13 new names for Pool 2 of Kentucky Derby Future Wager

A massive overhaul from Pool 1 just 11 weeks earlier has resulted in 13 new names being among the 23 separately listed wagering interests for Pool 2 of the 2016 Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which opens Friday at noon Eastern for a three-day run.

The new names for Pool 2 are Awesome Banner, Cherry Wine, Collected, Danzing Candy, Discreetness, Gettysburg, Mo Tom, Shagaf, Smokey Image, Tom’s Ready, Vorticity, Whitmore, and Zulu.

The field was the 3-5 favorite in Pool 1, which ran Nov. 26-29. The mutuel field, the 24th or “all others” option, has always been the favorite in the pool held at this time of year.

The field is listed as the 4-5 morning-line favorite for Pool 2, which runs through Sunday at 6 p.m. Eastern. The top individual choices on the early line are Mohaymen (8-1), Nyquist (12-1), and Mor Spirit (15-1).

Pool 3 is set for March 11-13 and Pool 4 for April 1-3. A Kentucky Oaks futures pool will coincide with Pool 3. Churchill Downs first offered parimutuel futures in 1999 and expanded from three pools to four in advance of the 2014 Kentucky Derby.

Total handle on Pool 1 last November was only $174,682, although it coincided with the first-ever Derby Sire futures, which handled $34,960. The top individual choices in Pool 1 were Nyquist at 9-1 and Mohaymen at 11-1.

Combined handle on Pool 2 last year was $448,598, up 18 percent from the previous year. The record handle for this time of year (originally Pool 1, now Pool 2) is $631,304, which also is the all-time highest for any futures pool. That mark was set in 2012.

Win and exacta wagering are available at a $2 minimum, although exactas can be split into $1 increments in boxes or part-wheels. In the case of field horses filling both exacta slots, the next-best finish by a separately listed horse will count toward the winning combination.

Real-time odds and will-pays are available through various modes, including on television monitors at tracks and wagering outlets, as well as at kentuckyderby.com.

Pool 1 horses not being offered as separate interests in Pool 2 are Annual Report, Conquest Big E, Drefong, Flexibility, Matt King Coal, Rated R Superstar, Riker, Sail Ahoy, Sunny Ridge, Swipe, Synchrony, Toews On Ice, and Unbridled Outlaw.

American Pharoah was a separately listed entry in all four futures pools prior to winning the 2015 Derby as the 5-2 favorite.

The 142nd Derby is set for May 7.