Outwork hangs on to win Wood, clinch spot in Kentucky Derby

NEW YORK (AP) Outwork lived up to his name with a narrow victory in the $1 million Wood Memorial at cold and rainy Aqueduct on Saturday and earned a spot in the Kentucky Derby in four weeks.

The victory by a head over 81-1 long shot Trojan Nation was worth 100 Derby qualifying points for Outwork, a 3-year-old son of Uncle Mo trained by Todd Pletcher and owned by New Yorker Mike Repole.

Ridden by John Velazquez, Outwork raced second behind Matt King Coal for most of the 1 1/8-mile race, then took over in the stretch and held off a strong challenge along the rail from Trojan Nation, who came into the race without a win but earned 40 Derby points to all but qualify.

Shagaf, the 9-5 favorite in the field of eight, had a poor start from the rail and finished fifth.