Kentucky Derby Horse Profile: Stronghold

Feb 19, 2024 John Mucciolo/TwinSpires.com

Eric Waller and Sharon Waller’s homebred Stronghold picked up 20 points on the 2024 Road to the Kentucky Derby leaderboard following his 2 1/2-length tally in the $400,000 Sunland Park Derby on Feb. 18. The Phil D’Amato trainee completed 1 1/16 miles on the fast main oval in 1:42.64 with Antonio Fresu in the stirrups.

'It's only his second race going long; he's still learning but hopefully this race should do him a load of good,' his conditioner said.

STRONGHOLD wins the Sunland Park Derby and earns 20 points on the Road to the #KyDerby! 🌹 pic.twitter.com/JsyzjbAc6C

— Kentucky Derby (@KentuckyDerby) February 19, 2024

Stronghold made his first appearance at Ellis Park on Aug. 27 and finished a solid runner-up in a six-furlong maiden special weight dash. The son of Ghostzapper moved to the one-mile distance for his second encounter and graduated by 1 1/2 lengths beneath the Twin Spires at Churchill Downs.

A second-place result behind the impressive Nysos came next in the Bob Hope S. (G3) at Del Mar on Nov. 19. In the final start of his very good juvenile campaign, the bay missed by a half-length when second in the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2). His lifetime line now reads 5-2-3-0, $377,200.

The winner was bred in the Bluegrass State and is the first black-type winner out of the Jimmy Creed mare Spectator, who came out victorious in the 2017 Sorrento S. (G2) and later checked in third in the 2018 Santa Anita Oaks (G1).

Stronghold has registered Brisnet Speed numbers of 85-87-89-99-95 from his handful of lifetime tries to date. He does not possess the sturdiest of catalog pages and will be a question mark as the distances increase this season, but the colt has been quite genuine while facing above average competition to this stage of his development, and he has given every impression of being capable of outrunning his pedigree.

Future plans for the colt have yet to be solidified, but following the race D’Amato stated, “Probably one prep we have not determined yet, and hopefully that prep will be just to the Kentucky Derby.”