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LOUISVILLE, Ky.– Bob Baffert, conspicuous by his absence considering that his Derby favorite American Pharoah has been on the grounds at Churchill Downs for more than a week, made a cameo appearance here Tuesday morning. He stayed just long enough to watch American Pharoah gallop and one of his two possible Oaks contenders, Maybellene, breeze during the 15-minute Derby-Oaks training session, which began at 8:30 a.m.
John Velazquez will ride Carpe Diem and Javier Castellano will ride Materiality in the Kentucky Derby, trainer Todd Pletcher announced late Monday afternoon.
Velazquez has been riding both Carpe Diem and Materiality, both trained by Pletcher. They are considered among the top candidates for the May 2 Derby. Carpe Diem has won 4 of 5 starts, most recently the Blue Grass Stakes. Materiality is unbeaten in three starts, and comes off a victory in the Florida Derby.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - WinStar Farm announced Monday that it has acquired a minority interest in leading Kentucky Derby contender Upstart from his principal owner, Ralph Evans. Upstart will continue to be trained by Rick Violette.
Details of the transaction were not revealed. Upstart will give WinStar two horses in this year’s Derby field. It is also partners with Stonestreet Stable in Carpe Diem.
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – What figured to be a far-from-noteworthy Kentucky Derby-Oaks training session Monday got an unexpected boost when reigning female sprint champion Judy the Beauty worked six furlongs after the renovation break at 8:30 a.m. Judy the Beauty is scheduled to make her 2015 debut in the Grade 1 Humana Distaff here a week from Saturday.
Churchill Downs
Weather: Overcast
Temperature: 58
Track: Muddy, upgraded to good after the break
The first fallout from the injury to One Lucky Dane occurred Sunday, when Keith Brackpool, a co-owner of Bolo, announced via Twitter that Rafael Bejarano would ride Bolo in the Kentucky Derby on May 2, the first of several jockey assignments that are expected to be made in the next 48 hours.
Bejarano would have ridden One Lucky Dane in the Derby, but One Lucky Dane suffered a condylar fracture to his left front ankle during a workout Saturday at Santa Anita and is off the Derby trail.
Churchill Downs
Weather: Raining; temperature 65
Track: Fast early/Sloppy after break
LOUISVILLE, Ky . - In the past, no trainer would dare run a horse in the Kentucky Derby without at least one work over the Churchill Downs racing strip. But Funny Cide’s victory in 2003 changed all that. This year is a prime case in point, with not even half the field on the grounds yet and at least a half a dozen, and possibly more, members of the prospective starting lineup not expected to have a breeze over the track prior to Derby Day.
ELMONT, N.Y. - If the busy four-race campaign and harsh New York winter were supposed to take their toll on El Kabeir, well, they haven’t.
The multiple Grade 3 stakes-winning El Kabeir demonstrated his fitness and energy levels were very strong during a five-furlong work timed in 1:00.15 Sunday morning over Belmont Park’s main track.
ARCADIA, Calif. – When it came to Kentucky Derby workouts on Saturday, they saved the worst news for last.
One Lucky Dane, second last time out in the Santa Anita Derby, was taken off the Kentucky Derby trail after suffering a condylar fracture to his left front ankle in a workout here at Santa Anita.
One Lucky Dane is off the Kentucky Derby trail after suffering an injury to his left front leg during a workout on Saturday at Santa Anita, trainer Bob Baffert said.
One Lucky Dane had just completed a five-furlong work in 59.20 seconds and was galloping out around the clubhouse turn when he was brought to a halt by jockey Rafael Bejarano. One Lucky Dane got a ride back in a horse ambulance to Baffert's barn. He was missing his left front shoe. He also began to favor his left front as he cooled out.
