Pavlovian, Bottle of Rouge take Sunland Park Derby, Oaks

Feb 15, 2026 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Pavlovian (gray on the outside) and Express Kid match strides to the wire in the Sunland Park Derby (Photo by Coady Media)

A pair of gray shippers from California plundered the Road to the Kentucky Derby and Oaks races at Sunland Park in New Mexico on Sunday.

The $500,000 Sunland Park Derby featured a climactic photo finish, with Pavlovian just getting the nod over 11-10 favorite Express Kid. Representing the two-time Kentucky Derby-winning team of Reddam Racing and trainer Doug O’Neill, Pavlovian earned 20 points toward the Run for the Roses.

Earlier, there was drama of a different sort in the $250,000 Sunland Park Oaks. Odds-on Bottle of Rouge, trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert for his wife, Jill, drove clear. But she had to survive a stewards’ inquiry and a rival rider’s objection to keep the trophy – and the 20 Oaks points awarded to the winner.

Sunland Park Derby

Express Kid, who scored a massive upset in the Remington Springboard Mile in his first try on the Derby trail, was trying to keep the fairy tale going. Since his big win in December, the rags-to-riches colt sold for $800,000.

Now owned by Paradise Equine, Brad Kleven, and Sharon Kleven, Express Kid also joined a new trainer, Justin Evans. He found himself playing a different role at Sunland, as the hot favorite instead of the unheralded longshot.

For much of the way, Express Kid appeared ready to justify favoritism with another front-running display. He broke alertly from the rail and set a strong pace through fractions of :23.07, :46.40, and 1:10.07.

But unlike his Remington experience, Express Kid had company in the form of Pavlovian. That was a surprising development because Pavlovian had never raced up on, or even close to, the pace before. An equipment change may have been key, as he put the blinkers back on. On the other hand, blinkers hadn’t had such an effect when he wore them earlier in his career, so his newfound sharpness might also be a sign of maturity.

Express Kid briefly shook free of Pavlovian turning into the stretch, only to have him rally and draw alongside. The two California-breds matched strides to the wire, and Pavlovian had his nose down at the right instant.

Under Edwin Maldonado, Pavlovian clocked 1 1/16 miles in 1:42.22 and returned $12.20. His first stakes victory improved his record to 9-2-3-1, $413,450.

Although Express Kid was just denied, he did prove that Remington was no fluke. He added 10 points for this near-miss, doubling his tally to 20.

Bricklin, who chased early, faded down the lane but still placed a clear third (six points). Next came Daneyko (four points in fourth), Forty Twenty (two points in fifth), and the eased Buntus Foclora. Sharons Beach and Way Beyond were scratched.

Bred in the Golden State, Pavlovian has spent most of his time racing against fellow California-breds. In his lone previous appearance in open company, he was a distant second to Desert Gate in last summer’s Best Pal (G3) at Del Mar. He was coming off a third in the Cal Cup Derby at Santa Anita.

Pavlovian handed O’Neill his fourth win in this race. His most recent winner, Slow Down Andy (2022), was himself a Reddam homebred.

Pavlovian’s sire, Pavel, was a Grade 1 winner for the same connections. Pavlovian is out of the Bellamy Road mare Mandy’s Grace, from the further family of current Grade 3 vixen Ragtime.

Sunland Park Oaks

Bottle of Rouge was the class of the field as last year’s Del Mar Debutante (G1) winner who had not raced since her sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1). The Baffert trainee was accordingly bet down to 2-5 favoritism, but her win involved more suspense than anticipated.

In the early going, Cashed (a stablemate of Sunland Park Derby winner Pavlovian) led the way through fractions of :23.85, :46.80, and 1:10.56. Bottle of Rouge was well placed in a stalking spot by jockey Juan Hernandez, who gave her the cue rounding the far turn.

The cleverly-named daughter of champion Vino Rosso struck the front and looked ready to forge clear. Instead, she wandered around as though still green. You might quip that she was running like a drunken sailor!

Bottle of Rouge veered out to the right, cutting across the path of Pashmina and hampering her. As Pashmina was in recovery mode, the maiden Touch of Magic rallied wider out to threaten.

Once Hernandez got Bottle of Rouge back onto to the straight and narrow, she pulled away by 1 1/2 lengths. Touch of Magic finished second (10 points), the same margin ahead of Pashmina (six points for a total of 13). Coffee Connection, who prompted the pace, tired to fourth (four points). Not a Lady (two points) rounded out the top five, trailed by Cashed and In the Aggregate. Ivy Girl was scratched.

Before the race was declared official, the stewards posted the inquiry sign to take a look into the stretch incident. Pashmina’s rider, Cristian Torres, also claimed foul against Hernandez on Bottle of Rouge.

The inquiry took some time, sparking thoughts about the possibility of a disqualification, but the stewards ultimately allowed the result to stand. They ruled that Bottle of Rouge’s waywardness did not affect the order of finish.

Bottle of Rouge covered the mile in 1:35.82 to become a record ninth Sunland Park Oaks winner for Baffert. His honor roll includes Plum Pretty (2011), who went on to land the Kentucky Oaks.

Bred by Kathie Maybee in Kentucky and sold for $100,000 as a Keeneland September yearling, Bottle of Rouge sports a mark of 5-3-1-0, $427,000. Her dam (mother), Blues Corner, is a half-sister (by Bluegrass Cat) to Grade 3 scorer San Pablo.