Tag: Dream Shake

Dream Shake ran his career-best 96 Beyer Speed Figure in this maiden debut victory in January. He moves to turf for the first time in Del Mar's traditional summer stakes opener: the Oceanside Stakes. (Image: Benoit Photo)

Del Mar Opens to Sellout Crowd and a Dream Shake Turf Sighting

Last year’s Del Mar summer season opener carried such a weird vibe that Del Mar Thoroughbred Club CEO Joe Harper spent much of it walking around in a surreal, dreamy haze. This year, Harper and the rest of Del Mar’s sold-out, opening-day crowd – and yes, we said “crowd” – […]

Jackie's Warrior (right) held off Dream Shake to win last month's Pat Day Mile. Race fans would take a repeat of this stretch drive in Saturday's Grade 1 Woody Stephen Stakes at Belmont Park. (Image: Churchill Downs/Coady Photography)

One-Turn Doesn’t Mean One-Trick Ponies in This Woody Stephens

Looking at the familiar names lining up for Saturday’s Grade 1 Woody Stephens at Belmont Park, it’s tempting to dismiss the seven-furlong sprint as a race for Triple Crown washouts, has-beens, and never-weres. Don’t. Instead, understand that not every horse is bred to go two turns. Understand that the Woody […]

Aunt Pearl and Florent Geroux went gate-to-wire in last fall's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. She is the likely favorite in the Grade 2 Edgewood on the Kentucky Oaks undercard. (Image: Coady Photography)

Don’t Overlook These Kentucky Oaks, Kentucky Derby Undercards

The Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby undercards offer turf stars Colonel Liam and Smooth Like Strait. They offer filly stars Gamine, Shedaresthedevil, Sanenus, Aunt Pearl, and Envoutante. They also offer Maxfield, Roadster, and Max Player. And they offer one-time Derby hopefuls Jackie’s Warrior, Prevalence, and Gretzky the Great. It’s easy […]

King Fury's gritty victory in the Lexington Stakes led trainer Kenny McPeek to keep him in the Triple Crown mix. Friday, his patience was rewarded iwtha 
 berth in the Kentucky Derby. (Image: Jonathan Palmer/Keeneland)

Derby Dominoes: King Fury, Keepmeinmind In, Three Others Out

Two weeks ago, King Fury needed a miracle of falling Kentucky Derby dominoes to get him into the 2021 Kentucky Derby field. On Friday, the Lexington Stakes champion got that miracle. After the defections of Dream Shake and Hozier Friday and Get Her Number’s Saturday defection, King Fury sits comfortably […]

Rombauer won't run the May 1 Kentucky Derby. But expect to see him two weeks later in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico. (Image: Zoe Metz Photography)

Panadol, Rombauer Become Latest Kentucky Derby Defectors

Kentucky Derby watchers can scratch Panadol and Rombauer off their proposed tickets, after connections for the two horses said they won’t run the May 1 Derby. Both horses had guaranteed spots. Panadol had 40 points and the supplemental Triple Crown fee behind him. Rombauer was originally outside the initial 40-point […]

Hidden Stash has a likely Kentucky Derby berth, courtesy of trainer Chad Brown selecting only one of his two Derby qualifiers to run at Churchill Downs. (Image: Coady Photography)

Brown’s Choice Puts Derby Dominoes Into Play

The Kentucky Derby dominoes continued to fall on Wednesday as we head toward the May 1 Run for the Roses, with Chad Brown saying he intends on running only one of his two Derby prospects — Highly Motivated or Crowded Trade — in the race. Brown told Blood-Horse that Highly […]

Medina Spirit cost owner Amr Zedan only $35,000. He's earned nearly five times that total -- with more on the line in Saturday's $750,000 Santa Anita Derby. (Image: Benoit Photo)

Medina Spirit, Bob Baffert Cast Their Spell in Santa Anita Derby

About the only thing faster than Life Is Good on the track was the rush of horses piling into the Santa Anita Derby the moment the Bob Baffert supercolt departed the Kentucky Derby Trail with an ankle injury. Now, all of a sudden, horses like Dream Shake, Parnelli, Law Professor […]

Mike Smith and Life Is Good are your odds-on favorites to win Saturday's Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes at Santa Anita. (Image: Benoit Photo)

San Felipe Stakes: Where Life Is Good to Bob Baffert

The Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes marks the point of the year where Bob Baffert’s endless 3-year-old depth finally makes him compete with himself. Yes, he’s sent out Life Is Good and Medina Spirit in the Sham. Yes, we saw Concert Tour nip Freedom Fighter in the San Vicente. But […]

After Jose Ortiz pointed the way to a stretch victory in the Fountain of Youth, Greatest Honour reached his lowest Kentucky Derby odds mark to date. He's 7/1 at Circa Sports, 5/1 at William Hill Nevada. (Image: Lauren King/Gulfstream Park)

Derby Futures: Just When You Thought the Favorites Can’t Go Lower

As the calendar turns to March – a mere two months out from the Kentucky Derby – Circa Sports and William Hill Nevada pared 53 horses from their Derby futures boards. There are 150 horses remaining. The value on many of the favorites? The books sliced that away long ago. […]

Candy Man Rocket parlayed his Sam F. Davis Stakes victory into a spot on Churchill Downs' Kentucky Derby Future Wager's Pool 3. (Image: SV Photography)

New Entries, Same Favorites in Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 3

Nine new offerings entered the Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 3 picture, but two familiar names continue holding court as the KDFW favorites. Essential Quality and Life Is Good opened as individual 8/1 morning-line favorites in the third of five KDFW pools. As expected, however, the overall favorite is “All […]

At 20/1, Dream Shake brought home a strong maiden victory over two heralded Bob Baffert horses. His Kentucky Derby futures odds plummeted as a result. (Image: Benoit Photo)

Kentucky Derby Futures: What Goes Down, Can Go Up

One Bob Baffert charge watched his Kentucky Derby futures odds fall further this weekend, while another watched his rise to semi-realistic territory. Those were the two biggest takeaways coming out of a weekend that further defined the Derby picture across the odds food chain. The prime beneficiary was Baffert’s Concert […]