By Christina Bossinakis
HALLANDALE BEACH, FL — To say that the it has been a soul-crushing experience for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. since the Breeders' Cup is an understatement of epic proportions.
After the vet scratch of White Abarrio (Race Day) moments before the GI Dirt Mile, Joseph began to question everything he knew about horses and training. However, at approximately 5:47 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, with the light of day quickly fading from the Gulfstream Park homestretch, Joseph proved that he knows a thing or two about conditioning racehorses when a pair of 7-year-old trainees–Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator) and White Abarrio–streaked across the finish line in the top two positions, giving the trainer his second consecutive victory in the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes.
All week there had been whispers that White Abarrio wasn't the same horse he was last year and his training had been subpar in the days leading up to the race. On the other hand, GIII Harlan's Holiday Stakes winner Skippylongstocking appeared to be coming into the race in good form, however, remained largely in the shadow of several other runners, including morning-line favorite Disco Time (Not This Time) and last year's's GI Curlin Florida Derby hero Tappan Street (Into Mischief)–both trained by Brad Cox.
On race day, the betting public unabashedly went with Disco Time, sending him off at 3-2, while Tappan Street, 6-1 on the morning line, jumped at a slightly more fancied 3.30-1 by race time. Meanwhile, last year's Pegasus victor, White Abarrio, was made the 3.40-1 third choice despite not having won a race since the GIII Ghostzapper Stakes at this venue almost a year ago.
With the field away in good order, recently anointed Eclipse champion jockey Flavien Prat took Disco Time to the front as the towering west coast invader Full Serrano (Arg) (Full Mast) and 'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard Captain Cook (Practical Joke) took up the chase through quick opening splits of :22.25 and :46.08. In the meantime, White Abarrio settled in midpack while 21-1 chance Skipplongstocking was in an unhurried ninth.
Somewhat unexpectedly, Irad Ortiz Jr. gave White Abarrio the signal early, and his sparkling grey mount charged into contention, ranging up in a favorably placed fourth about four paths off the rail. With Full Serrano putting the screws to the front-runner and with Captain Cook still in the hunt, White Abarrio continued his attack on the outside as Skippylongstocking was still a long way behind in eighth but was starting to roll.
Passing the quarter pole, White Abarrio overtook Disco Time, who was fighting hard but starting to wilt following his early exertions and straightening for home, it appeared that a second Pegasus victory was all but assured, as Full Serrano and Disco Time just couldn't seem to make up the ground. However, Skippinglongstocking had been deftly knifing his way through the field, and in what seemed a blink of the eye, was within striking distance an eighth of a mile from home.
In the stretch, White Abarrio tried his heart out to get home, but it was the sure-striding Skippylongstocking who took over late and drove home the 1 3/4-length winner over his stablemate. Full Serrano was a distant third while Captain Cook retained fourth. Disco Time faded to eighth while Tappan Street, who never really got into the mix of things, was last of the 12.
“Everything really went to plan,” affirmed winning rider Tyler Gaffalione. “Saffie told me just to ride him with a lot of confidence, be patient with him, trust in his ability and he was there for me every step.”
He continued, “The race set up the way we needed to. I was able to find a nice spot inside. He traveled well for me. Coming around the turn, he just kept building. And he just kept responding. When we got into the far turn, I had to split horses, and as soon as I did, he took a nice deep breath and started moving forward.
“I'm so thrilled for the team, and so happy for the horse. He really deserved this Grade I win.”
A one-time Classic contender, Skippylongstocking won a pair of graded races at three in addition to finishing third in the GI Belmont Stakes earlier that season. Seventh in the Pegasus World Cup the following winter, he subsequently won the GII Charles Town Classic before finishing third in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile.
While not finishing in the 2024 renewal of the Pegasus, he nonetheless won three of eight starts that year, including the GII Oaklawn Handicap and repeated at Charles Town. Back to take third in last year's Pegasus, he won Tampa's GIII Challenger Stakes for the third consecutive year and subsequently added the GII Hollywood Gold Cup at Santa Anita. Following a pair of inexplicably flat performances in the GI Whitney Stakes and Charles Town Classic, he ended the 2025 season on the right foot, winning the 8 1/2-furlong Harlan's Holiday.
“It's amazing–I love Skippy” said Joseph. “At seven years old, he was doing better than ever. The Harlan's Holiday was a big race. It was either, he was going to show up or he was going to be retired. He showed up, but he did better since then. I had all the confidence in him going into this race.”
And while not garnering a win with last year's winner, both Joseph and Ortiz, Jr. were obviously pleased with White Abarrio's performance. However, for Joseph, the defeat was bittersweet.
“I just wanted Abarrio to come back safe and sound,” said a visibly relieved Joseph. “After coming off a scratch [in the Breeders' Cup Mile] that's all I wanted. If he came back good, that was a good day. We didn't win a race the whole day. I just wanted him to be safe. It's such an emotional day.”
Ortiz, Jr. added, “He ran an amazing race. He ran his race. He has a big heart. I trust him, I trust Saffie. He hadn't run in a long time, so I think it's not easy to come back here at a mile and an eighth and run against these horses. To do what he did, it's amazing. I'm so happy for this horse. He's a very cool horse. He's given me a lot through the years. I don't want to see him get beat. He's a fighter.”
Saturday's result has the winning conditioner thinking big.
“We did talk about this year if he ran well in the Pegasus, we might go to Dubai,” he said, referring to the $12-million G1 Dubai World Cup on Mar. 28. “The owners are going to have to decide. Dubai is going to come into play a lot. We'll talk it over.”
...And the Agony of Defeat
Previously undefeated in five starts, Juddmonte's Disco Time came in looking to prove that the Grade III winner could win at the highest level. It just didn't materialize as his connections had imagined.
“Disappointed,” said Cox when asked about his feelings after the race. “Disco Time was a little antsy in the gate and kind of forced to go forward. They went quick and he didn't get any separation into the far turn. He just couldn't get any separation and go forward.”
Prat added, “I had a good trip. Down the backside he relaxed well and then they came at me going into the turn and he just wasn't going anywhere at that point.”
As for stablemate Tappan Street, Cox explained, “I thought Tappan Street was sitting a good trip. I was waiting for him to show up on the far turn and he never did.”
Jockey Luis Saez echoed the sentiment.
“He put me in a beautiful spot. That was the spot we were looking for, but he got tired. He didn't give me that finish. They were moving up front and that's why I thought we had a big chance at the five-eighths, but when I asked him he wasn't there.”
Pedigree Notes:
While garnering her first Grade I winner with Skippylongstocking, War Chant's daughter Twinkling is also responsible for stakes winners and Grade III placed Moonlite Strike (Liam's Map) and Olivia Twist (Mshawish). Carrying a foal by Arabian Knight, Olivia Tist brought $500,000 at last fall's Keeneland November Sale.
More recently, Twinkling is also represented the unraced 3-year-old filly Nahla (Authentic)–a $550,000 Keeneland September purchase by Shadwell Farm in 2024–and a 2-year-old filly by Not This Time, who brought $1 million from Repole Stable at Keeneland last September. Barren on a cover by Curlin in 2025, she was most recently bred back to that stallion.
WOW! 👀 SKIPPYLONGSTOCKING ($45.20) wins the $3M Pegasus World Cup (G1) under @Tyler_Gaff after overtaking stablemate WHITE ABARRIO for a @SaffieJosephJr exacta in the @BreedersCup #WAYI at @GulfstreamPark. Congratulations to owner Daniel Alonso and all the connections. pic.twitter.com/FotFSb4WI0
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) January 24, 2026
Saturday, Gulfstream
PEGASUS WORLD CUP INVITATIONAL S.-GI, $2,903,800, Gulfstream, 1-24, 4yo/up, 1 1/8m, 1:48.49, ft.
1–SKIPPYLONGSTOCKING, 123, h, 7, by Exaggerator
1st Dam: Twinkling, by War Chant
2nd Dam: Unhurried, by Out of Place
3rd Dam: Laughing Erin, by Irish Castle
1ST GRADE I WIN. ($15,000 Ylg '20 KEESEP; $37,000 2yo '21
OBSAPR). O-Daniel Alonso; B-Brushy Hill, LLC (KY); T-Saffie A.
Joseph, Jr.; J-Tyler Gaffalione. $1,686,000. Lifetime Record:
36-13-3-7, $5,461,250. *1/2 to Olivia Twist (Mshawish), SW &
GSP, $321,579 and Moonlite Strike (Liam's Map), SW & GSP,
$175,205. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–White Abarrio, 123, h, 7, Race Day–Catching Diamonds,
by Into Mischief. ($7,500 Ylg '20 OBSWIN; $40,000 2yo '21
OBSMAR). O-C2 Racing Stable LLC, Gary Barber and La
Milagrosa Stable LLC; B-Spendthrift Farm, LLC (KY); T-Saffie A.
Joseph, Jr. $562,000.
3–Full Serrano (Arg), 123, h, 7, Full Mast–Serra Do Mar (Arg),
by Jump Start. O-Hronis Racing LLC; B-Stud Haras Gran Muneca
A. (Arg); T-John W. Sadler. $281,000.
Margins: 1 3/4, 5HF, 1 1/4. Odds: 21.60, 3.40, 9.50.
Also Ran: Captain Cook, British Isles, Banishing, Lightning Tones, Disco Time, Mika, Poster, Brotha Keny, Tappan Street. Scratched: Catalytic, Madaket Road. Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
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