Nominations have been released for Festival Preview Day on Feb. 6 at Tampa Bay Downs, when the Grade 3 Sam F. Davis is foremost among the four stakes to be run that day at the Oldsmar, Fla., track.
The mutuel field, the 24th or “all others” option, closed as a solid favorite over Life Is Good after three days of betting into Pool 2 of the 2021 Kentucky Derby Future Wager. The pool opened Friday at noon Eastern and ran through 6 p.m. Sunday.
In his stakes debut, and first start around two turns, Caddo River annihilated his six rivals in this race. Granted, what was left in his wake wasn’t much; he’ll meet far better down the line.
Capo Kane, the Jerome Stakes winner, returned to the work tab Wednesday at Parx, breezing five furlongs in 1:01.96 in preparation for an expected start in the Grade 3, $250,000 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct on Feb. 6.
A $610,000 yearling purchase, Tarantino has won two of his three career starts, all on turf. He will make his dirt debut next Saturday as one of at least six 3-year-olds expected to be entered in the Grade 3 Holy Bull, which kicks off the Gulfstream Park trail to the Kentucky Derby.
On Nov. 6, Hot Rod Charlie finished second at 94-1 in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Keeneland, losing by three-quarters of a length to Essential Quality. On Dec. 19, The Great One finished second at 33-1 by a nose to Spielberg in the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity. Both are trained by Doug O'Neill, who is hopeful the longshots of the late autumn can become well-backed winners on the next two weekends at Santa Anita.
Three-year-old colt Proxy had notched easy dirt-route maiden and allowance wins early in the Fair Grounds meet, but showed more in defeat this past Saturday than in those victories.
Oaklawn Park's popular and proven road to the Kentucky Derby starts Friday with the running of the $150,000 Smarty Jones. The top two choices in the field of seven – Cowan and Caddo River – hail from the respective barns of Eclipse Awards trainer finalists Steve Asmussen and Brad Cox.
Eight weeks after the first pool was held, no fewer than 14 new names are in the 23-horse lineup for Pool 2 of the 2021 Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which opens Friday at noon Eastern for the customary three-day run.
Midnight Bourbon looked to be a decided cut below his brethren last year at age 2, when he was clearly inferior to the likes of stablemate Jackie’s Warrior in the Champagne Stakes, but he took a significant jump in his 3-year-old debut with a career-best Beyer figure while racing at the longest distance of his career.
