BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. -- The undefeated Mohaymen was a sight for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin’s bleary eyes after a weekend of both professional and personal disappointment.
“It picked my head right up,” McLaughlin said on a steamy Tuesday morning at the Palm Meadows training center in south Florida.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Mohaymen and Nyquist are the morning-line favorites, but clearly it would behoove their backers to wait until results of the Florida Derby are known Saturday evening before diving into the fourth and final pool of the 2016 Kentucky Derby Future Wager.
The pool opens Friday at noon Eastern, with odds locked in only when the pool closes Sunday evening at 6 p.m. Mohaymen, the 7-2 choice on the Pool 4 morning line, squares off against Nyquist (8-1) in a highly anticipated matchup of undefeated colts Saturday at Gulfstream Park.
Three of the Kentucky Derby’s most imposing prospects – the champion Nyquist, Rebel Stakes winner Cupid, and Louisiana Derby winner Gun Runner – are graduates of Niall Brennan’s training program.
Sound familiar?
The Ocala, Fla., horseman was thought to have reached a career high-water mark in 2013 with a trio of alumni in the Derby gate. Winner Orb and third-place Revolutionary gave Brennan an immediate spike in his résumé, while pacesetter and 12th-place finisher Palace Malice went on to win the Belmont Stakes.
Upon his retirement, 1989 Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Sunday Silence attracted surprisingly little attention from American breeders but was sold to Japanese interests for $11 million, at the high end of the market at the time. It was a prudent move, as he went on to make innumerable contributions to that bloodstock industry. Now, more than a decade after his death, he could be adding some international intrigue to this Kentucky Derby.
Grade 2, $2 million United Arab Emirates Derby; 1,900 meters (approximately 1 3/16 miles); Meydan; March 26, 2016
(100 Derby qualifying points for a win, 40 for second, 20 for third, 10 for fourth)
Winner: Lani
Trainer: Mikio Matsunaga
Jockey: Yutaka Take
Owner: Yoko Maeda
Grade 2, $1 million Louisiana Derby; 1 1/8 miles; Fair Grounds; March 26, 2016
(100 Derby qualifying points for a win, 40 for second, 20 for third, 10 for fourth)
Winner: Gun Runner, by Candy Ride
Trainer: Steve Asmussen
Jockey: Florent Geroux
Owner: Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC and Three Chimneys Farm
Beyer Speed Figure: 91
NEW ORLEANS – The two horses who shared the headlines in the Louisiana Derby on Saturday at Fair Grounds, the victorious Gun Runner and troubled fourth-place finisher Mo Tom, both came out of the race well, their trainers reported Sunday morning, and both will not race again until the Kentucky Derby on May 7 at Churchill Downs.
NEW ORLEANS – For Gun Runner and Mo Tom, the Louisiana Derby on Saturday played out like the Risen Star last month. For Gun Runner, it was a joyous sequel. For Mo Tom, another Nightmare on Gentilly Blvd.
Gun Runner ($9.80), making full use of his tactical speed and instant acceleration, completed a sweep of the two biggest Kentucky Derby preps at Fair Grounds by rolling to a 4 1/2-length victory in the Grade 2, $1 million Louisiana Derby, a result that thrilled his trainer, Steve Asmussen.
The main event on closing weekend at Fair Grounds is, of course the Louisiana Derby, race 10 on the card and the last leg of an all-stakes pick four.
RACE 7: INTERNATIONAL STAR was off the board as the odds-on favorite in the Mineshaft last time out but he was against the race flow, which favored those horses close to the pace. Expecting improvement. EAGLE ran a much better race, closing to just miss while also trying to close in a race where speed held the edge, though he has to deal with the wide post.
A's: 1, 10
