Golden Tempo has done what no trainer with a horse could ever do: win both the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes. Add to that a 66% career win record, one that few horses in history can match, and that has turned Cherie DeVaux into a superstar. However, things have now come to a head as a medical issue has sidelined the Derby winner.

“He got a little sick, so we’re probably going to end up skipping the Jim Dandy and train right up to the Travers,” DeVaux said of the Curlin colt to FanDuel’s Caton Bredar (via the Paulick Report). “He’s fine, but the timeline isn’t going to suit us to get there, and we’ll continue to do what got us here and put him first.”

That hinders DeVaux’s plans, as Golden Tempo was scheduled to run in the G2 Jim Dandy Stakes on August 1. The three-year-old colt will now miss that and instead go straight into the $1.25-million Travers on August 29. However, DeVaux planned to use the Jim Dandy as a stepping stone.

That’s because the Jim Dandy is a 1 1/8-mile route race, making it the perfect step-up race for the longer 1 1/4 mile Travers. It would have marked a return to the very race course where DeVaux and Golden Tempo lifted their maiden Belmont Stakes, with the Jim Dandy taking place at Saratoga Race Course.

DeVaux gave the Belmont an iconic end, as it was the third and last time the race would occur there. She became the second female trainer to win the race and the first to win two Triple Crown races. However, more pertinently, for Golden Tempo, that means a rather long layoff. The colt hasn’t raced since Belmont, which took place on June 6, yet DeVaux is only slightly worried.

“We’re going to come off a layoff and that wasn’t really by design, but it’s the hand we’ve been dealt. We have all the confidence in Golden Tempo’s abilities, and it’s just up to us and our team to get him there and have him ready to go.”

This is not the first time that DeVaux has put her horse’s health ahead of a race, having skipped the Preakness Stakes to avoid overtaxing Golden Tempo. That plan worked, as the three-year-old colt would eventually win the Belmont Stakes. It’s why, upon her return to Churchill Downs, Golden Tempo’s co-owner, Daisy Phipps Pulito, showered DeVaux with praise.

Golden Tempo’s co-owner Daisy Phipps Pulito reflects on winning the Derby

Going into the 2026 Kentucky Derby, nobody saw the 23-1 outsider winning the whole thing. That’s even if there’s precedent for it (Charismatic, Giacomo, Mine That Bird, and more). And the belief seemed plausible at first, for Golden Tempo sat dead last for most of the race.

That was until the final turn when Golden Tempo and Jose Ortiz turned the screws. DeVaux was shocked to see her colt fly beyond his rivals as if they were training cones. By the end, DeVaux had made history as the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby.

It’s likely what was going through her mind when she returned to Churchill Downs earlier this week. DeVaux wasn’t the only one in attendance, as others involved with Golden Tempo were as well, to collect their Kentucky Derby trophy.

That included his co-owners: Daisy Phipps Pulito of Phipps Stable and Vinnie Viola of St. Elias Stable. And nobody was happier than Pulito as she showered the entire team with praise in an interview with Byron King.

“It is amazing. It’s amazing. I mean, you work really hard, everybody in the industry does. They work so hard to … the ultimate goal, and most times in your life you don’t really accomplish your ultimate goal.

“And this is sort of the finale of it, even though the race was six, seven weeks ago now. Um, but to be here and to see everybody touch the trophy, and for us to get the trophy, it’s just amazing. I’m so proud of, of Cherie and her whole team, Jose Ortiz, everyone at Claiborne who I did the mating with, and they raised the horse.” 

For now, though, those celebrations have given way to patience as Golden Tempo recovers before returning to the track. If DeVaux’s previous decisions are any indication, she’ll gladly sacrifice one prep race if it gives her horse the best chance of another win.