Kentucky Derby Future Wager contenders get major overhaul for Pool 5

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – It’s no surprise, but a major overhaul of the roster of separately listed interests has occurred in the 12 weeks that have elapsed since Churchill Downs last offered a Future Wager pool toward the 2020 Kentucky Derby.

Churchill officials announced last week that three more futures pools – in addition to the four already closed – will be offered ahead of the 146th Derby, which has been postponed from its original May 2 date until Sept. 5 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Pool 5 opens Friday at noon Eastern and closes Sunday at 6. Pool 6 is set for July 17-19, and Pool 7 for Aug. 7-9. A Kentucky Oaks futures pool will coincide with Pool 6.

:: Want to get your Past Performances for free? Click to learn more.

From Pool 4, which ran April 3-5, there are 12 new names among 22 individual interests; there’s also a “filly only” interest (No. 23) and, as usual, the mutuel field (No. 24). The new names replace such notables as Charlatan, Maxfield, and Nadal, all of whom were among the favorites in Pool 4 but are now off the Derby trail because of injury.

This attrition has led to the following new names for Pool 5: Art Collector, Cafe Pharoah, Cezanne, Creed, Dr Post, Man in the Can, Money Moves, Mr. Big News, Mystic Guide, Pneumatic, Rushie, and Uncle Chuck.

The mutuel field closed as the favorite in each of the first four pools. Pool 1 was Nov. 27-30, Pool 2 was Feb. 7-9, and Pool 3 was March 6-8.

The “filly only” option closed at 57-1 in Pool 1.

For Pool 5, Belmont Stakes winner Tiz the Law is listed by Churchill linemaker Mike Battaglia as the 7-2 favorite, followed by the field and Honor A. P. as co-second choices at 5-1.

Tiz the Law and Honor A. P. are among a group of just five horses to be listed as separate interests in all five 2020 pools, with the others being Authentic, Basin, and Thousand Words.

The only Derby points race coinciding with Pool 5 is the Ohio Derby, to be run Saturday at Thistledown. Win and exacta wagering are available in the future wager, with odds and will-pays locked in only when the pool closes Sunday.

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.

Ahead of Pool 4, during which time the coronavirus crisis forced the cancellation or postponement of several Derby preps, Churchill officials informed the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission that wagers into the first three pools would be “honored,” with refunds unavailable. Some outspoken critics on social media called for a boycott of Pool 4 because of the company’s refusal to provide refunds, perhaps partly accounting for a 57 percent decrease in year-to-year combined handle ($213,662, down from $500,406 in 2019).

This is the first time since Churchill began offering parimutuel futures in 1999 that more than four pools have been offered.