Coal Battle keeps rolling in Rebel

Feb 23, 2025 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Norman Stables’ Coal Battle won his third straight scoring race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby in Sunday’s $1.25 million Rebel (G2) at Oaklawn Park. Adding the Rebel’s 50 points to his previous scores in the Remington Springboard Mile and Smarty Jones S., the Lonnie Briley trainee now has 70 in all to top the leaderboard.

Coal Battle has yet to be favored in any of his Kentucky Derby (G1) preps, and the blue collar runner was greatly underestimated by the betting public in the Rebel. Dispatched as the seventh choice at 11.90-1, he was overshadowed by such leading players as 5-2 favorite Sandman, 5.90-1 chances Madaket Road and Tiztastic, and 6.70-1 Speed King.

Speed King, Sandman, and Tiztastic were the respective top three in Oaklawn’s most recent points race, the Jan. 25 Southwest (G3). Madaket Road garnered support as a shipper for eight-time Rebel winner Bob Baffert.

Yet Coal Battle upstaged them all, signaling that he warrants respect going into the March 29 Arkansas Derby (G1). So does regular rider Juan Vargas, who has correctly discerned the right tactics throughout the Derby trail. The son of Coal Front employed closing tactics in the Springboard Mile, but opportunistically set the pace in the Smarty Jones.

In a speed-laden Rebel, Vargas reverted to more patient handling. Coal Battle was well placed in a ground-saving fifth early as four rivals scampered ahead.

Madaket Road blasted to the front through fast splits of :22.47, :45.72, and 1:10.94. That was too much for his pursuers Innovator, Smoken Wicked, and Speed King, who were spent forces rounding the far turn.

At the same time, Coal Battle was taking off. Vargas angled him toward the outside as the field advanced down the backstretch, and he was in the clear to launch his circling move on the turn.

Just when Madaket Road had hopes of opening up and putting the race away, he was suddenly accosted by Coal Battle. Madaket Road gamely dug in and tried to fend him off, but Coal Battle just kept coming and edged away by 1 1/4 lengths.

Coal Battle wants to go to Louisville! He grabs 50 Kentucky Derby points in the G2 Rebel! 🌹

Lonnie Briley trains the 3YO colt and Juan Vargas was aboard!

Four wins in a row for Coal Battle! 🌟

🎥 TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/PAGvJdRIFF

— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) February 23, 2025

After finishing 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.01, Coal Battle paid $25.80 while becoming a millionaire with $1,188,875 in earnings. His career resume now reads 7-5-0-0, but both of those losses came on turf. Coal Battle is unbeaten on dirt, and his current winning streak began with the Nov. 8 Jean Lafitte S. at Delta Downs before he joined the Derby trail.

Madaket Road’s runner-up effort was worth 25 points for a total of 31. Sandman offered his typical late rally for third (15 points), giving him 29 all told. The maiden Publisher worked his way into fourth (10 points), and Tiztastic took fifth (five points for an overall tally of 19).

Admiral Dennis, who blew the start, rallied for sixth. Seventh-placer Hypnus encountered some traffic in his stakes debut. Brereton’s Baytown, Dreaminblue, Speed King, Hot Gunner, Innovator, and Smoken Wicked concluded the order under the wire.

Bred in Kentucky by Hume Wornall and Jay Adcock, Coal Battle was a $70,000 purchase at the Texas Thoroughbred Association Yearling Sale. He’s out of the stakes-placed Midshipman mare Wolfblade, which gives his pedigree multiple repetitions of 1977 Triple Crown legend Seattle Slew.