LOUISVILLE, Ky. – His name has become synonymous with racing controversy. On Saturday, two races before the Kentucky Derby, Bayern once again will be a hot topic when making his 4-year-old debut as a solid favorite in the 81st running of the Grade 2, $500,000 Churchill Downs Stakes.

Bayern was last seen racing to a wire-to-wire victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita, a race that resulted in a huge uproar because of the manner in which the colt veered in sharply at the break, impacting the way the race unfolded.

Bettors who took 3-5 on the mutuel field in Pool 1 of the 2015 Kentucky Derby Future Wager last fall will have 13 horses on their side Saturday, but the top three morning-line choices – American Pharoah, Dortmund, and Carpe Diem – were separately listed interests in that opening pool, jeopardizing that play.

Racing fans annually lament the low quality of the horses in the Kentucky Derby, and often their assessment proves to be correct. But few such opinions are being voiced before Saturday’s running of America’s greatest race. This is the strongest, deepest, and fastest Derby field since at least 2007 (the year of Street Sense and Curlin), and it could conceivably be the best since the great years of the 1980s.

Stanford has been scratched from the Kentucky Derby, allowing Frammento to get in, according to trainer Todd Pletcher, who said he just called in the scratch to the stewards.

Pletcher said Stanford would await the Preakness or the Peter Pan Stakes.

All horses outside of Stanford move in one spot in the starting gate. Frammento will get post 20.

Tale of Verve is now the lone also-eligible left. He needs a scratch by 9 a.m. Friday morning to get in.

– additional reporting by David Grening

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Forget becoming a Hall of Famer or a legend. All these folks want to do Saturday is emulate the likes of jockeys Ronnie Franklin and Stewart Elliott or trainers Barclay Tagg and Chip Woolley.

And just what did those guys do? Well, their first time up at the Kentucky Derby, they absolutely knocked it out of the park.

They were Derby rookies who tasted victory in their first go-around – an extraordinary act that five jockeys and five trainers will be trying to accomplish Saturday in the 141st Run for the Roses at Churchill Downs.

Derby Angles features DRF handicappers looking at individual handicapping factors and how they may play out in this year’s Kentucky Derby.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Five years ago, it was not certain if Ahmed Zayat had a future in horse racing.

After having spent tens of millions of dollars since 2005 on horses and quickly rising to the highest echelon in the sport, Zayat in early 2010 was embroiled in a lawsuit with his bank over his line of credit. His coast-to-coast racing stable had filed for bankruptcy. His highly regarded colt Eskendereya was withdrawn from the 2010 Kentucky Derby just days prior to the race with an injury.

Victor Espinoza was on the Churchill Downs scene early Derby week, pressing the flesh and posing for pictures as fans did a double take and quickly figured out who he was.

“It was fun,” said Espinoza, who is never far from a camera-ready grin. “They all wanted to know about my Derby horse. Of course, I thought they meant American Pharoah, but they were talking about California Chrome.”

When the United Arab Emirates Derby was run at Meydan Racecourse on March 28, racing fans on both sides of the Atlantic had the chance to watch it live because it was part of the telecast of the rich Dubai World Cup. Most viewers were impressed by the performance of Mubtaahij, who ran away with the $2 million event by eight lengths.

1. American Pharoah
2. Upstart
3. Dortmund
4. Materiality