OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Maximus Mischief passed the audition.

Dominant in two sprints at his home base at Parx Racing, Maximus Mischief stepped up in company, stretched out in distance and handled both with aplomb, recording a 2 1/4-length victory in Saturday’s Grade 2, $250,000 Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct.

The victory not only kept Maximus Mischief perfect in three starts, it put him squarely on the 2019 Kentucky Derby trail. He earned 10 qualifying points toward the Derby with his Remsen win and will head to South Florida to prepare for his 3-year-old campaign.

Grade 1, $2 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, 1 1/16 miles, Churchill Downs, Nov. 2, 2018
(20 Derby qualifying points for a win, 8 for second, 4 for third, 2 for fourth – CQ; the chart on the RTTD page has incorrect point values)

Winner: Game Winner, by Candy Ride
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Jockey: Joel Rosario
Owner: Gary and Mary West
Beyer Speed Figure: 93

Grade 2, $200,000 Kentucky Jockey Club; 1 1/16 miles; Churchill Downs; Nov. 24, 2018
(10 Derby qualifying points for a win, 4 for second, 2 for third, 1 for fourth)

Winner: Signalman, by General Quarters

Trainer: Kenny McPeek

Jockey: Brian Hernandez Jr.

Owner: Tommie Lewis, David Bernsen, and Magdalena Racing

Beyer Speed Figure: 84

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The mutuel field, the 24th or “all others” option, closed as usual as a decisive favorite in Pool 1 of the 2019 Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which closed Sunday at 6 p.m. Eastern after a four-day wagering window.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Time to raise a glass, or a mutuel ticket, to the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which is now under way through Sunday and is in its 21st consecutive year. This parimutuel wager, of which Pool 1 of four opened on Thursday, is as much about bragging rights as it is about profits – a chance for horseplayers to state their opinions early and be validated if proven right.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Fans betting into the first pool of the 2019 Kentucky Derby Future Wager this Thursday-Sunday are being presented with the new option of “any filly” among the 24 betting choices.

Listed as No. 23, the “any filly” option is self-explanatory: any filly that happens to make the lineup for the Derby next May will be a live play.

“Any filly” is pegged at 30-1 on the morning line as released Monday by Churchill Downs. No filly has won the Derby since Winning Colors in 1988, and none has started since Devil May Care was 10th in 2010.

If future-book wagering on the Kentucky Derby in Las Vegas weren’t virtually extinct, you could be certain that the current favorite for the 2019 Derby would be Game Winner.

As well he should be. And yes, that would be the case even after the sensational debut Saturday at Del Mar by Bob Baffert barnmate Coliseum, who delivered a performance that sparked enormous buzz in the American racing community.

The moment Game Winner crossed the wire first in the Nov. 2 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Churchill, the early Kentucky Derby favorite was clearly established. Lengths the best, overcoming a wide trip and midstretch bumping, he showed off all the tools that suggest that, health permitting, he will be a force on the first Saturday in May.

Grade 1, $500,000 Breeders’ Futurity; 1 1/16 miles; Keeneland; Oct. 6, 2018
(10 Derby qualifying points for a win, 4 for second, 2 for third, 1 for fourth)

Winner: Knicks Go, by Paynter

Trainer: Ben Colebrook

Jockey: Albin Jimenez

Owner: KRA Stud Farm

Beyer Speed Figure: 81

Grade 1, $500,000 Champagne Stakes, one mile, Belmont Park, Oct. 6, 2018
(10 Derby qualifying points for a win, 4 for second, 2 for third, 1 for fourth)
Winner: Complexity, by Maclean’s Music
Trainer: Chad Brown
Jockey: Jose Ortiz
Owner: Klaravich Stables
Beyer Speed Figure: 94