Kentucky Derby Horse Profile: Great White

Feb 23, 2026 John Mucciolo/TwinSpires.com

Great White holds off Fulleffort in the John Battaglia Memorial (Photo by Coady Media)

The three-year-old gelding named Great White took one step closer to earning a spot in the Kentucky Derby starting gate after recording a neck victory in the $174,825 John Battaglia Memorial S. at Turfway Park on Feb. 21. Trained by John Ennis and ridden by Alex Achard, the gray horse clocked 1 1/16 miles on the Tapeta surface in 1:46.83 en route to his first win against stakes horses. He banked 20 qualifying points on the 2026 Road to the Kentucky Derby challenge series in the process, as well.

'Last race, everything was against us,' Achard said. 'Today, we just came back and knew we had to be more aggressive and closer. He put me right there, and he did it in a good way.'

'There's so much more improvement in this horse,' Ennis said. 'He's obviously by Volatile, who was a quick horse, but (Great White) gets the two turns so well. I don't think distance is going to be a problem with him.'

Fulleffort, Maximus Prime, Baytown Dreamer, and Steel Imperium rounded out the top five in the field and earned Derby qualifying points on a 10-6-4-2 scale.

Owned by Three Chimneys Farm and trainer John Ennis, Great White improved his lifetime mark to 3-2-0-0, $165,932 following his score. The son of Volatile was a winner in his first race when defeating maiden special weight foes by 2 1/4 lengths at Turfway Park on Dec. 12. In his second lifetime race, the horse finished fifth in the Leonatus S. on the same surface.

Great White was bred in Kentucky by Stud TNT, LLC and purchased for $55,000 at the 2024 Fasig-Tipton December Digital Sale. He is the first horse out of the Uncle Mo mare Kelly Bag, and the three-year-old is from the same female line as 1998-99 Brazilian Horse of the Year Sweet Eternity.

He has registered Brisnet Speed figures of 81-79-92 from his three races to date, and he could improve more this campaign due to him being lightly raced. The $1.25 million Blue Grass (G1) at Keeneland on April 4 is a possible next target for Great White.

This girl was hot last night at Turfway, with 4 top pick winners, including a $32 winner in Great White AND an ice cold exacta in the John Battaglia! 🔥😮‍💨 https://t.co/kNmQpztS0u

— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) February 22, 2026