Magnitude Rocks The Razorback

Making his seasonal debut Saturday, the now 4-year-old Magnitude (Not This Time) looked every bit the classy individual he was as a 3-year-old, beating up on an overmatched field to take down the GIII Razorback Handicap at Oaklawn Park Saturday.

Last year's winner of the GII Risen Star and the GII Clark prepped for bigger things to come Saturday as the 4-5 favorite but had to deal with a pesky second choice in Nu What's New (Munnings) who rocketed into the race off a 12 1/2-length performance facing local allowance runners Feb. 5.

Drawn to the outside with greys Gould's Gold (Goldencents) and 3-1 shot Sandman (Tapit) both to his right, Magnitude was away in good order and went right along to challenge the early speed of Nu What's New who was most comfortable up front. The top pair, sitting just a head apart, lead a more bunched field in their wake with both Woodcourt (Ransom the Moon) and a keen Echo Again (Gun Runner) needing to steady hard off of heels in the opening quarter.

Always seeming comfortable under Jose Ortiz, Magnitude stayed poised just off Nu What's New through the half in :47.38 as a four-wide wall of horses tried to break out behind them. But even as his rival came under a ride turning for the line, the favorite had yet to be asked and, when the time came, had more than an ample response to surge clear to the solo lead through the final sixteenth. Nu What's New was an easy second with Gould's Gold also a comfortable third in a final time of 1:42.10.

“Horse has always had a tremendous amount of talent, but I think today is his best performance to date,” said trainer Steve Asmussen.

Ortiz elaborated, saying: “Beautiful. Great to see him today making his 4-year-old debut. I think the pace was fast and the closers couldn't even get close. I think the other horse (Nu What's New) ran a very good race as well. Today, I think he was stepping up a lot in competition. There's not much to say. It was beautiful to see. He broke well, relaxed and he punched home.”

All things equal, Magnitude is expected to make his next start in the G1 Dubai World Cup at Meydan Mar. 28.

Pedigree Note:
One of 71 stakes winners for top stallion Not This Time, Magnitude is by the Bernardini mare Rockadelic who was picked up for $110,000 at Keeneland November in 2022 by Freddie Bloodstock just one year after foaling this winner. Magnitude himself twice went through the Keeneland ring, first as a weanling for $310,000 before Winchell Thoroughbreds acquired him for $450,000 as a yearling just ten months later.

Rockadelic herself is a daughter of MGISW Octave, a mare purchased by Godolphin's John Ferguson for $4-million through the Fasig-Tipton November Sale in 2007. While Magnitude is for now his dam's sole winner from five to race, Rockadelic has a 2-year-old Bolt d'Oro colt named Gorillaz and a yearling Jack Christopher colt both still to run. She is due back this year to Not This Time for a full-sibling to Magnitude.

Saturday, Oaklawn Park
RAZORBACK H.-GIII, $500,000, Oaklawn, 2-28, 4yo/up, 1 1/16m, 1:42.10, ft.
1–MAGNITUDE, 123, c, 4, by Not This Time
            1st Dam: Rockadelic, by Bernardini
            2nd Dam: Octave, by Unbridled's Song
            3rd Dam: Belle Nuit, by Dr. Carter
($310,000 Wlg '22 KEENOV; $450,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP).
O-Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC; B-Ron Stolich (KY); T-Steven
Asmussen; J-Jose L. Ortiz. $292,500. Lifetime Record:
MGISP, 12-6-2-1, $1,584,365. Werk Nick Rating: A+++.
*Triple Plus* Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Nu What's New, 115, g, 4, Munnings–Heavenly Scat, by Scat
Daddy. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($200,000
Wlg '22 FTKNOV; $300,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP; $300,000 2yo '24
OBSAPR). O-Doubledown Stables, Inc.; B-BlackRidge Stables
LLC (KY); T-James P. DiVito. $97,500.
3–Gould's Gold, 116, h, 5, Goldencents–Goose Martini,
by Bernardini. ($100,000 Ylg '22 FTKOCT). O-Four G Racing,
LLC, Lance Gasaway and Magdalena Racing (Sherri McPeek);
B-Rock Ridge Thoroughbreds, LLC (KY); T-Kenneth G. McPeek.
$48,750.
Margins: 3 3/4, 3 1/4, 10 1/4. Odds: 0.80, 2.40, 9.90.

Also Ran: Echo Again, Woodcourt, Sandman. Scratched: Tap Into This. Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

MAGNITUDE was too classy and opens up in the G3 Razorback at Oaklawn Park for trainer Steve Asmussen with @jose93_ortiz aboard! 🏆

🎥 #TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/fkqO9RSdmI

— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) February 28, 2026