

— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) January 18, 2026