Grade 2, $600,000 Rebel Stakes, 1 1/16 miles, Oaklawn Park, March 15 (50 Derby eligibility points to the winner, 20 for second, 10 for third, 5 for fourth) On a rainy Saturday afternoon in Hot Springs, Ark., a veritable rodeo took place during the stretch run of the Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park. After the wet dust settled, the lightly raced Hoppertunity gave Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert his fourth Rebel win in five years. [ROAD TO THE KENTUCKY DERBY: Prep races, point standings, replays] The top three finishers - Hoppertunity, Tapiture and Ride On Curlin - all ran well enough to continue forward on the Triple Crown chase with positive marks. Fourth-place finisher Strong Mandate certainly will go forward as well, despite giving way after being bothered by Ride On Curlin in the late going. Yet, highly regarded Kobe’s Back seems out of the Derby picture after breaking awkwardly, and racing wide and out of contact with the leaders throughout. Hoppertunity gamely completed this roughly run race in 1:43.90, for a career best 100 Beyer Speed Figure. Equally game Tapiture finished a half-length behind in second, while Ride On Curlin was another half-length behind in third. A wide, non-threatening fourth to Intense Holiday in the Risen Star Stakes at the Fair Grounds Feb. 22, Hoppertunity also lost ground in the Rebel but was most fortunate to be on the outside of Tapiture, Strong Mandate and Rise On Curlin when things tightened up in the upper stretch. Having won the Southwest Stakes at this distance on this track Feb. 17, Tapiture seemed in a good stalking spot along the inside behind pacesetters Strong Mandate and Ride On Curlin through most of the contest. But, Hoppertunity was in a better spot, as Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith kept Tapiture pinned inside as all four contenders began to bounce off each other approaching the final furlong. Lacking room through the final turn into the stretch, Tapiture’s jockey, Ricardo Santana Jr., saw a narrow opening between front running Strong Mandate and Hoppertunity, so Santana aggressively pushed Tapiture to bull his way into that narrow crease, making it just wide enough to go through. An instant later, Hoppertunity came in to bump Tapiture while Strong Mandate came out after Ride On Curlin tightened things up from the inside to cause a chain reaction. A stewards’ inquiry was convened immediately after the finish and Santana filed a companion claim of foul against Smith. While the stewards took no action, this to my eyes seemed quite generous to the interests of Ride On Curlin, given that he bore out into Strong Mandate to possibly cost him a chance to hold on to third. Sorting all this out, there was little question that Tapiture had run at least as well as Hoppertunity and that Ride On Curlin – despite his role in the bumping incident - had improved upon his 10 3/4-length defeat by Tapiture in the Southwest. Strong Mandate, a decent second in the Southwest from off the pace, was aggressively placed on the lead by jockey Joel Rosario and set comfortable fractions through a 24.06 quarter mile, a half in 47.97 and six furlongs in 1:12.24 before he was surrounded on both sides through the roughly run final three-sixteenths. Despite the bumping incident, none of the four top finishers seemed to be hindered by the wet-fast racing surface and at least three, perhaps all four, will be back for the $1 million Arkansas Derby, April 12. Hoppertunity certainly took a major forward step while gamely fighting off stubborn rivals to earn $360,000 and 50 Derby eligibility points. But Baffert said he might keep him in California for the $1 million Santa Anita Derby April 5. With this Rebel win, Baffert added to his impressive record of having already won the Rebel three times in this young decade: Looking At Lucky won it in 2010, The Factor in 2011, and Secret Circle in 2012.