Pegasus World Cup 2025: Stronghold can start 4-year-old year right

The biggest race of the winter in the American handicap division is coming up Saturday, January 25 at Gulfstream Park: the $3 million Pegasus World Cup (G1). The race drew a full field of the top two-turn dirt horses in the country to go 1 ⅛ miles. At stake is not only the huge purse, but top billing in the older dirt division going into the new racing year.

The race takes its name from the striking statue of Pegasus and Dragon that looms over Gulfstream Park. Though the race only happens for the ninth time in 2025, major stars such as Arrogate, Gun Runner, Knicks Go, and National Treasure have already etched their names into its history.

Keep reading to find out who has the best chance to join the list of winners in 2025, and to find out the best places to bet real Las Vegas odds on the Pegasus World Cup.

Pegasus World Cup Post Positions

This is the official field for the 2025 Pegasus World Cup including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning lines:

1. Mixto (Doug O’Neill / Frankie Dettori) – 10/1
2. Saudi Crown (Brad Cox / Florent Geroux) – 9/2
3. Newgrange (Jose D’Angelo / Emisael Jaramillo) – 20/1
4. White Abarrio (Saffie Joseph, Jr. / Irad Ortiz, Jr.) – 3/1
5. Crupi (Todd Pletcher / Luis Saez) – 15/1
6. Stronghold (Phil D’Amato / Antonio Fresu) – 10/1
7. Steal Sunshine (Bobby DiBona / Dylan Davis) – 30/1
8. Vitality (Harold Ladouceur / Rajiv Maragh) – 50/1
9. Mystik Dan (Kenny McPeek / Brian Hernandez, Jr.) – 8/1
10. Skippylongstocking (Saffie Joseph, Jr. / Tyler Gaffalione) – 10/1
11. Locked (Todd Pletcher / John Velazquez) – 5/2
12. Power Squeeze (Jorge Delgado / Javier Castellano) – 30/1

These morning-line odds are a good guide to which horses are likely to take betting action or not at the track on race day, but they are no guarantee of a price if you play at the track. On track, the odds are not final until the gates fly open on Saturday. 

Your best bet is to play the Pegasus World Cup at an online sportsbook. That way, you can lock real Las Vegas odds on the Pegasus and other major races all year long just by placing a bet! Then, you know exactly what you’re going to get when your horse crosses the finish line first, no matter what the late action was!

Locked	+250	+250	+250
White Abarrio	+300	+300	+300
Saudi Crown	+450	+450	+450
Mystik Dan	+800	+800	+800
Mixto	+1000	+1000	+1000
Skippylongstocking	+1000	+1000	+1000
Stronghold	+1000	+1000	+1000

Pegasus World Cup Bets 

Our Las Vegas betting experts have done the homework to find the best places to bet horse racing online, including the Pegasus World Cup.

Take a few minutes to learn about our top reviewed betting sites. Every site we recommend offers trusted payouts and real Las Vegas odds. Each one also offers benefits that suit different kinds of bettors best. Our reviews can help you figure out which ones will boost your bankroll most based on your betting style. Then you’ll be ready to win on Pegasus day and beyond!

Pegasus World Cup Favorites

Locked (+250) 

• A Grade 1 winner at 2, he missed most of last year but after a win in the Cigar Mile (G2) last out he is on the rise again. He has talent, but he drew a difficult outside post and has yet to even try 1 ⅛ miles, and now he has to face a lot more seasoned competition.

The value is in betting against him.

White Abarrio (+300) 

• The 2023 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner, he lost his final prep for this race but that was only a seven-furlong affair and he continued running on after a bad start. The extra distance helps, and if he breaks well from a good post he can get his stalk-and-pounce trip.

Expect a solid effort from this Gulfstream regular.

Saudi Crown (+450) 

• Speed is a good thing to have at Gulfstream, and here’s your speed of the speed. Though he disappointed at the Breeders’ Cup, he got a nice confidence-builder in New Orleans. If he breaks well from near the inside, he has a chance to save all the ground and lead this field around.

His speed makes him a major contender.

Pegasus World Cup Mid-Priced Horses

Mystik Dan (+800) 

• The 2024 Kentucky Derby winner was a no-show in his return in the Malibu (G1) last month. The extra two furlongs in the Pegasus can help him along and trainer Kenny McPeek isn’t afraid to race good horses into shape, but he has yet to face older company and will likely be overbet as the Kentucky Derby winner.

Likely an underlay, even at a middle price.

Stronghold (+1000) 

• Even though he is a Grade 1 winner at 1 ⅛ miles, he comes out of a good second in the seven-furlong Malibu. He has tactical speed from a good gate, and he has shown that he can carry strong form to tracks all over the country.

Best value bet in the 2025 Pegasus World Cup.

Mixto (+1000) 

• He upset the Pacific Classic (G1) last year, but that day he was able to get a pressing trip from an outside gate. Here, he drew the inside, and he isn’t as fast as other horses like Saudi Crown early.

Unlikely to get the trip he needs at this class.

Skippylongstocking (+1000) 

• He is competing in the Pegasus World Cup for the third time. He is a hardy competitor at the Grade 2 and Grade 3 level, but even his past form at Gulfstream isn’t enough to catapult him into contention against truly top handicap horses.

Wait for him to get a class drop down the line.

Pegasus World Cup Long Shots

Crupi (+1500) 

• This closer consistently fires. He doesn’t tend to win unless he outclasses the field, something that isn’t the case here. But, he comes with a late effort everywhere he goes. He rode that to a third-place finish in the 2024 Pegasus and could do something similar again.

Use in lower rungs of exotics.

Newgrange (+2000) 

• After his form tailed off last year, he has been shipped east and moved to the barn of Jose D’Angelo. He has not raced since last July, and though he has graded-stakes form at 1 ⅛ miles, he is not likely to make the top over others in here, which takes away his best tool.

This will be a little too much, especially first off the bench.

Power Squeeze (+3000) 

• The second filly after Stellar Wind to even try the Pegasus, she has home track advantage. She also has good tactical pace, which could help her handle the challenges of the far-outside gate. It’s also a positive that she comes off a good try at a mile; it attests to her good form as she stretches out to this much better distance.

Consider her as the big bomb for lower rungs of exotics.

Steal Sunshine (+3000) 

• A dependable Grade 2 or Grade 3 type at Gulfstream, he was well beaten while trying Grade 1 company at this distance in the Stephen Foster last year. He usually runs his race, which makes him a perfectly useful horse to lean on at the right level. But, this race is deeper than the Foster.

This is a tough assignment.

Vitality (+5000) 

• He emerged as a dirt horse when trying the surface for the first time in the Prince of Wales, the second jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown, and winning it last year. However, he was well beaten in the Harlan’s Holiday in his first try against older horses, and he has never run a race anywhere close to fast enough to be a threat in the Pegasus.

Will be the longest shot on the board for good reason.

Watch the Pegasus World Cup 

Pegasus World Cup Day at Gulfstream will feature a total of ten stakes races iincluding the Pegasus World Cup, Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1), and Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G2). The feature races will be shown on NBC and their streaming affiliate Peacock from 4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. EST, with all Gulfstream Park races on FanDuel TV.