Pegasus World Cup 2023 Picks: Cyberknife is well-honed for career finale

The first important handicap-division race of the year happens Saturday, January 28 at Gulfstream Park: the Pegasus World Cup (G1)! This $3 million horse race is one of the top betting horse races of the year, and the winner gets on the fast track to the top of the most prestigious division in American racing!

Even though the Pegasus World Cup only started in 2017, its winners’ list already reads as a who’s who of modern horse racing stars. Horses like Arrogate, Gun Runner, Knicks Go, and Life Is Good have crowned their careers with success in the Pegasus World Cup. This is the place to find out who will add their name to the list, and to see the best places to bet the race online in California!

Pegasus World Cup Betting Online

As much fun as a vacation to Florida for the Pegasus World Cup would be, we can’t all make it there. Fortunately, you can get the best betting experience from home, or anywhere with an internet connection, right here in California! Our online racebook reviews feature sites with great user interfaces, market-leading odds, and trusted cash-out functions!

It pays to do your homework now because choosing the site with the best racebook bonuses can mean hundreds or even thousands of extra dollars in your bankroll. Take a few minutes now to find out which sign-up bonuses, deposit incentives, referral benefits, and horse racing rebates will pay the most for your betting style. Then, get ready to win!

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Pegasus World Cup Field

This is the official field for the 2023 Pegasus World Cup including post positions, trainers, and jockeys:

1. Proxy (Michael Stidham/Joel Rosario) - 9/2
2. Simplification (Antonio Sano/Paco Lopez) - 15/1
3. Ridin with Biden (Robert Reid/Emisael Jaramillo) - 20/1
4. White Abarrio (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Tyler Gaffalione) - 10/1
5. Defunded (Bob Baffert/Irad Ortiz) - 6/1
6. Art Collector (Bill Mott/Junior Alvarado) - 10/1
7. Skippylongstocking (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Jose Ortiz) - 5/1
8. Get Her Number (Peter Miller/Luis Saez) - 15/1
9. Last Samurai (D. Wayne Lukas/Frankie Dettori) - 20/1
10. Cyberknife (Brad Cox/Florent Geroux) - 5/2
11. Stilleto Boy (Ed Moger, Jr./Mike Smith) - 30/1
12. O’Connor (Saffie Joseph, Jr./Javier Castellano) - 10/1
13. Hoist the Gold (Dallas Stewart/Brian Hernandez, Jr.) - Also Eligible
14. Endorsed (Michael Maker/Julien Leparoux) - Also Eligible

Note that the morning line odds are not what you are guaranteed to get at the track. Instead, these are the racetrack’s best guess for what the tote board will look like. The best way to get the best odds is to bet the Pegasus World Cup online at a trusted racebook. Since online racebooks offer fixed-odds wagering, you can lock in the best price when you bet!

These are the Pegasus World Cup odds for horses at the top of the market, at the best racebooks for California bettors:

Cyberknife	+175	+175	+175
Defunded	+500	+500	+500
Proxy	+600	+600	+600
Art Collector	+700	+700	+700
Skippylongstocking	+750	+750	+750
White Abarrio	+800	+800	+800

Pegasus World Cup Handicapping

Now that you have your betting accounts set up, it is time for the most fun part of all: picking your horse and making your bets for the 2023 Pegasus World Cup!

Pegasus World Cup Favorites

Some races tend to be friendly to long shots, while others tend to play in the hands of favorites year in and year out. Well-bet horses tend to run well in the Pegasus. In fact, every winner has either been the betting favorite or the second favorite on the tote board.

Cyberknife, making his final start before retiring to stud, will be the favorite in the 2023 Pegasus World Cup, and he looks like he will be the goods. He ran an excellent second to stone-cold miler Cody’s Wish in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1), and the extra furlong of the Pegasus puts him at the same distance at which he is a two-time Grade 1 victor. With tactical speed and the ability to run well at many tracks, Cyberknife looks tough to topple.

Skippylongstocking was one of the better three-year-olds of 2022, but never has he looked better than he did in the Harlan’s Holiday (G3), his first race against older horses and the local prep for the Pegasus. He is already a graded stakes winner at the Pegasus distance, and he should be able to get a smart stalking trip in the biggest race of his career to date.

Though Defunded may get some betting interest because he is trained by Bob Baffert, there are good reasons to be skeptical. He needs the lead against good horses, and these horses are better than most of what he has been beating in California. Especially with other speed in the race, most notably Art Collector, Defunded will have a hard time holding off some very good stalkers.

Pegasus World Cup Exotics Horses

White Abarrio has some table to turn on Get Her Number from the Cigar Mile (G1), but the Pegasus should be just the place to do it. The stretch out from a mile to nine furlongs, and from one turn to two, plays right into the strengths of last year’s Florida Derby winner. With tactical pace and Gulfstream acumen, White Abarrio should find the frame.

Proxy snapped a run of underneath finishes in stakes races with a defining Grade 1 score in the Clark back in November. This is a deeper field than the Clark group was, meaning Proxy might be back to his underneath ways for this. But, the 1 ⅛-mile distance suits him well, he should not have to drop too far back, and he is in good enough form to capture a nice check in the Pegasus.

No one in the handicap division has made such a name for himself outrunning his odds as Stilleto Boy. He ran third behind Life Is Good and Knicks Go in the Pegasus last year, and hopes to run into the frame again. With tactical versatility and the ability to show up at many different tracks (including Gulfstream), he is an appealing option for another underneath share at big odds..

2023 Pegasus World Cup Free Picks

Now that you know where and how to bet the race online, here are the best bets for Saturday’s 2023 Pegasus World Cup:

• $20 to win - #10 Cyberknife
• $1 exacta key - #10 Cyberknife with #4 White Abarrio, #7 Skippylongstocking
• $0.50 trifecta key - #10 Cyberknife with #1 Proxy, #4 White Abarrio, #7 Skippylongstocking
• $0.20 superfecta - #10 Cyberknife with #1 Proxy, #4 White Abarrio, #7 Skippylongstocking, #11 Stilleto Boy