Kevin Scatuorchio was still a teenager in May of 2000 when he watched his father’s horse, More Than Ready, slip through an opening along the rail as the field for the 126th Kentucky Derby turned into the stretch at Churchill Downs.
After what he remembers being “a really hot day, a really long day,” Scatuorchio, his father, Jim, family and friends “had something to cheer about” as More Than Ready battled with Wheelaway for the lead in upper stretch.
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Titletown Five ran the biggest race of his career at Churchill Downs, and he is headed there for his next start, trainer D. Wayne Lukas said Tuesday. The horse is being pointed for the Grade 3, $175,000 Derby Trial, a one-turn mile for 3-year-olds April 27.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Until this year, jockey Kevin Krigger has wanted nothing to do with Churchill Downs on the first Saturday of May.
“I’ve avoided Derby Day,” he said. “I didn’t want to be there unless I was riding the race.”
Krigger may get his wish to attend America’s biggest race this year. He is the regular rider of Goldencents, the two-time stakes winner who starts as a contender in the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby on Saturday. A win or second by Goldencents will have Krigger booking a trip to Louisville, Ky., for the Kentucky Derby.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Trainer Eddie Plesa Jr. opted to pass a last chance to get Speak Logistics eligible for the Kentucky Derby when he decided to forgo the Grade 1 Blue Grass on April 13 for Saturday’s $250,000 Calder Derby. Speak Logistics, who has earned 11 Derby qualifying points, will be the heavy favorite to win the opening-day feature at Calder.
March 30 brought forth an embarrassment of riches for U.S. racing fans, as the Dubai World Cup card at Meydan Racecourse in the United Arab Emirates drew several accomplished American-based horses and the final leg of Churchill Downs’ Road to the Kentucky Derby series of 3-year-old prep races kicked off with the Group 2 U.A.E. Derby at Meydan, the Grade 1 Florida Derby at Gulfstream, and the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds.
ARCADIA, Calif. – Like the NCAA basketball tournament, the road to the Kentucky Derby has its own version of March Madness, with the regionals last weekend in Louisiana, Florida, and Dubai each producing finalists. This week, attention turns to California and New York, then next week to Kentucky and Arkansas. Call it April Anxiety.
[DERBY WATCH: Top 20 Kentucky Derby contenders with odds and video]
BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – Saturday’s $1 million Wood Memorial at Aqueduct may be Normandy Invasion’s last chance to make the Kentucky Derby, but it could be the first serious opportunity for his trainer, Chad Brown, to make it to America’s most prestigious horse race.
It’s easy to get caught up in the “flavor of the week” mentality as it pertains to Kentucky Derby prospects. A big prep victory lights up chat rooms, blogs and social-media outlets. A big prep hero often is hailed as the next Derby king.
Until the next big prep, when another coronation ensues.
Conversely, a 3-year-old who disappoints in a Derby-points race, no matter how strong his previous form, is sent to the back of the line by many handicappers and racing fans.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Power Broker, unraced since a fifth-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in November, worked a half-mile in 47.40 seconds at Santa Anita on Sunday, his final major workout before a start in Saturday’s $750,000 Santa Anita Derby.
“I liked what I saw,” trainer Bob Baffert said. “He didn’t get tired.”
Owned by Gary and Mary West, Power Broker has 1 win in 5 starts and earnings of $242,600. A colt by Pulpit, Power Broker’s lone victory came in the Grade 1 FrontRunner Stakes over 1 1/16 miles here last September.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Trainer Shug McGaughey was still basking in the glow of his first Florida Derby victory the morning after Orb rallied to a convincing two-length victory over Itsmyluckyday under jockey John Velazquez in the Grade 1 stakes that highlighted an outstanding day of racing Saturday at Gulfstream Park.
