American Pharoah solidifies status as Kentucky Derby favorite

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The ease and speed of his wins made American Pharoah the acknowledged favorite for the Kentucky Derby this Saturday, and he certainly solidified that position on Sunday morning at Churchill Downs with final workout that was both fast and seemingly effortless.

American Pharoah, with jockey Martin Garcia aboard, worked – according to Daily Racing Form -- in 58.62 seconds for five furlongs and galloped out six furlongs in 1:12.01, all while doing it without any encouragement from Garcia.

“He’s a good one. Superstar,” Garcia said. “I never asked him.”

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Garcia is the regular work rider for American Pharoah, but yields the race-day assignment to Victor Espinoza, who will be seeking his second straight Kentucky Derby, having won it last year with California Chrome. Garcia has the Derby mount on Dortmund, who is expected to be the second choice to American Pharoah.

Both American Pharoah, last year’s champion male 2-year-old, and Dortmund are trained by Bob Baffert.

This was the only work American Pharoah will have between his final prep race, the Arkansas Derby, and the Kentucky Derby.

“He was fresh. He hadn’t worked since the race,” Baffert said. “He left the 5 1/2 and was just clipping along, doing it in hand. That’s the way he works.

“Today’s work was typical American Pharoah. It was exciting watching it. He does things really effortlessly. He wasn’t blowing afterwards. We’re where we want to be.”

Dortmund was scheduled to arrive midday Sunday after an early morning flight from California that also included Derby runners Bolo and Firing Line.

The only Derby prospect scheduled for a work on Monday is Bold Conquest, who is currently 22nd on the points list and needs two defections from the top 20 in order to get in.

Entries for the Derby will be taken on Wednesday, and scratch time is Friday morning.

--additional reporting by Mike Welsch