Confessional and Renegade Headline Kentucky Derby Prep at Tampa Bay Downs
A pair of promising 3-year-olds, Confessional and Renegade, are set to clash with seven other rivals in the $250,000 Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs on February 7, 2026. The 1 1/16-mile contest is a key stepping stone on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, offering qualifying points to the top five finishers on a 20-10-6-4-2 basis. The stakes-filled card is co-headlined by the $125,000 Suncoast Stakes for 3-year-old fillies, featuring the return of 2025 Demoiselle Stakes (G2) winner Zany.
Confessional, trained by Brad Cox, will be making his second career start after finishing a close second in an allowance optional claiming race at Gulfstream Park on January 2. He was defeated by five lengths by a horse who subsequently won the Holy Bull Stakes (G3). This race marks a significant test for the colt, as he stretches out in distance beyond 7 furlongs for the first time. Previously, Confessional broke his maiden at Keeneland on October 16, winning by three lengths at the same 7-furlong distance. A notable change for the Sam F. Davis will see Confessional racing without blinkers.
The pedigree of Confessional adds to his allure, being a son of two-time Eclipse Award winner Essential Quality, who Cox also trained to victory in the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) and the 2021 Belmont Stakes (G1). Jockey Flavien Prat is slated to ride Confessional for the first time.
Standing in Confessional’s path is Renegade, a colt trained by Todd Pletcher who remains a maiden after three starts but has demonstrated graded stakes potential. After a third-place finish in his debut, Renegade appeared to win a maiden special weight at Aqueduct Racetrack on October 17 by a head, but was subsequently placed second behind the highly regarded Paladin following an inquiry into interference in the final sixteenth of a mile. The two horses met again in the Remsen Stakes (G2) on December 6 at Aqueduct, where Renegade finished second to Paladin once more.
Renegade is a son of seven-time leading sire Into Mischief and races for owners Robert and Lawana Low, who also bred the colt, and Repole Stable. Pletcher, a record seven-time winner of the Sam F. Davis Stakes, will also be represented by Epic Desire, a Tampa maiden winner.
Earlier on the card, the Suncoast Stakes will showcase Zany, a heavily favored filly trained by Pletcher, as she makes her debut as a 3-year-old. Zany concluded her 2-year-old season with impressive victories in both of her starts, breaking her maiden at Gulfstream Park on November 2 over 6 1/2 furlongs by 6 1/2 lengths. She then extended her reach to 1 1/8 miles in the Demoiselle Stakes (G2) at New York, winning by 8 1/2 lengths and earning a 90 Equibase Speed Figure and an 89 Beyer Speed Figure.
Pletcher has also entered Kadabra, who broke her maiden in her second start on May 3 at Aqueduct but has not raced since, returning to the track for a fifth-place finish in an allowance optional claiming race on January 3 at Gulfstream Park. Cox will saddle Life of Joy, a daughter of Gun Runner and winner of the 2025 Rags to Riches Stakes, who finished fourth as the favorite in the Golden Rod Stakes (G2) at Churchill Downs on November 29. Life of Joy will race with blinkers added for the Suncoast.
The Suncoast Stakes, like the Sam F. Davis, offers qualifying points toward the Kentucky Oaks (G1) on May 1 at Churchill Downs, using the same 20-10-6-4-2 point scale. The eight-filly contest is scheduled as the fifth race on the card.
