White Abarrio

White Abarrio is a gray horse bred by Spendthrift Farm. He is by the Tapit son Race Day, out of the Into Mischief mare Catching Diamonds. White Abarrio was sold as a yearling at the 2020 OBS Winter Mixed Sale for $7,500 to Jose Ordonez from Summerfield's consignment. The following year, he was a $40,000 purchase by Carlos Perez from the 2021 Ocala Breeders' Sales March Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training, where he was consigned by Nice and Easy Thoroughbreds.^[3] White Abarrio is the only one of Catching Diamonds' five foals to race. Her most recent offspring are a yearling Lord Nelson colt and a Yaupon 2023 filly.^[4]

White Abarrio won by 6+3⁄4 lengths in his first start on September 24, 2021 at Gulfstream Park for Perez. Following the win, the horse was sold privately to Clint and Mark Cornett's C2 Racing Stable, with the original owners retaining a share through La Milagrosa Stable, and the horse was transferred to trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr.^[5] White Abarrio had two more starts, winning against a short allowance field at Gulfstream on October 29 before finishing third in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs.^[6][7]

White Abarrio started his three-year-old campaign with victories in the Holy Bull Stakes and Florida Derby for three-year-olds at Gulfstream, the latter giving trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. his second victory in a Grade I stakes race.^[3] The horse then went to the Kentucky Derby where he finished 16th, beaten by 20 lengths.^[8] White Abarrio made four more stakes starts in the year, with placings in the Grade II Ohio Derby and the Grade I Cigar Mile Handicap.^[2]

After finishing eighth of twelve runners in the Pegasus World Cup,^[9] White Abarrio won an allowance race at Gulfstream at seven furlongs, the shortest he had ever raced since breaking his maiden.^[10]

Two months after the allowance victory, White Abarrio was transferred to trainer Richard Dutrow, Jr. following the temporary suspension by Churchill Downs of trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. after the sudden death of two of his horses. C2 Racing Stable said at the time that they had the utmost confidence in Joseph and his team, but that they made the change to Dutrow based on the ability to manage White Abarrio and the "lack of answers by jurisdictions and operators" with regard to Joseph's status.^[11] The owners then sent him to Belmont Park to contest the Grade I Metropolitan Handicap, where he finished third to eventual Horse of the Year Cody's Wish.^[12]

White Abarrio then went to Saratoga Race Course to run in the Whitney Stakes, where Cody's Wish was among five others in the starting gate. Sent off as the fourth betting choice, White Abarrio entered the first turn wide but settled in to stay within a length of pace setter Giant Game. White Abarrio entered the stretch and began to pull away from the rest of the field under urging by jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. to win by 6+1⁄4 lengths, while Cody's Wish could do no better than third.^[13] The Whitney would also be Dutrow's first Grade I victory since returning from a 10-year suspension imposed by the New York State Gaming Commission.^[4]

At the end of the year, White Abarrio contested the Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita Park. Starting as the favorite, he chased the pace and passed race leader Arabian Knight in the stretch, winning by one length over the Japanese-bred and owned Derma Sotogake.^[14] White Abarrio finished second to Cody's Wish in Eclipse Award voting for American Horse of the Year and American Champion Older Dirt Male Horse.^[15]

After poor finishes in the Saudi Cup in Saudi Arabia and the Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont, C2 Racing Stable announced that White Abarrio would be transferred back to Saffie Joseph, Jr. and be pointed to the John A. Nerud Stakes.^[16] The horse did not run in the Nerud, with Joseph telling Daily Racing Form that they wanted to give the horse "a little more time."^[17] White Abarrio came back at the end of the year in a pair of 7-furlong sprints at Gulfstream, winning an allowance and finishing second in the Mr. Prospector Stakes.^[2]

At the start of 2025, White Abarrio was entered into his second Pegasus World Cup and was made the second choice behind Locked. Settling into fifth place early in the race, he charged on race leader Saudi Crown on the far turn and opened up in the stretch to win by 6+1⁄4 lengths.^[18] Two months later, he won the Ghostzapper Stakes at Gulfstream. Later in the year he finished fourth in the Metropolitan Handicap, the Whitney Stakes and the Jockey Club Gold Cup, all at Saratoga.^[2]

White Abarrio was entered into the 2025 Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile at Del Mar and made the fifth choice on the morning line in the ten horse field.^[19] Immediately before the race, White Abarrio was scratched by the stewards. According to reports, regulatory veterinarians expressed concern about possible lameness in the horse's left front leg. The following day, C2 Racing Stable stated that White Abarrio was doing well, with no soundness issues.^[20] The owners of White Abarrio sued the California Horse Racing Board, Del Mar and the Breeders' Cup in April 2026, alleging that the horse's late scratch from the race violated California regulations and protocols.^[21]

White Abarrio began his seven-year-old season by attempting to defend his Pegasus World Cup win from the previous year, finishing second behind Skippylongstocking.^[22] He was then entered to compete in the Oaklawn Handicap against two of the country's top three-year-olds of 2025: Horse of the Year Sovereignty and Preakness winner Journalism.^[22] Sent off as the third choice in the six-horse field, White Abarrio advanced along the rail with Sovereignty and Journalism, retreating behind the two as the field went around the first turn. Sitting fourth on the backstretch, jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. took White Abarrio outside of Sovereignty and Journalism on the far turn, eventually taking the lead at the eighth pole and drawing away to win by two lengths. His time in the race of 1:47.49 was the fastest since 1995.^[23]