DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Todd Pletcher had to catch a flight out of town Friday. But before heading to the airport, Pletcher spent the early morning hours sending out more than two dozen horses to work at his winter-spring headquarters at Palm Beach Downs, a group that included potential Kentucky Derby starters Cutting Humor and Spinoff.
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DRF Past Performances
Oaklawn Park | Race 11 | Post Time 7:43 p.m. (ET) | Go to the TimeformUS PPs
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – The Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park on Saturday has brought together 11 hopefuls for the Kentucky Derby, including the winners of both divisions of last month’s Rebel – Omaha Beach and Long Range Toddy – a Bob Baffert shipper in Improbable, and popular multiple stakes winners Galilean and Gray Attempt.
Bye Bye Hong Kong won the $77,000 Cardinal Conditions Stakes on Thursday at Chelmsford in the final leg of the European Road to the Kentucky Derby.
His neck victory over Antilles all but assured the Euro Road to the Derby won’t yield a Kentucky Derby starter this year.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Now comes the final twist on the Kentucky Derby trail for Anothertwistafate, whose journey to Louisville has been anything but a straight line. The colt, whose emerging talent and side-door route have placed him on the threshold of cracking the Derby field, will try to clinch his spot when he faces nine other 3-year-olds Saturday in the Lexington Stakes before a packed house at Keeneland.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Blue Grass Stakes winner Vekoma returned Tuesday to his winter base, the Palm Beach Downs training center in Florida, where the speedy chestnut will do the bulk of his training toward the May 4 Kentucky Derby.
Trainer George Weaver said Wednesday from Palm Beach that Vekoma will have his pre-Derby work in Florida before returning north.
“That’s what won us the Blue Grass, and we’re sticking with what worked,” he said.
Vekoma was scheduled to return to light training Thursday.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Improbable drew the rail for the Grade 1, $1 million Arkansas Derby, which will have a field of 11 for Saturday. Entries for the 1 1/8-mile race were taken on Wednesday.
The Arkansas Derby will be the 11th race on a 12-race program that will have a special first post of 12:30 p.m. Central.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Anothertwistafate drew post 4 in a field of 10 3-year-olds for the Lexington Stakes, a Kentucky Derby points race on Saturday that most likely will determine whether the colt makes the 20-horse cutoff for the May 4 Derby.
The Grade 3, $200,000 Lexington will share top billing Saturday at Keeneland with the $350,000 Jenny Wiley, the last of four Grade 1 races at the 16-day spring meet.
Let’s get to the points.
The long and winding road that leads to the Kentucky Derby on May 4 began with the Iroquois at Churchill Downs last Sept. 15 and concludes Saturday with the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn and the Lexington at Keeneland. Those two races are the final chances for horses to earn enough points to make the field, and the likes of Anothertwistafate, in the Lexington, and Country House, in the Arkansas Derby, are being wheeled back on short rest to try to get in, because if the series ended now, they’d be out.
