Mutuel field 9-5 favorite as Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 2 closes

The mutuel field, the 24th or “all others” option, was the 9-5 favorite when the second of five pools in the 2022 Kentucky Derby Future Wager closed Sunday at 6 p.m. Eastern following the customary three-day run.

Two Kenny McPeek-trained horses, Smile Happy (8-1) and Tiz the Bomb (10-1), were the lowest odds among 23 separately listed interests. Then came Jack Christopher (14-1), Chasing Time (17-1), and Emmanuel (17-1), with all others 20-1 or higher.

The lowest $2 exacta will-pay is Smile Happy over the field (18-24), worth $70.60.

As with Pool 1, which was held Nov. 26-29, there were no Bob Baffert trainees listed as separate interests in Pool 2. Baffert has been banned by Churchill Downs from running horses in the Derby the next two years, a policy stemming from his 2021 winner, Medina Spirit, having tested positive for a medication overage. This means the Baffert-trained Corniche, winner of the Nov. 5 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, again was lumped into the field for Pool 2, as were several of his other top 3-year-olds.

:: KENTUCKY DERBY 2022: Point standings, prep schedule, news, and more

The only Derby points qualifier run last weekend was the Lecomte at Fair Grounds, won by 28-1 shot Call Me Midnight, a Pool 2 field horse.

Total Pool 2 handle was $361,209, with $273,712 bet to win and $87,497 in exactas.

Last year in Pool 2, the field closed as the 9-5 favorite, while Medina Spirit was 24-1. Total handle was $322,035.

In Pool 1, the field closed at 3-5, followed by Smile Happy and Jack Christopher. Pool 1 drew a combined handle of $326,448.

Three subsequent 2022 Derby pools will be held as follows: Pool 3, Feb. 11-13; Pool 4, March 11-13; and Pool 5, March 31-April 2. A Kentucky Oaks futures pool will coincide with Pool 4.

In the case of field horses finishing first and second, the highest-placed horse counts as the bottom half of the exacta.

The 148th Derby will be run May 7.

Kentucky Derby Futures Pool 2 odds
(No., Horse, Trainer, P1, P2)

1. Chasing Time, S. Asmussen, 3-5(f), 17-1

2. Classic Causeway, B. Lynch, 44-1, 51-1

3. Commandperformance, T. Pletcher, 31-1, 41-1

4. Courvoisier, K. Breen, 3-5(f), 39-1

5. Dash Attack, K. McPeek, 3-5(f), 34-1

6. Emmanuel, T. Pletcher, 3-5(f), 17-1

7. Epicenter, S. Asmussen, 52-1, 24-1

8. Giant Game, D. Romans, 37-1, 28-1

9. High Oak, B. Mott, 3-5(f), 38-1

10. Jack Christopher, C. Brown, 10-1, 14-1

11. Major General, T. Pletcher, 43-1, 41-1

12. Make It Big, S. Joseph, 3-5(f), 85-1

13. Mo Donegal, T. Pletcher, 37-1, 23-1

14. Pappacap, M. Casse, 23-1, 24-1

15. Rattle N Roll, K. McPeek, 21-1, 20-1

16. Simplification, A. Sano, 3-5(f), 43-1

17. Slow Down Andy, D. O’Neill, 3-5(f), 20-1

18. Smile Happy, K. McPeek, 8-1, 8-1

19. Tiz the Bomb, K. McPeek, 24-1, 10-1

20. Trafalgar, A. Stall, 98-1, 77-1

21. Varatti, T. Pletcher, 54-1, 47-1

22. White Abarrio, S. Joseph, 3-5(f), 171-1

23. Zandon, C. Brown, 56-1, 25-1

24. Field (all others), n/a, 3-5, 9-5

(f) – denotes Pool 1 field horse.

Win pool, $273,712
Exacta pool, $87,497
Total handle, $361,209