This time, Classic Causeway won’t be sneaking up on the Grade 1 Saratoga Derby field as a 26/1 afterthought. That untested turf question mark is now an exclamation point. And thus, we have the biggest storyline for Saturday’s Saratoga Derby, the second leg of the New York Racing Association’s Turf Triple. […]
The fallout from Todd Pletcher scratching Emmanuel from Saturday’s Grade 1 Belmont Derby went beyond taking front-end speed out of the race. The Daily Racing Form reported Pletcher scratched Emmanuel for receiving three doses of a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory within seven days of a race. Dr. Scott Palmer, the equine medical […]
Classic Causeway came into the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational as an afterthought, the “other†horse in Kenny McPeek’s barn. The “other†horse making his turf debut a mere two weeks after finishing third in the Grade 3 Ohio Derby. He came out of it a Grade 1 winner, a […]
Based on what we saw in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational last year, this European invasion wasn’t only predictable, it was expected. After supertrainer Aidan O’Brien sent Bolshoi Ballet across the Atlantic and into the Belmont Park winner’s circle in 2021, the British are definitely coming. So are the […]
This week’s Cross Country Pick 5 truly makes the East Coast and Midwest rounds, hitting four tracks with an all-stakes sequence culminating in a wide-open Ohio Derby. Along with that second of two races from JACK Thistledown, this week’s Cross Country Pick 5 encompasses races from Belmont Park, Monmouth Park […]
The Grade 3 Ohio Derby takes its turn in the racing spotlight at an ideal time, fitting in after the Triple Crown and before the lucrative Del Mar and Saratoga meets begin in mid-July. And it does so carrying three Kentucky Derby veterans making their first starts since that May […]
Without even trying, trainer Kenny McPeek inherited Classic Causeway, getting the Kentucky Derby runner and two-time stakes winner from Brian Lynch’s barn. The Daily Racing Form reported that Kentucky West Racing and the Clarke M. Cooper Family Living Trust, which bred and owns Classic Causeway, moved him to McPeek’s barn. […]
Welcome to Kentucky Derby 148, a.k.a. The Chaos Derby. And we’re not talking about the usual infield escapades that happen as the Derby returns to it’s pre-pandemic crowds north of 150,000. Unpredictability? Depth? A Derby where surprises almost wouldn’t be surprising? This edition of America’s most popular race has it […]
Not three weeks after trainer Brian Lynch scratched Classic Causeway from the Kentucky Derby after his last-place performance in the April 2 Florida Derby, the trainer put the graded stakes-winning colt back into the Derby field. Lynch confirmed to Churchill Downs on Monday that Classic Causeway and his 66 points […]
The gate to the 2021-22 Kentucky Derby trail came down Saturday, with Tawny Port winning the final Derby prep on the trail: the Grade 3 Lexington Stakes. That brought the Brad Cox-trained colt safely in the field with 60 points, courtesy of the 20 he earned with his one-length victory […]
Saturday’s penultimate wave of Kentucky Derby prep races brought four horses into the Derby field and taught us plenty about several others who either evolved into Derby contenders or devolved into Derby pretenders. There was White Abarrio, winning the Florida Derby in stellar fashion to punch his ticket to the […]
Why the Florida Derby is a marquee race on the Kentucky Derby trail, Part the First: Six horses this century graduated from the Grade 1 flagship race at Gulfstream Park to the Kentucky Derby winner’s circle. The six: Monarchos (2001), Barbaro (2006), Big Brown (2008), Orb (2013), Nyquist (2016) and […]
With Tampa Bay Derby winner Classic Causeway sweeping his way into the Kentucky Derby Saturday, Tampa Bay Downs destroyed its previous single-day record for total handle. Saturday’s total handle of $20,778,222 blew away last year’s previous mark by more than $5.5 million and by 36%. On the rare day that […]
The de-facto option for bettors not happy with the individual offerings of 3-year-olds: “All Other 3-Year-Olds,†a.k.a. the Field, closed as the 4/1 favorite in the Kentucky Derby Future Wager (KDFW) Pool 4. With eight weeks to go before the May 7 Kentucky Derby, that fourth of five pools sponsored […]
As Kentucky Derby preps go, Saturday’s Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby doesn’t exactly provide the fast track to the Churchill Downs winner’s circle. You can get there from Tampa Bay Downs – if it was 2007 and you were Street Sense, that year’s Tampa Bay Derby winner. Or if you […]
Tampa Bay Downs’ marquee race, the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby, headlines this week’s New York Racing Association Cross Country Pick 5. This week’s Cross Country Pick 5 encompasses races from Tampa Bay Downs, Aqueduct and Oaklawn Park. The Tampa Bay Derby is the fourth leg of the five-leg pick […]
There was a familiar look to the Kentucky Derby Future Wager (KDFW) Pool 3 that emphasized the Bob Baffert factor is alive and well – and that Smile Happy doesn’t have to run to draw money. Once again, “All Other 3-Year-Olds†– a.k.a. the field – closed as the betting […]
Tampa Bay Downs’ first stop on the Kentucky Derby trail, Saturday’s Grade 3 Sam F. Davis Stakes is one of those races where you’re best served paying more attention to the horses outside the winner’s circle. Take last year. Candy Man Rocket won the race in typical Davis fashion. He […]
Traffic on the Kentucky Derby trail picks up again Saturday with a full cast of 14 entered in the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club, the headlining race on Churchill Downs’ Saturday card. Up for grabs are 10-4-2-1 Derby qualifying points to the top four finishers, along with another Derby prospect […]
Rattle N Roll entered the Kentucky Derby prospect picture, Saturday, doing so with a 4 ¼-length victory in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity on a busy opening weekend at Keeneland. Not only does this put Rattle N Roll into next month’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, courtesy of the Breeders’ Futurity’s “Win […]
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