dunn preview – g3 govenator cup
California (CA)
Saturday, January 17, 2026 — 3:00 PM EST | Race ID: 3670311
The Govenator Cup
Grade 3 – Purse $150,000
Restricted to 3 Year Olds
7.5 furlongs on Dirt
Today we are at Santa Anita Park Race Track in sunny Arcadia California for the G3 Govenator Cup, a seven and a half furlong race on the dirt featuring some of the best three year old horses the Sim has to offer. They’re racing for the winner’s share of the $150,000. This is a closely matched group so jockey tactics and racing luck will probably play important roles in determining the winner.
Here is a closer look at the field:
#1
dinosaur warrior
tfon17 barn
m wallace 5/1
Out of the tfon17 barn is this three year old JACKIE’S WARRIOR colt out of the Sim Mare COOKIECREAM CADILL. He has finished in the money in four of his nine seven career starts including three wins. He comes in HOT on a streak of three straight wins with the most recent coming at the “Holy Quibble Dirt Juvenile” where he busted 94 speed and beat JAGUAR CRUISER by more than a length.He will look to go to the front early and might be hard to catch and could extend his streak to four.
#2
pharoah bone
whaleboner barn
k proehl 7/1
Out of the whaleboner barn is this three year old AMERICAN PHAROAH colt out of the Sim Mare BONES IN FLIGHT. He ended his two year old season on New Year’s Eve with a win at a seven furlong Allowance Race in Oregon where he ran career best 89 speed and beat AMERICAN WAR by three lengths. He is making his first Stakes start here and is coming back on less than three weeks rest which could negatively affect his performance against this competitive field of ten.
#3
louisville go home
atw21 barn
v jef 8/1
Out of the atw21 barn is this three year old BEDUIN FIGHTER gelding out of the Sim Mare SPIDER GWEN. He makes his fifth straight Graded Stakes start going back to late July of last year and his best result in those races was a third place finish at the “G2 Stanford”. He comes in off a last place finish at the eight and a half furlong “G3 Sam’s Town Delta Jackpot” where he jogged 81 speed and was never in the mix. He should like the distance here and will be well positioned as they make the turn for home.
#4
the bone eater
ksparrow2 barn
l radzinski 5/1
Out of the ksparrow2 barn is this three year old scratch bred QUALITY ROAD (x GIANT’S CAUSEWAY x DEPUTY MINISTER) colt. He has finished in the money in all three of his starts and comes in off back to back wins. Last time out he ran 88 speed over a seven furlong fast track in Pennsylvania and he beat GHOST TOWN SHUFFLE by just a neck. He will look to run near the middle of the pack and should have a good chance of finding a spot on the board.
#5
knife my holidays
coagulate9 barn
k keyser 13/1
Out of the coagulate9 barn is this three year old CYBERKNIFE coltout of the Sim Mare HOLIDAY MAKERS. He debuted as a two year old in mid September and finished third at an eight and a half furlong Allowance Race. He followed that up by breaking his Maiden on Halloween when he ran 85 speed over a seven furlong track and edged out GIANT’S JET by a head. Last time out he was third again at a six and a half furlong race in Surrey where his speed dropped back to 78. He will make the BIG jump to Grade 1 here and will need a bump in speed to compete with this group.
#6
she stole my kash
nykashbred barn
f gossett 4/1
Out of the nykashbred barn is this three year old WAR FRONT coltout of the Sim Mare SHE SPENDS MY KASH. Our most experienced entry will make his eighth start here and seventh straight Stakes start of any kind and third straight Graded Stakes start. Two back he ran 90 speed and was third at the six furlong “G1 Breeders Bowl Dirt Sprint” and last time out he ran 91 speed and was twelfth at the eight and a half furlong “G1 Movieland Futurity”. He should like the drop in distance here and will garner lots of attention at the betting windows and should have a good chance of finding a spot on the board.
#7
svenskar
veeman12 barn
j sands 7/1
Out of the veeman12 barn is this three year old scratch bred NYQUIST (x PIONEER OF THE NILE x GONE WEST) colt. He has finished in the money in three of his six career starts with one win. He made the jump to Graded Stakes three back when he finished eighth at the “G2 Stanford” and he followed that up with a sixth place finish at the “G1 Hopeless Stakes”. Last time out he ran career best 88 speed at was runner-up at the seven furlong “Terrordega Dirt Juvenile” where he was beaten by THE QUIET KING. He might be a nice long shot pick to find a spot on the board.
#8
no lies told
cdog100 barn
r simcox 9/2
Out of the cdog100 barn is this three year old scratch bred LIAM’S MAP (x WILD AGAIN x BROAD BRUSH) colt. He comes in off back to back runner-up finishes at the “Tudors Beers Dirt Juvenile” and the “Akula Dirt Juvenile” where he blazed 94 speed at this same distance. He goes off as one of the favorites and will be well positioned as they come down the stretch and has the speed to get the win here.
#9
spontaneous wish
atw20 barn
f allen 15/1
Out of the atw20 barn is this three year old VOLATILE colt out of the Sim Mare COUNT YOUR WISHES. He has made just two starts in his young career and broke his Maiden last time out when he ran 87 speed at this distance at an Allowance Race in Dubai where he beat EL TORO MACHO by a length. He comes in well rested and might be a nice surprise as he competes out of gate number nine.
#10
price lookup
2wide barn
w kewmwa 12/1
Out of the 2wide barn is this three year old HONOR CODE colt out of the Sim Mare CASHIER. He has made just one start in his career and he broke his Maiden there when he blazed 91 speed at this same distance and track and beat OUYEN FANCY by more than four lengths. That speed should play here and he has a good chance of finding a spot on the board at a Graded Stakes race in just his second start.