The 6-year-old son of Quality Road rallied from the back of the field as they entered the stretch to win by 1 1/2 lengths over Neoequos. Favorite Touchuponastar finished fourth.
Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. wins his second consecutive Hollywood Gold Cup (G2) with a shipper, following up Skippylongstocking's 2025 victory with a victory May 25 by Forged Steel.
Formidable Man surged down the stretch to claim victory in the May 25 $300,000 Shoemaker Mile Stakes (G1) at Santa Anita Park. He is now a grade 1 winner at 3, 4, and 5.
Thought Process, already a multiple graded stakes winner by Collected, claimed grade 1 status in the May 25 Gamely Stakes (G1T). She won by 2 3/4 lengths over pace setter Rashmi in a final time of 1:47.51 in the 1 1/8-mile turf test.
Helping to justify the decision Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert made to keep a string in Kentucky this year, grade 1 winner Usha added the $220,000 Winning Colors Stakes (G3) to her résumé May 25 at Churchill Downs.
Speaking on the Nick Luck Daily podcast, O'Brien said: "It's a real privilege for us to be asked to train horses for the Juddmonte team. They have had an incredible number of years as a historic operation."