World Beater Springs Upset to Hand Riley Mott First G1 Win

Son of Oscar Performance Takes Saratoga Derby Invitational, Earns Cox Plate Invite

World Beater Emerges as One of Saturday’s Standouts at Saratoga / ADAM COGLIANESE / NYRA

SARATOGA SPRINGS, New York (Special for Turf Diario).- True to his name, World Beater made it a reality Saturday at Saratoga, outdueling a high-class international field—including three European invaders—to capture a thrilling renewal of the GI Saratoga Derby Invitational ($750,000, 1 3/16 miles, turf). The race, restricted to 3-year-olds, also offered a “Win and You’re In” berth to the prestigious G1 Ladbrokes Cox Plate to be held Oct. 25 at Moonee Valley in Australia.

For Riley Mott, son of Hall of Famer Bill Mott, the win carried added weight: it marked the first G1 victory of his young training career, which began just three seasons ago following a lengthy apprenticeship under his father—who, fittingly, saddled Capitol Hill (Into Mischief) to finish seventh.

“This place is part of my childhood. I’ve walked to this winner’s circle a thousand times with my dad, so to experience this here, with my family present, is incredibly special,” said an emotional Riley. “The Bernhards of Pin Oak Stud have supported me from day one, so it means a lot to deliver a moment like this.”

Runner-up last time out to Test Score (Lookin At Lucky) in the GI Belmont Derby, World Beater turned the tables with a performance full of maturity and grit, showing he belonged among the top of his division. Already a stakes winner in the Audubon S. at Churchill Downs, he delivered his breakout performance at exactly the right moment.

With Junior Alvarado picking up the mount as a last-minute replacement for Jaime Torres—whose flight from Atlanta was grounded due to weather—World Beater bided his time from last in the early going. He saved ground around the first turn, threaded through traffic into the stretch, and uncorked a powerful late run. Taking command inside the final furlong, he held off a determined Juwelier (Wootton Bassett) by half a length in 1:52.82 over firm ground.

“I had a perfect trip,” said Alvarado, who’s enjoying a stellar 2025 highlighted by a GI Kentucky Derby and GI Belmont Stakes double with Sovereignty (Into Mischief) for Bill Mott. “Saved ground around the first turn, cut inside again in the second, and when I asked him, he gave me everything. I knew Riley was looking for his first G1—it was really special.”

Juwelier, game in defeat after setting sharp fractions of :23.92, :47.67, 1:11.30, and 1:34.95, held for second, while Test Score flattened out slightly late but stayed on for third, just a head behind the runner-up. The favorite Hotazhell (Too Darn Hot) rallied from well back to complete the superfecta.