Churchill Downs Thursday, April 23 Weather: Clear Temperature: 66° Track: Fast LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The inexact science of preparing a horse for a grueling race like the Kentucky Derby was never more on display than Thursday at Churchill Downs, with trainers using very diverse methods of bringing their 3-year-olds up to the big event. Even within their own barns. The local Derby workout tab consisted of two horses, the Bob Baffert-trained Litmus Test and fellow Hall of Famer Mark Casse’s Silent Tactic. The pair couldn’t have had more oppositely designed final Derby preps. Litmus Test, who still needs a little help to crack the final Derby lineup, turned in a serious drill here Thursday working from the gate. Zipping right along over the quick track to post a near bullet for the distance, he completed five furlongs in 59.36 seconds, per Daily Racing Form, off a 35.04 opening three-eighths split. He then continued strongly down the backstretch on the gallop-out, getting six furlongs in 1:11.40 before easing up in 1:24 flat. Litmus Test worked with blinkers and will race with the equipment in his next start after finishing a distant seventh when racing without blinkers for the first time in the Arkansas Derby. :: Get DRF Kentucky Oaks & Derby Clocker Reports by Mike Welsch and the DRF Clocker Team Silent Tactic, on the other hand, was in total maintenance mode working almost simultaneously, but not in company, with Litmus Test. He breezed an easy half-mile in 23.96 and 48.30 before galloping out willingly enough in 1:01.74. Silent Tactic is safely in the Derby lineup off a series of very big races this winter at Oaklawn Park. The third Derby work of the morning came in South Florida, where potential race favorite Renegade completed an even slower and easier half-mile over the more demanding Palm Beach Downs strip while in company with regular mate Powershift. Both were kept well in reserve through an even-paced breeze in 25.60 and 50.84, per Daily Racing Form, with Renegade sticking his head in front at the wire and maintaining the advantage through the gallop-out. Commandment, Further Ado, and Fulleffort are all key Derby contenders from the barn of trainer Brad Cox. But there was nothing similar about their training regimen here Thursday. Commandment spent quite a while on the track but did not gallop this morning. Instead, he jogged the wrong way twice around the one-mile oval. Further Ado was even busier, spending a little time in the chute before coming back out to jog approximately five furlongs accompanied by a pony. He was then turned loose near the eighth pole and proceeded to gallop another 1 5/8 miles, pulling hard the entire way. Only Fulleffort had what one might call a more conventional morning, galloping in draw reins, per usual, to give the rider more control throughout. Blinkers on or blinkers off? For So Happy, it’s been blinkers on in both his recent workouts and again when galloping over the Churchill oval Thursday morning – even though he does not wear the equipment in his races. Chief Wallabee, who has had his last two works in blinkers and will run in the equipment for the first time in the Derby, galloped and looked quite sharp without the hood Thursday. :: KENTUCKY DERBY 2026: Top contenders, point standings, news, and more Thursday marked the first local appearance of Tampa Bay Derby winner and Florida Derby runner-up The Puma, who did little more than jog once around alongside a pony. Trainer Gustavo Delgado indicated later that he may forgo another breeze for The Puma, opting instead to give him a long and strong gallop here either Monday or Tuesday morning. Casse also sent out his two Oaks hopefuls, Search Party and Counting Stars, for what were, for all intents and purposes, maintenance breezes shortly after the track opened at 5:15 a.m. Both fillies punctuated the moves with long and strong gallop-outs. Search Party cruised four furlongs in 23.79 and 47.73 before going out three-quarters in 1:14.71. Counting Stars broke off a bit slower but finished up just as nicely, getting a half-mile in 25.08 and 48.73 and galloping out six furlongs in 1:15.05. At Palm Beach Downs, Pletcher put the finishing touches on both Zany and She Be Smooth’s Oaks preparations, with the pair breezing in company once again. They covered four furlongs in 24.16 and 49.05 before being asked along to get six furlongs in 1:15.67. Zany was going easiest to the wire and was clearly best of the team on the run-out. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.