LOUISVILLE, Ky. – For years, Arlington Park’s opening day coincided with Kentucky Oaks Day. Then COVID-19 struck, and Arlington didn’t begin a 2020 meeting until July. In 2021, the opener returned to the first Friday in May – a dark day, not a celebration. Churchill Downs Inc., Arlington’s owner, already had decided, strictly for financial reasons, to shed the track from its corporate portfolio. In May 2022, the massive Arlington grandstand, the vast tract of land upon which it rests, stood quiet as a remote Illinois prairie.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – When it comes to Practical Move’s preparation for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, trainer Tim Yakteen is utilizing the less-is-more approach.

On Wednesday, three days out from Kentucky Derby 149, Practical Move simply jogged one mile around Churchill’s main track. It was at least the second time Practical Move just jogged after arriving from Southern California on Saturday.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Gary and Mary West watched their colors cross the line first at Churchill Downs, only to have roses literally taken out of their hands. Trainer Brad Cox experienced the opposite, as he saddled a colt to cross the line second in the Kentucky Derby, only to later be promoted to the victory.

Together, the owners and trainer team up in this Saturday’s running of the Derby with Hit Show, hoping for a first-place finish they can celebrate this time.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – On the eve of the 2011 Kentucky Derby, a downcast Mike Repole joined trainer Todd Pletcher on a podium in the press room at Churchill Downs to announce the scratch of Uncle Mo, the 2-year-old champion of 2010 and second choice on the morning line.

The signs were there all week that Uncle Mo, dealing with what would ultimately be diagnosed as a liver disorder, wouldn’t make the race, though his connections entered hoping for a miracle that didn’t come.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The four first-time trainers with a horse expected to start in this year's Kentucky Derby have sent out well over 20,000 starters combined in races around the globe, according to Equineline statistics. The three jockeys set to ride their first Derby have taken a leg up more than 21,000 times.

But despite all their experiences, there’s nothing quite like this.

"This is it," said trainer Larry Rivelli, who will saddle Two Phil's as his first Kentucky Derby starter. "This is what we do this for. It's a dream come true."

Ramon Vazquez has ridden Practical Move in Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs many times in his mind.

“I can be in the middle of the pack,” he said over the weekend, envisioning the first run through the stretch. “I want to be out of trouble.”

On the backstretch, Practical Move will ideally be in a stalking position.

“I would like to be three or four lengths behind the speed and start moving up,” Vazquez said. “By the stretch, I hope to be on the lead. My dream is I win the race.”

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – After starting a Kentucky Derby horse in 2016, 2017, and 2018, trainer Keith Desormeaux had to wait five years for his next Derby runner, Confidence Game.

Desormeaux, come Derby Day, will have waited 10 weeks to run Confidence Game back after the colt won the Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park. And even with the Derby still a week away, Desormeaux couldn’t wait for people to stop asking about the unusually long break between final prep and Derby start.

Fans are not likely to notice much difference in the Belmont Park they left approximately 10 months ago, when the 2023 spring/summer meet opens Thursday for a 40-day run. But during the time away, a significant amount of work was done to start the process of a new Belmont that will come in the years ahead.