HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Timberlake is on schedule to advance to another Kentucky Derby prep after initially emerging from his winning 3-year-old debut in the Grade 2, $1.25 million Rebel at Oaklawn Park in excellent condition, trainer Brad Cox said on Sunday. Timberlake, the winner of last year’s Grade 1 Champagne at Aqueduct, was making his first start in nearly four months in the Rebel. He stalked the pace before being angled out in the lane by jockey Cristian Torres and going on to a two-length win. For covering 1 1/16 miles on a fast track in 1:44, he earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 93. There were a couple of different takeaways from the race, Cox said Sunday morning after landing in New York City off a trip to the Middle East, where he saddled Saudi Crown to a third-place finish in the $20 million Saudi Cup. “We learned he can handle two turns,” Cox said. “I thought he settled pretty well in the race. He was behind some horses, they were inside and outside of him. Cristian did a good job working out a trip. I think he answered the question that he can handle a two-turn race. :: Bet the races with a $200 First Deposit Match + FREE All Access PPs! Join DRF Bets. “So, we were very pleased with it and he looked amazing this morning from the report I got. He should be back at the Fair Grounds tomorrow and go from there.” Cox said race plans will be determined after discussions with the ownership of Timberlake, a son of Into Mischief who races for WinStar Farm and Siena Farm. “We’ll talk it over,” Cox said Sunday. “I would say the Arkansas Derby or the Blue Grass are the logical spots. We’re just kind of watching, determining if Timberlake needs more time. The Blue Grass would give us another week, but obviously he ran very well there [at Oaklawn]. “He’s a big horse - first run off a layoff - I mean, I expect him to recover from it in good order. We’ll kind of let him tell us over the next two weeks.” The Grade 1, $1.5 million Arkansas Derby is March 30 at Oaklawn and the Grade 1, $1 million Blue Grass is April 6 at Keeneland. Torres, who is the leading rider at Oaklawn, was aboard Timberlake for the first time Saturday with the horse’s regular rider, Florent Geroux, on Saudi Crown in the Saudi Cup. Cox said Saudi Crown is scheduled to travel Monday to Dubai to begin preparations for an intended start in the Godolphin Mile, which is run on the same day as the Arkansas Derby. “We’ll just kind of let things play out,” Cox said when asked about the rider situation with Timberlake. “They’ll sort themselves out as they always do. We’ll kind of let things fall into place in the next month.” At the moment, Timberlake leads all 3-year-olds in points on the road to the Kentucky Derby with 66, having picked up 50 in the Rebel. McPeek runners shine Just three weeks after winning the Grade 3, $800,000 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn with Mystik Dan, trainer Kenny McPeek sent out the second- and third-place finishers in the Rebel. Common Defense rallied for second and earned a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 90. Northern Flame was prominent throughout and finished third, three lengths behind Common Defense. Northern Flame came into the Rebel off an allowance win at a mile. He earned a Beyer of 85 on Saturday and sits 14th in points for the Kentucky Derby with 18. “He ran great,” McPeek said Sunday. “I was a little concerned how far he wanted to go, but he ran super. He’s a lovely horse to be around and ran a great race.” Common Defense had run fifth in the Southwest ahead of the Rebel and McPeek felt he did not care for the wet track in the Southwest. He ran on a fast track Saturday and came up the rail with a strong bid in the Rebel.   “He certainly wants to go farther than that,” McPeek said. “I loved the gallop out, too. I think that the horse certainly fits at a high level. We’re pumped about him, too.” Common Defense has 27 points for the Kentucky Derby and sits fifth on the leaderboard administered by Churchill Downs. McPeek said both horses would now head to Fair Grounds. “I’m probably leaning towards the [Jeff Ruby] or the Louisiana Derby with Common Defense,” McPeek said Sunday. “I haven’t decided. “Northern Flame, he’ll nominate to probably the Arkansas Derby, the Hot Springs. I do think the Lexington is a race that would be ideal for him.” The Hot Springs is a $200,000 race for 3-year-olds at a mile March 23 at Oaklawn. As for Mystik Dan, who is based at Fair Grounds, he remains on course for the Arkansas Derby, McPeek said Sunday. Just Steel, who finished a troubled seventh in the Rebel after breaking from post 11, emerged from the race in good order and is set to move on to the Arkansas Derby, trainer D. Wayne Lukas said Sunday. “When we drew it, I thought it would be very difficult for us, then we had a horrible trip,” Lukas said. “I thought he was training well enough to even win yesterday. The trip and everything was just wrong.” Just Steel had run second in the first two Kentucky Derby preps of the meet, the Southwest and Smarty Jones. He ranks 16th in overall points, with 15. *Time for Truth, who was scratched from the Arkansas Derby, has been entered in an allowance route for 3-year-olds Saturday at Oaklawn. The 1 1/16-mile race also drew Cox trainees Awesome Road and Ethan Energy. Entries were taken Sunday. *The purse for the Rebel was a record, up from $1 million last year. The move comes after Oaklawn bumped up the purse for the Arkansas Derby from $1.25 million. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.