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On a day full of surprises at Aqueduct, Lord Miles - at 59-1 the third-longest price in the field of 12 - pulled off the biggest and arguably most important one, outlasting Hit Show and Dreamlike to the wire to win the Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial by a nose and earn his way into the Kentucky Derby.
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Tapit Trice joined his Todd Pletcher stablemates as major contenders for the 149th Kentucky Derby by getting the best of Verifying in an exciting stretch duel Saturday in the Keeneland spring showcase, the Grade 1, $998,125 Blue Grass Stakes.
The exciting two-start colt Geaux Rocket Ride is off the Kentucky Derby trail after he spiked a temperature Saturday that necessitated his scratch from the Grade 1 Runhappy Santa Anita Derby.
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Louisiana Derby winner Kingsbarns on Friday took his first step on the final road to the Kentucky Derby, breezing four furlongs in 49.74 seconds in company with stablemate Major Dude at Palm Beach Downs.
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Brad Cox and Todd Pletcher already have horses securely in this year's Kentucky Derby. It is the size of their contingent that remains to be determined. Saturday's Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial will figure greatly in deciding that as Cox and Pletcher combine to send out five of the 12 runners in the 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds.
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He already has Forte as the Kentucky Derby favorite, with Kingsbarns as a backup. Next up for Todd Pletcher is putting the finishing touches on another hot prospect, Tapit Trice, the morning-line favorite Saturday in the Keeneland spring showcase, the Grade 1 Blue Grass Stakes.
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Practical Move has dodged misfortune, hit every mark, and emerged as the leader of the Southern California 3-year-old division. He puts his reputation on the line Saturday as the favorite in the Grade 1 Runhappy Santa Anita Derby, race 6 on a program with six stakes and a mandatory payout in the 20-cent pick six.
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Hit Show, the Grade 3 Withers winner, drew the extreme outside in a bulky field of 13 3-year-olds entered Wednesday for Saturday’s Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct.
Brave Emperor, who holds a berth for the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 6 through the European qualifying series, is unlikely to be sent to the United States.
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A field of 11 3-year-olds was entered Wednesday for Saturday's Grade 1, $1 million Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland, with favored Tapit Trice drawing the rail in his final prep for the Kentucky Derby.
