Kentucky Derby: Velazquez will ride Carpe Diem

John Velazquez will ride Carpe Diem and Javier Castellano will ride Materiality in the Kentucky Derby, trainer Todd Pletcher announced late Monday afternoon.

Velazquez has been riding both Carpe Diem and Materiality, both trained by Pletcher. They are considered among the top candidates for the May 2 Derby. Carpe Diem has won 4 of 5 starts, most recently the Blue Grass Stakes. Materiality is unbeaten in three starts, and comes off a victory in the Florida Derby.

Both Castellano and Mike Smith had been mentioned by Pletcher as potential replacements on whomever Velazquez did not choose. With Castellano now riding Materiality, Smith will remain with Far Right, on whom Smith finished second in the Arkansas Derby last time out.

Earlier Monday, Manny Franco was tabbed as the rider for Tencendur, who finished second in the Wood Memorial in his final Derby prep. Jose Ortiz rode Tencendur that day but is committed to Upstart – the Florida Derby runner-up – for the Derby. Tencendur arrived at Churchill Downs on Monday after traveling from New York.

On Sunday, Rafael Bejarano was announced as the rider for Bolo by co-owner Keith Brackpool. Smith rode Bolo to a third-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby, but his many potential commitments – and the sudden, unexpected availability of Bejarano – prompted the move.

Bejarano was scheduled to ride One Lucky Dane, but that horse sustained a condylar fracture to his left front ankle in a workout at Santa Anita on Saturday and will miss the Triple Crown.

Also on Sunday, El Kabeir picked up three-time Derby winner Calvin Borel. Earlier that morning, El Kabeir worked five furlongs in 1:00.15 at Belmont Park, where he will have his final Derby workout next weekend before heading to Kentucky. El Kabeir was ridden in his recent starts by C.C. Lopez, but the mount was shopped to various other jockeys in the fortnight since El Kabeir’s third-place finish in the Wood Memorial.

The Derby has a maximum field of 20. Entries will be taken on April 29, and as many as four also-eligibles can be entered at that time, too. The top 20 on points get in, and the also-eligibles are listed in order of their point totals. As of Monday, Madefromlucky had worked his way into the top 20, but he is not certain to run, nor is Stanford, who is also in the top 20. Pletcher, who trains both, said their status would be determined after works this weekend at Churchill Downs. Keen Ice and Frammento are next on the points list, and would get in, in that order, if Madefromlucky and/or Stanford defect.

Sitting 23rd and hoping for multiple defections from the top 20 is Bold Conquest, who stayed on schedule for a potential Derby start by working five furlongs Monday at Churchill Downs for trainer Steve Asmussen. Daily Racing Form clocked him in 1:02.64 over a track rated “good.”

◗ Also at Churchill Downs is Whiskey Ticket, the winner of the Illinois Derby last Saturday at Hawthorne. He is not nominated to the Triple Crown. Trainer Bob Baffert said there are no set plans for him. “There are a lot of summer derbies,” Baffert said. “We’ll let him make some money, let him develop, and have some fun with him.”

– additional reporting by David Grening, Marcus Hersh, and Mike Welsch