LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Fields for supporting stakes during opening week of the Churchill Downs spring meet are taking shape, with stars such as Bricks and Mortar, McKinzie, Newspaperofrecord, and Bulletin all expected to be in action.
The busy schedule opens Saturday night with the six-furlong William Walker and continues through the Grade 1 Old Forester Turf Classic, the traditional lead-in to the Kentucky Derby. Here’s a quick glance at some key races on the Derby week roster:
Thursday’s 10-race program at Gulfstream Park has a Saturday feel about it with four optional-claiming races on the docket, the last of which features the return of Strike Power, who was last seen locally competing in the 2018 Florida Derby. There will be a carryover of more than $442,000 in the Rainbow 6 when racing resumes Thursday.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Bob Baffert can slip in and out of town as unnoticed as anybody else with white hair and five Kentucky Derby wins to his credit. Baffert flew into Louisville late Sunday from California on something of a stealth mission, intent on overseeing a key pre-Derby workout Monday morning at Churchill Downs for Improbable without alerting track officials or drawing an inordinate amount of attention.
They are all 3 years old and male and horses for the 145th Kentucky Derby, but about there, the similarities end. They are chestnut and bay and gray. They were born as close as Kentucky or as far away as Japan, and they come into the Derby off prep races around the globe. They are handled by first-time Derby trainers and by Hall of Fame veterans of the race; they run the gamut from homebreds by six-figure stallions to former claimers. Even their shared age is not a true commonality, as they were foaled anywhere from Feb. 11 to May 23.
ELMONT, N.Y. – Like most of her colleagues, Linda Rice on Monday was in Ocala, Fla., looking at hundreds of 2-year-olds that were to be sold this week at the OBS auction.
At the very least, she hopes to find another Newly Minted.
It was at this same sale last year where Rice purchased Newly Minted for $110,000. In a span of eight days, Newly Minted earned $144,100 for Beach Haven Thoroughbreds with a 5 3/4-length maiden win on April 13 and a 7 1/2-length victory in Saturday’s $200,000 Park Avenue division of the New York Stallion Stakes at Aqueduct.
ELMONT, N.Y. – With the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap in the back of his mind, trainer Jeremiah Englehart will have the talented New York-bred Pat On the Back make his 5-year-old debut in Friday’s $100,000 Affirmed Success, the opening-day feature at Belmont Park.
Though Affirmed Success was a Kentucky-bred millionaire earner, the race in his honor is restricted to New York-breds at six furlongs.
LEXINGTON, KY. – Ontrack attendance and all-sources wagering are down marginally as the Keeneland meet approaches its end.
According to figures released Monday by track vice president Bob Elliston, attendance has averaged 15,660 per card, down 3.7 percent for the corresponding 2018 dates. All-sources betting has averaged $10,229,603, down 1.3 percent.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – With just three days left at the 16-day Keeneland spring meet, trainer Chad Brown has the lead atop the trainer standings with nine wins from 25 starts. But he has just one starter remaining, while those in closest in pursuit will be considerably more active, those being Brad Cox (7) and Wesley Ward (6), who happened to tie for the top spot here at the 2018 spring meet with 13 wins each.
“I’m not counting on anything because I’ve only got the one left,” Brown said.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – With entries for the 145th Kentucky Oaks due in just a matter of days, the connections of would-be contenders on the bubble for the Grade 1 filly classic are getting quite anxious about their chances to make the 14-horse cutoff.
Bellafina leads the list of 14 3-year-old fillies intended for the $1 million Oaks, for which entries will be taken next Monday at Churchill Downs. As many as four more horses can be used on an also-eligibles list.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Epical, who won a stakes for the first time in the Grade 2 San Luis Rey Stakes at Santa Anita on March 29, is being pointed for the Grade 1 Man o’ War Stakes at Belmont Park on May 11, trainer Jim Cassidy said on Sunday.
The $700,000 Man o’ War Stakes is run at 1 3/8 miles on turf and will be a class test for Epical, who races for Deron Pearson. A 4-year-old gelding, Epical has won 4 of 11 starts and earned $279,980, but has yet to run in a Grade 1 race. On Feb. 9, Epical was a fast-closing second in the Grade 2 San Marcos Stakes at 1 1/4 miles on turf.
