All 20 of this year’s prospective Kentucky Derby starters – 22 of them if you count the also eligibles Frammento and Tale of Verve – are on the grounds, making for a very active Derby/Oaks training session following the renovation break at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday.
Twenty-two horses were entered Wednesday morning for the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, with just one surprise, the entry of recent maiden winner Tale of Verve.
Carla Gaines has a chance to achieve racing history. An upset win by Bolo would make Gaines the first woman trainer to win the Kentucky Derby.
Bolo holds the distinction of being the only horse in this Kentucky Derby field who has yet to win on dirt. Bolo, winner of the Eddie Logan Stakes by 4 1/2 lengths on the Santa Anita turf in December, has run creditably on dirt, finishing third to Dortmund in both the San Felipe and Santa Anita Derby.
Derby Angles features DRF handicappers looking at individual handicapping factors and how they may play out in this year’s Kentucky Derby.
The turf course was open for training and attracted eight workers on Tuesday morning. Many of them are expected to run on Friday’s Kentucky Oaks and Saturday’s Kentucky Derby undercards.
The five undercard stakes were drawn Tuesday for Friday’s stakes-laden Kentucky Oaks Day at Churchill Downs.
Even after all these years, the sight of trainer Larry Jones galloping a horse arrests the eye.
With the majority of the Kentucky Derby starters finally on the grounds, Tuesday was a busy morning during an Oaks/Derby session dominated by gallopers, many of whom were stretching their legs for the first time over the Churchill Downs main track.
While this year’s crop of the 3-year-olds have been lauded as one of the best in many years, it has some performing to do to measure up to some of the classes of the past.
