The Gulfstream Park spur of the Kentucky Derby trail reaches fever pitch Saturday, February 28 with the Grade 2, $400,000 Fountain of Youth Stakes. The 1 1/16-mile race offers 50-25-15-10-5 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to its top five finishers, meaning the winner is virtually assured a spot in the Run for the Roses.
A deep field of 11 has entered the 2026 Fountain of Youth including Champagne (G1) winner Napoleon Solo, Swale winner Solitude Dude, Mucho Macho Man winner Commandment, and impressive new shooters like Jackson Hole and Chief Wallabee. With such a big and competitive field, this will be one of the best betting opportunities of the winter meet at Gulfstream.
The Fountain of Youth winner in 2025, Sovereignty, went on to win the Kentucky Derby, the Belmont, and the Travers. Other Kentucky Derby winners who won the Fountain of Youth on the way include Tim Tam (1958), Kauai King (1966), Spectacular Bid (1979), Thunder Gulch (1995), and Orb (2013). Two other recent Belmont winners, Dornoch (2024) and Union Rags (2012), also won this race.
Who will add their name to this list in 2026? Read on to find out, and to see the best places for sports and horse racing betting online!
Fountain of Youth Stakes Field
This is the official field for the 2026 Fountain of Youth Stakes including post positions, trainers, and jockeys:
- Jackson Hole (Todd Pletcher/John Velazquez)
- Rockies Balboa (Dale Romans/Luis Saez)
- Talkin (Danny Gargan/Joel Rosario)
- Commandment (Brad Cox/Irad Ortiz, Jr.)
- Bravaro (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Tyler Gaffalione)
- Chief Wallabee (Bill Mott/Junior Alvarado)
- Napoleon Solo (Chad Summers/Kendrick Carmouche)
- Bull by the Horns (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Micah Husbands)
- Global Aviator (Rohan Crichton/Joe Bravo)
- Solitude Dude (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Flavien Prat)
- Lost Money (Juan Arias/Javier Castellanos)
Closer to the race, Gulfstream will release a morning line. Those can often be a good guide to horses who are expected to take money or not on race day, but they are no guarantee of a price on race day if you bet on track. On track, odds are not final until the horses fly out of the gate, so they can swing late.
Fortunately, there is a better way: you can maximize your profits by betting the Fountain of Youth online. Online sportsbooks feature fixed-odds wagering on major horse races, meaning you can lock in the best price just by placing a bet, and then be confident in what you’ll get when your horse wins.
Fountain of Youth Stakes Online Betting
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Fountain of Youth Stakes Handicapping
Now that you know where to bet, it’s time to get handicapping. Let’s meet the field and pick the winner of the 2026 Fountain of Youth Stakes!
Fountain of Youth Stakes Best Bet
Commandment is the best bet in the Fountain of Youth. There’s plenty of speed drawn into the Fountain of Youth – and though Gulfstream has a speed-friendly reputation, if there’s enough speed it can set up well for a horse sitting just off the pace. This is exactly the sort of trip Commandment worked under Irad Ortiz when he won the Mucho Macho Man over the same course, and they can get it again.
Two turns is the question, as Commandment has not gone further than the one-turn mile. But, Into Mischief has sired three Kentucky Derby winners and there’s enough at least middle-distance form in the pedigree to suggest that, even if he doesn’t turn out to be a Classic type, he should have no problem with this modest 1 1/16-mile route.
More Fountain of Youth Stakes Contenders
Solitude Dude is another horse stretching to two turns for the first time, but like Commandment, he has enough middle-distance influence in his pedigree to suggest 1 1/16 miles will suit even if the Kentucky Derby trip won’t. He has a lot of early speed, but stalked early in the Inaugural two back, suggesting he can work a nice outside-stalking trip this time. Under big-race superstar Flavien Prat, Solitude Dude is probably who everyone will have to catch in the lane.
Napoleon Solo hasn’t raced since October, so it’ll be tough to tell what we’re going to get. But, he’s a Grade 1 winner who didn’t set a hoof wrong as a juvenile, and he ran his races fast enough to suggest that if he picks up where he left off, he’ll be able to keep pace against the other horses here. Though he won the Champagne on the front end, where he’d have company, he kept on at a fast pace and he showed tactical speed on debut, giving him options.
Fountain of Youth Stakes Exotics Horses
Bravaro comes out of a good second in the Holy Bull (G3), the local prep for this race. It’s the most fruitful prep for this race in recent years, and horses who run well often run well again in this spot. He has been able to sit a few lengths back and rally into sharp paces in his last two starts, the kind of trip he can work out this time, and he stands to move forward second off the lay for trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr.
Talkin disappointed last out in the Remsen, where he was thoroughly defeated by Paladin and Renegade, a pair of horses who have continued to shine on the Derby trail. But, his last two efforts were much better and 1 ⅛ miles may have been too much, too soon last out. He’s had a few months to grow up, he’s not mired wide this time like last time, and his pedigree is all route – in short, he can move forward and run late at a price for trainer Danny Gargan.
Free Fountain of Youth Stakes Picks
These are your free expert picks for the 2026 Fountain of Youth Stakes:
- $20 to win - #4 Commandment
- $1 exacta box - #4 Commandment with #7 Napoleon Solo, #10 Solitude Dude
- $0.50 trifecta key - #4 Commandment with #5 Bravaro, #7 Napoleon Solo, #10 Solitude Dude
- $0.20 superfecta key - #4 Commandment with #3 Talkin, #5 Bravaro, #7 Napoleon Solo, #10 Solitude Dude
