Derby Week starts Tuesday at Churchill Downs with a nine-race card ostensibly highlighted by a single allowance race, but that misses the broader context: five straight days of exciting racing action starts right here, culminating Saturday with the 141st running of the Kentucky Derby.
Spendthrift Farm is loaded for bear with representatives by its stallions in this Kentucky Derby – and that appears unlikely to change in future years, as some of those stallions are just getting started.
According to Daily Racing Form's SirePowered Results, Pioneerof the Nile recorded four winners from April 1 to April 25 – and now looks to land the biggest prize of them all.
Trip Notes for April 25-26: Miami Mile, San Francisco Mile, Wilshire, and more by Michael Hammersly.
Modern paid $16.20 and gave trainer Dino Condilenios and owners Swift Thoroughbreds Inc. back-to-back stakes wins with a gutsy win over Title Contender in the $50,000 George Royal Stakes at Hastings on Sunday.
La Fiera sat back early and then made a strong, sustained rally to defeated seven rival 3-year-old California-bred fillies in the $100,210 Campanile Stakes on Sunday at Golden Gate Fields.
Closing on the rail, Blingismything surged to the front in the final strides, and was the beneficiary of a fortunate head bob to win the Grade 3 Wilshire Stakes by a head over an unlucky Smoove It.
Grazen Sky, favored although he was making both his route and turf debut, won the $100,105 Silly Sullivan Stakes at Golden Gate Fields on Sunday.
The popular favorite Calgary Cat collared front-runner Parise in deep stretch to capture the $132,300 Jacques Cartier at Woodbine on Sunday.
Jockey Victor Espinoza, who is booked to ride favored American Pharoah in Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, has dropped an appeal of a three-day suspension for causing interference earlier this year.
