LOUISVILLE,  Ky. – Chad Brown said there was a point in the stretch on a rain-soaked Saturday afternoon at Churchill Downs that he thought Good Magic had “a really, really good chance” to give him his first Kentucky Derby victory.

By Marty McGee and Mary Rampellini

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen became just the second trainer to saddle 8,000 Thoroughbred winners in North American racing history when Lookin At Lee won the third race on the Kentucky Derby Day card Saturday at Churchill Downs.

Only the late Dale Baird, with 9,445, has more wins, according to Equibase statistics.

Asmussen, 52, is a clear second on the all-time leader list. Jerry Hollendorfer ranks third with 7,436 wins through Thursday, while the late Jack Van Berg is fourth at 6,523.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Monomoy Girl came out of her victory in the 144th Kentucky Oaks in good shape, trainer Brad Cox said Saturday morning at Churchill Downs, reiterating that he will work backward from the Nov. 2 Breeders’ Cup Distaff in mapping out a race schedule for the star filly over the next six months.

Wagering on the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs in Louisville on Friday was a record $17.47 million, according to a chart of the race, a 18 percent gain on wagering on the race last year.

The strong wagering figure for the Oaks this year was a $2.4 million handle jump from the record set in 2015, when $15.05 million was bet on the race. It was also part of a record-setting full card for the Oaks, with total handle on the 13 races on Friday coming in at $55.8 million, a 14 percent increase over the total handle on the 13-race card last year, according to Churchill.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Jockey Rafael Bejarano, who has not ridden since he sustained a wrist injury on March 18, has resumed working horses this week in advance of a scheduled comeback on Thursday.

Bejarano was in the stable area on Friday, his second day of exercising horses, he said.

Bejarano, 35, began physical therapy last month after a brief trip to see family in Peru. A former leading rider in Southern California, Bejarano has won 24 races this year. He finished seventh in the standings at the Santa Anita winter-spring meeting, which ended on April 9, with 29 wins.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Pavel, who was fourth in the $10 million Dubai World Cup in the United Arab Emirates on March 31, will return to racing later this month in a Grade 1 race at Santa Anita – the $500,000 Gold Cup at 1 1/4 miles on May 26, or the $400,000 Shoemaker Mile on turf on May 28.

Trainer Doug O’Neill said on Friday that Pavel’s workouts will determine which race is chosen.

“We know Dubai can take a bit out of them, so we’re giving him plenty of time,” O’Neill said.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Blended Citizen was scratched from Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs after failing to draw into the race from the also-eligible list on Friday morning. The recent stakes winner will not be idle for long.

Trainer Doug O’Neill intends to run Blended Citizen in the Grade 3 Peter Pan Stakes at Belmont Park on May 12 as a prep for the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes at 1 1/2 miles on June 9. The $350,000 Peter Pan Stakes is run at 1 1/8 miles.

“He acts like a stamina horse,” O’Neill said. “We were hoping to have a chance in the Kentucky Derby.”

Bouncing back from a difficult winter in Florida, Edgar Prado has ridden well since returning to Maryland, consistently placing his horses in the proper spots. Through Thursday, he was 7 for 30 at Laurel Park. He also had a little win two weeks ago at Charles Town.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – The $500,000 Woodbine Oaks, for Canadian-bred 3-year-old fillies, is about a month away on June 9, and Dixie Moon will have her final prep race May 19 in the Grade 3, $125,000 Selene Stakes, trainer Catherine Day Phillips said.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Chiefswood Stable entered a different horse in each leg of last year’s Canadian Triple Crown and came away with runner-up finishes in each race, with Tiz a Slam in the Queen’s Plate, Aurora Way in the Prince of Wales Stakes, and Final Copy in the Breeders’ Stakes. The stable’s depth is on display again this year in the lead-up to the Queen’s Plate, with top contenders Neepawa and Pipers Warrior along with Rose’s Vision, who has emerged in his last two starts.