Rowan Ward
The best two-turn dirt horses in the country line up Saturday, January 28 at Gulfstream Park for the Pegasus World Cup! Twelve horses and two also-eligibles have entered to go 1 ⅛ miles on the Gulfstream dirt, and they will fight for one of the biggest purses on the horse racing calendar: $3 million! It isn’t just rich for the horses, though, as it’s also one of the best horse racing betting opportunities of the year!
Originally known as the Donn Handicap, the race became the Pegasus World Cup in 2017. It is named after a 100-foot-tall Pegasus statue at Gulfstream Park. Since that name change, the winners have been illustrious: Arrogate, Gun Runner, Knicks Go, and Life is Good have all won the race. Who will add their name to this list? Keep reading to find out!
Where to Bet the Pegasus World Cup
Before you start trying to pick a winner in the Pegasus World Cup, you need to know where to bet the Pegasus World Cup online. It can seem confusing because there are many choices for online betting. However, our online betting experts can help you find the right place to play! Their knowledge of the top online sportsbooks will help you make the right choice quickly and confidently.
All of our recommended sportsbooks have the basics of a great online betting site: a smooth user experience, trusted deposit and cash-out features, and real Vegas odds. Many also offer great online betting apps, and they also offer excellent bonuses and incentives. Taking a few minutes now to choose the site with the best incentives for you can mean hundreds or even thousands of dollars in bonuses to build your bankroll!
The Best Online Racebooks
Take the time now to learn about the best sportsbook sign-up bonuses in the business. Once you’ve signed up for one or more sportsbooks that give you what you want, get ready to have a profitable weekend betting the Pegasus World Cup!
Pegasus World Cup Horses and Odds
This is the official field for the 2023 Pegasus World Cup including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning lines:
- Proxy (Michael Stidham/Joel Rosario) – 9/2
- Simplification (Antonio Sano/Paco Lopez) – 15/1
- Ridin with Biden (Robert Reid/Emisael Jaramillo) – 20/1
- White Abarrio (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Tyler Gaffalione) – 10/1
- Defunded (Bob Baffert/Irad Ortiz) – 6/1
- Art Collector (Bill Mott/Junior Alvarado) – 10/1
- Skippylongstocking (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Jose Ortiz) – 5/1
- Get Her Number (Peter Miller/Luis Saez) – 15/1
- Last Samurai (D. Wayne Lukas/Frankie Dettori) – 20/1
- Cyberknife (Brad Cox/Florent Geroux) – 5/2
- Stilleto Boy (Ed Moger, Jr./Mike Smith) – 30/1
- O’Connor (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Javier Castellano) – 10/1
- Hoist the Gold (Dallas Stewart/Brian Hernandez, Jr.) – Also Eligible
- Endorsed (Michael Maker/Julien Leparoux) – Also Eligible
On track, odds change until the moment the horses break from the gate. Fortunately, if you bet the race at an online sportsbook, you can lock in your odds the moment you bet. This means that when you see an overlay on a live horse, you can guarantee yourself those excellent odds!
 |  |  |
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| Cyberknife | +175 | +175 | +150 |
| Defunded | +500 | +500 | +375 |
| Proxy | +600 | +600 | +500 |
| Art Collector | +700 | +700 | +600 |
| Skippylongstocking | +750 | +750 | +700 |
| White Abarrio | +800 | +800 | +750 |
Free Pegasus World Cup Picks
Now that you have your account at a great online sportsbook, you are ready to handicap the 2023 Pegasus World Cup!
Pegasus World Cup Favorites
Favorites tend to win the Pegasus World Cup: though long shots have run in the money, every edition has been won by either the favorite or second favorite on the tote board.
This is good news for Cyberknife. He comes out of a great second-place run in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, a live source of Pegasus winners. Furthermore, the stretch out to 1 ⅛ miles suits him perfectly. Expect him to sit close to the pace, take over in the lane, and prove difficult to overhaul in the end.
Skippylongstocking looked better than ever when winning the Harlan’s Holiday (G3), the local prep for the Pegasus World Cup. He is a two-time winner at 1 ⅛ miles, and he is a tactically versatile horse who is well proven over the Gulfstream course. He looked great in the prep, his first start against older, and is primed for a big four-year-old year in the Pegasus and beyond.
Proxy broke a long underneath streak in stakes races when winning the Clark (G1) back in November. This is a deeper field and Gulfstream will be a new challenge for this son of Tapit. But, he has never missed the board at a mile and a sixteenth and he has a good record of hitting the board in races of this quality. Consider him for an underneath share again here.
In a field this big, sometimes you have to draw lines in the sand. Take a stand against Defunded. Though he is in his best form yet, he has yet to prove himself shipping out of California, and he will have a lot to battle against up front. It makes sense to back someone who has a bit more stalking form against good horses.
Intriguing Price Horses
White Abarrio ran a strong third in the Cigar Mile (G1) going one turn at Aqueduct. Though he has to turn the tables on Get Her Number from that effort, he should. Unlike Get Her Number, White Abarrio has well-proven 1 ⅛-mile stamina. He also has a strong history at Gulfstream, including a score in the Florida Derby (G1) last year.
Stilleto Boy has made a career of sitting near the pace and chasing on for a share at a good price. He did that last year in the Pegasus World Cup, when finishing third behind Life Is Good and Knicks Go. That race proved he could handle Gulfstream Park well enough to get a piece, and he merits sprinkling in the deeper exotics since he could very well do that again.
Pegasus World Cup Free Picks
Now that you know where and how to bet the race online, here are the best bets for Saturday’s 2023 Pegasus World Cup:
- $20 to win – #10 Cyberknife
- $1 exacta key – #10 Cyberknife with #4 White Abarrio, #7 Skippylongstocking
- $0.50 trifecta key – #10 Cyberknife with #1 Proxy, #4 White Abarrio, #7 Skippylongstocking
- $0.20 superfecta – #10 Cyberknife with #1 Proxy, #4 White Abarrio, #7 Skippylongstocking, #11 Stilleto Boy
