The champion 2-year-old male Storm the Court has yet to visit the winner's circle in three starts this year, a streak he'll try to end Saturday at Thistledown in the Grade 3, $500,000 Ohio Derby.
Gouverneur Morris is off the Triple Crown trail and most likely done for the year after suffering a case of colitis, Barry Irwin, president of Team Valor International, which is part-owner of the colt, said Thursday.
The international Coolmore operation has acquired the breeding rights to Tiz the Law, winner of last Saturday's Belmont Stakes, and will stand the colt at its Ashford Stud near Versailles, Ky., upon his eventual retirement from racing, the operation announced Thursday.
Spectators will be allowed at this year’s rescheduled Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville on Sept. 5 “under strict guidelines,” the parent company of the track announced on Thursday morning.
In the aftermath of the runaway victory by Cafe Pharoah in the Unicorn Stakes last Sunday at Tokyo Racecourse, Churchill Downs officials this week said they had received encouraging feedback from the colt's connections regarding a potential start in this year's Kentucky Derby on Sept. 5, adding international intrigue to an already unprecedented Derby.
The current Kentucky Derby line of Marty McGee of Daily Racing Form, who has Tiz the Law down to 7-5 following his clear-cut victory last Saturday in the Belmont Stakes.
The internationally popular young stallion American Pharoah is the sire of Japan's leading Kentucky Derby contender Cafe Pharoah, who appears on Derby Watch after remaining unbeaten with a five-length win in last weekend's Group 3 Unicorn Stakes on the Tokyo Racecourse dirt.
Churchill Downs has submitted operational plans to Kentucky state officials that envision allowing spectators for the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby and the race cards that will precede it, a Churchill Downs official confirmed Tuesday.
Cafe Pharoah strengthened his status as the leading Japanese contender for the Kentucky Derby with a decisive five-length win in Sunday’s Grade 3 Unicorn Stakes at a mile at Tokyo Racecourse.
In this most-unusual year, where the Belmont Stakes was run at a different distance than recent tradition and ended up leading off the Triple Crown while offering significant points toward the Kentucky Derby, this race had logic, normalcy, and reason.
