HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – He only won by a length, but owner Vinnie Viola may have summed up Forte’s eye-catching victory over Mage in Saturday’s $1 million Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park best in the post-race press conference when saying “All things given, the horse was not supposed to win that race.” It was a statement any knowledgeable racing fan would find hard to dispute. Forte overcame a bad post and eventful trip, turning what still seemed to be certain defeat a furlong from the wire into a defining victory, ultimately wearing down the slow-starting Mage to add the Grade 1 Florida Derby to an already impressive resume and solidify his position as the undisputed favorite heading into the Kentucky Derby on May 6 at Churchill Downs. The win was the sixth in seven career starts for the reigning 2-year-old champion, who is owned in partnership by Viola and Mike Repole, and gave his jockey, Irad Ortiz Jr., his sixth win on the card. Trainer Todd Pletcher admitted that despite Forte’s imposing credentials, and the fact his horse would ultimately go postward a 1-5 favorite, he was worried about the race from the moment Forte drew post position 11 among the surprisingly large field of 12 3-year-olds entered for the 1 1/8-mile Florida Derby one week earlier. “When the draw came out, I knew, statistically, we were at a big disadvantage breaking from post position 11 in races run at a mile and one-eighth at Gulfstream Park,” he said. “I was very concerned about that.” :: KENTUCKY DERBY 2023: Derby Watch, point standings, prep schedule, news, and more And those fears came to fruition seconds after the gate opened and Ortiz found himself having to make the choice of possibly getting parked extremely wide or taking back near the rear of the field in the run into the first turn. Ortiz chose the latter option, but as a result he and Forte only had two horses beaten as the field straightened down the backside. Forte was still racing in seventh position while three wide leaving the half-mile pole, gradually advanced exiting the backstretch, but was readily passed by Mage as the field approached the quarter pole. Forte angled seven or eight paths wide into the stretch to continue his bid but still remained several lengths behind Mage a furlong from the finish before reaching down and finding one last gear, responding to vigorous urging to win, ears up, and going away at the wire. “Irad rode the race he had to ride, it was the only option he had,” Pletcher said. “He fanned out pretty wide down the lane and when he came by me at the eighth pole, he looked beaten. But the horse kept responding and to me, the most impressive part of the race was the last 100 yards. If you told me at the eighth pole he’d win by a length, with his ears pricked, I wouldn’t have believed it. It was a pretty impressive performance.”    Repole, who had won with all three of his previous starters on the card, concurred with his trainer’s assessment. “I thought he was beaten at the eighth pole, and he just kept going and  going,” Repole said. “It was pretty special. I had four horses in today and won the first three, but if we had gone three for four, it would have been the worst three for four day in my life.” Mage ran huge in defeat, almost too good to lose, especially for a horse who had never started until winning his maiden at first asking on Jan. 28. He was making just his third career start and broke flatfooted, as he had four weeks earlier, when finishing fourth, beaten 6 3/4 lengths by Forte, in the Fountain of Youth. With Luis Saez aboard for the first time, Mage raced at the rear of the field for the opening 3 1/2 furlongs following his tardy beginning and had only two horses beaten leaving the backstretch before circling the field with a powerful move on the turn. Mage continued five wide entering the stretch, stuck his head in front nearing the furlong marker, and edged clear in late stretch only to succumb to Forte in the closing strides.  :: Bet the races on DRF Bets! Sign up with code WINNING to get a $250 Deposit Match, $10 Free Bet, and FREE DRF Formulator.  “I was very content with the race,” trainer Gustavo Delgado. “He’s just too laid back of a horse. He wasn’t focused at the start. That’s his problem in the gate. We’ve been working on that and will continue to work on that moving forward. Even after he broke slow, I thought there was a possibility he could still win. I told Luis if he doesn’t break well again, just relax, don’t panic, and he will still run his race.” Mage is all but assured of a spot in the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby, acquiring an addition 40 qualifying points for his second-place finish to go along with the 10 he had already earned in the Fountain of Youth. Cyclone Mischief raced within easy striking distance of Fort Bragg, who set a lively pace following a very slow start of his own, and dueled with Mage for command through midstretch before gradually weakening, finishing another two lengths further back in third.  He also seems likely to have earned his way into the Derby field with 45 qualifying points in the bank.   Mr. Ripple raced forwardly placed and finished fourth, followed, in order, by Fort Bragg, Il Miracolo, West Coast Cowboy, Jungfrau, Nautical Star, Mr. Peeks, Dubyuhnell, and Shaq Diesel. Forte covered the distance over a fast track in 1:48.51 and earned a 95 Beyer Speed Figure, a figure which was lowered by three points after a timing discrepancy was discovered. Forte paid $2.60.  :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.