Quality Road loaded quietly, then proceeded to eclipse his own Gulfstream Park course record for 1 1/8 miles in a runaway performance. Winner last year's GI Florida Derby over this track and trip, Quality Road tracked Past the Point (Indian Charlie) through honest fractions of :23.21 and :46.02. He put away that rival at the top of the stretch, and opened up under minimal urging to post an open length victory at 2-5. The final time of 1:47.49 improved the old track record by 0.23 seconds. Dry Martini was second, while Delightful Kiss prevailed in a photo for third.

“Watching the replay it looked awesome, it felt awesome," Velazquez said. "It was just awesome. Down the lane I wanted to make sure I encouraged him to finish because up until then I hadn’t really done much with him. He started to look round a bit, so I tapped him with the whip to encourage him a little and he just drew away from everybody.

"He just needed a moment (entering the gate) to feel comfortable, and then he was fine.”

“Not much to say after a performance like that," Pletcher said. "Obviously, he ran the kind of race we know he’s capable of and the race set up just as we thought with Past the Point going to the front. He (Quality Road) put himself in good position and they went fast. He’s got a very high cruising speed and can go :46 and 1:09 and still keep going. Not many horses can do that and he was spotting weight to all those horses, six pounds or more.

"The plan for him here all along was to run in the Hal’s Hope and then the Donn, give him a little break, and then point for the Met Mile (gr. I, Belmont) and the big races at Saratoga before the Breeders’ Cup Classic (gr. I) in the fall. Mr. Evans and I will talk about it again, but I think that will be the plan."