Making official what had been expected for the last few weeks, trainer Chad Brown on Sunday said that Early Voting would skip Saturday’s 148th Kentucky Derby and instead point to the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on May 21.
The majority of the miles that Kentucky Derby candidates will log in their final serious breezes have been covered. One of the few moves remaining is that by Summer Is Tomorrow, who is expected to breeze four furlongs on Monday morning as part of his long journey to the Derby gate.
Barber Road and Un Ojo, both of whom arrived at Churchill Downs off the Oaklawn Park road to the Kentucky Derby, emerged from their final works for the spring classic in good order, their respective camps reported Sunday morning.
Epicenter, the Louisiana Derby winner, worked five furlongs in 1:01.21, according to Daily Racing Form's Mike Welsch, on Sunday morning at Churchill Downs in his final drill for the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.
After having his final Kentucky Derby work postponed this morning due to wet track conditions, White Abarrio finally got to strut his stuff shortly after 6 p.m. and between the final two races on Saturday’s Gulfstream Park program, working four furlongs in 48.11 followed by a very strong and impressive gallop out.
Saturday was the busiest morning yet on the Kentucky Derby/Oaks workout front at Churchill Downs. The majority of the action took place during a very hectic special training session that happens daily beginning at 7:30 a.m. and is restricted to horses competing in the two big events here next weekend.
Seems like all you hear about Kentucky Derby-wise a week out from the race is Zandon this, Zandon that. Okay, fair enough. Zandon won the Blue Grass Stakes with aplomb and has since trained with verve, culminating in an excellent Friday workout, his final Derby breeze. This might be a good time to page back through our information-buzzing brains and try to recall a colt named Epicenter. Remember him?
Crown Pride, Japan’s hope for the Kentucky Derby, had, by his standards, a relatively sedate morning of training Saturday. Crown Pride did his usual assortment of figure-eights and circles in the Churchill Downs chute before venturing onto the main dirt oval, where he galloped about 1 1/2 miles, according to rider and assistant trainer Masa Matsuda.
After firing off a brisk work last weekend, Un Ojo did so again Saturday morning at Churchill Downs in his final half-mile work in advance of the Kentucky Derby.
Arkansas Derby runner-up Barber Road turned in his final serious piece of work for the Kentucky Derby on Saturday morning at Churchill Downs, breezing a half-mile in 48.80 seconds, according to track clockers.
