From his earliest lessons at Pin Oak Stud, Incredibolt (Bolt d'Oro) has handled everything asked of him with ease. Now, his team is hoping that trend continues in the GIII Holy Bull Stakes.
Pin Oak's Director of Farm Operations and Property Michael Hardy said that the GIII Street Sense Stakes winner has not missed a beat since his win at Churchill Downs. Following a brief layoff on the farm, the Riley Mott trainee moved to Palm Meadows and has put in a series of six weekly drills, including a bullet four furlongs in :48.45 on Jan. 7.
“He was quite a mature 2-year-old and we're very happy with how he's doing,” he shared. “Riley hasn't done a whole lot of works with him. He's just getting him tuned up.”
Incredibolt drew the rail for his 3-year-old debut on Saturday.
The Pin Oak team of Hardy, advisor Clifford Barry and farm trainer Joss Saville secured Incredibolt for just $75,000 at the 2024 Keeneland September Sale. The Bolt d'Oro colt, who is a half-brother to MGSP Fire On Time (Not This Time), represented a sire the Pin Oak team still firmly believes in.
“We've always had confidence in Bolt d'Oro and we're breeding three or four mares to him this year,” said Hardy. “Incredibolt was an attractive, athletic colt and looked like a solid, two-turn type of dirt horse.”
Incredibolt's physical and mental maturity was evident early in his breaking and training at Pin Oak.
“He just seemed to have that natural class and ability,” Hardy described. “He was forward, but not the type of horse that wanted to be aggressively trained. You could tell he had a lot of speed. When he went to Riley, he continued on that path. He was a very level-headed, mature 2-year-old.”
After finishing fourth in his debut at Ellis Park, Incredibolt relished stretching out to a mile in September at Churchill Downs, breaking his maiden by two lengths. In the GIII Street Sense Stakes, he broke last and chased a modest pace before taking the lead at the sixteenth pole, defeating the favored Kenny McPeek trainee Universe (Global Campaign) by 1 3/4 lengths.
Incredibolt training at Pin Oak as a 2-year-old last May | Pin Oak Stud/Mary Ellet
Hardy said that beyond Incredibolt's obvious two-turn frame, he believes the colt's tactical speed will prove advantageous going forward.
“He's plenty big and is scopey enough that it's no surprise that he wants to go past a mile,” he explained. “I don't think he necessarily has to come from off the pace. He did that in the Street Sense, but he was much closer to the pace in his maiden win. He's a horse that can settle. He has a great mind and is very confident within himself.”
Incredibolt's Street Sense victory held special significance as the final win celebrated by Pin Oak owner Jim Bernhard before his sudden passing last November.
Jim, a Louisiana business executive, and his wife Dana purchased the historic Pin Oak Stud property in 2022. They quickly made an impact with 2023 GI Haskell Stakes winner Geaux Rocket Ride (Candy Ride {Arg}) and their program has continued to grow in the years since. The Bernhards' son Ben is involved in the operation as the farm's vice president.
Hardy explained that while the loss of Jim has been deeply felt, Dana and Ben are dedicated to maintaining the operation's momentum.
“We lost a leader and it has been hard on everyone on the farm, but in terms of vision and legacy, there has been no change in direction,” he said. “Jim, Dana and Ben have always been very active owners and they love to see their horses run.”
In addition to Incredibolt's bid at Gulfstream on Saturday, Pin Oak and Riley Mott will send out Multiverse (Practical Joke) in Race 9. The 4-year-old gelding will be making his turf debut in the one-mile allowance, looking to break through after ending last season with three consecutive runner-up finishes.
“He worked really well on the grass in his second-to-last work,” said Hardy. “He's a very quick horse and he's stretching out a little in distance, but we think on the grass he'll get the mile comfortably.”
Pin Oak's racing stable currently has 68 horses, including 31 juveniles in training at the farm. Hardy said this marks their biggest crop of 2-year-olds to date.
Returning stable stars for 2026 include Parchment Party (Constitution), the winner of last year's GIII Belmont Gold Cup Stakes and Birdstone Stakes.
In November, the Bill Mott trainee made history as the first U.S.-trained horse to travel to Australia for the G1 Melbourne Cup. While the two-mile distance proved a difficult task and Parchment Party finished 20th, Hardy reported that the son of Constitution was no worse for wear from his travels. After a layoff at the farm, the 5-year-old is back in training at Payson Park.
“He has just started back on the work tab in the last two weeks,” Hardy reported. “We'll take him back to the dirt and look for some of the marathon-type dirt races. He has come back as strong and fit as ever.”
World Beater wins the GI Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes | Sarah Andrew
World Beater (Oscar Performance) was another Pin Oak stable standout last year. After breaking his maiden on Kentucky Oaks Friday, the Riley Mott trainee reeled off wins in the Audubon Stakes, GI Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes and GIII Old Dominion Derby. He was also second to last weekend's GI Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational Stakes winner Test Score (Lookin at Lucky) in the GI Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes.
“World Beater came back to the farm after his race at Colonial,” said Hardy. “He's in training here at the farm. His main targets this year are all going to be late summer and in the fall, so we wanted to give him a good long break and let him mature. He'll go back to Riley here in the next two or three weeks. He's a horse with a lot of talent and we're hoping for a big year for him.”
The Pin Oak team is equally high on Stars and Strides (American Pharoah). The winner of last year's Saranac Stakes stayed in light training at Bill Mott's base at Payson Park following an eighth-place finish in the GIII Hill Prince Stakes in November and just returned to the work tab last week.
“He's a horse with a lot of speed and we hope there are some big races for him this year, trying to keep them around that mile distance,” noted Hardy.
This weekend the Pin Oak team, led by Dana and Ben Bernhard, heads to Gulfstream in hopes of solidifying Incredibolt's status as a top Derby prospect. A successful showing in the Holy Bull would be a poignant milestone for the family, marking a major step toward seeing their first Kentucky Derby starter.
“Getting any horse to the Derby at any time is an achievement and a very difficult feat, so for everyone here at Pin Oak it would be very special,” said Hardy. “Incredibolt is a horse that the Bernhards have a lot of pride in. They were there for his first start at Ellis and Riley has always spoken very highly of him.”
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