Kentucky Derby Horse Profile: Talk to Me Jimmy

Feb 10, 2026 John Mucciolo/TwinSpires.com

Talk to Me Jimmy wins the Withers Stakes at Aqueduct. (Photo by Coglianese Photos)

SEI Thoroughbreds and trainer Rudy Rodriguez’s three-year-old Talk to Me Jimmy led early and drew off late on his way to a superb, 11-length triumph in the $200,000 Withers S. at Aqueduct on Feb. 6. The New York-bred son of young sire Modernist negotiated 1 1/8 miles in 1:51.68 under the guidance of Ruben Silvera, and earned 20 qualifying points on the 2026 Road to the Kentucky Derby challenge series, as well.

Grittiness, Ottinho, Schoolyardsuperman, and Star Sweeper came next in that order, and they received Kentucky Derby qualifying points on a 10-6-4-2 basis.

“I told Ruben, ‘we got the inside horse [Schoolyardsuperman] that has a lot of speed, but we’ve got speed, too,’” Rodriguez said. “I told Ruben to take it from there, but don’t let him slow it down. Let’s see what we’ve got. Today was a test to find out what we’ve got, and I think he passed the test.”

“We always thought he wants to go long. He’s a nice, solid little horse,” his trainer added. “We picked up this horse at Keeneland, him and Exhibition Only and a couple other ones, and we’ve been very lucky. He had a little setback in the beginning, but they [the owners] have been very, very patient.”

It was all TALK TO ME JIMMY at 12/1 in the Withers S. on the Road to the @KentuckyDerby! 🤩🌹

Ruben Silvera was in the irons for trainer Rudy Rodriguez. pic.twitter.com/g1qM9DO4qe

— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) February 6, 2026

Talk to Me Jimmy made his first start on Sept. 26 on the dirt at Aqueduct and came home third in a one-mile run. In his second appearance on Nov. 9, the bay colt took the lead soon after the break and led at every point of the race en route to a 5 1/2-length victory. His career line now reads 3-2-0-1, $163,600.

The winning horse is the first black-type winner out of the Trippi mare named Prairie Trip, who won 10 races and $174,959 in her lifetime. He was most recently purchased for $31,000 at the 2024 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Talk to Me Jimmy took a big step forward in the Withers when earning a strong Brisnet Speed rating of 96 in his first run around two turns, and he seemingly has room for further improvement since he is lightly raced with just three career races to his credit. The $750,000 Wood Memorial (G2) at Aqueduct on April 4 is a potential next stop for the talented three-year-old.