The Kentucky Derby bubble lost two, but picked up two horses over the weekend.
Nearly and Bravaro, who sit 23 and 24, respectively, on the Derby points list - and that’s with unlikely Derby starters Stark Contrast and Iron Honor still on that list - are no longer under Derby consideration, according to their connections.
ARCADIA, Calif. - Pavlovian will be ready for a fight should a speed duel develop in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 2.
“He doesn’t want anyone passing him,” jockey Edwin Maldonado said at Santa Anita on Sunday morning.
A few minutes earlier, Maldonado was aboard Pavlovian for the colt’s final workout in California before a scheduled departure to Kentucky on Tuesday.
Working in company with stablemate Robusta, Pavlovian went six furlongs in 1:15. Robusta was timed in 1:16.
So Happy has trained forwardly since winning the Santa Anita Derby on April 4, and on Friday morning the Mark Glatt-trained colt posted his first work since the Santa Anita Derby stamped him as a contender for the Kentucky Derby.
Jockey Mike Smith was aboard So Happy for the five-furlong drill in 59.60. He worked in company with a Glatt-trained stablemate.
Glatt said So Happy “broke maybe a half-length off, and then just kind of got to the [workmate] when he wanted to, and got by him slightly.
DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – One of the most eagerly anticipated workouts in the lead-up to this year’s Kentucky Derby took place in relative anonymity shortly after sunrise Thursday at Palm Beach Downs. There, likely Derby favorite Renegade breezed four furlongs in 48.91 seconds in front of some half-dozen spectators, including his trainer, Todd Pletcher.
WHO’S HOT
There has been little to no change to the perspective field with no major defections. Renegade, the presumptive Derby favorite, was expected to return to the work tab on Thursday at Palm Beach Downs. It would be his first breeze since his victory in the Arkansas Derby on March 28.
With more than 4,500 wins and five Eclipse Awards to his credit in a career that is still in its prime, jockey Irad Oritz Jr. has had more than his share of memorable moments. None of them, however, have come in the Kentucky Derby.
Nine times Ortiz has ridden the Derby without success. His best Derby result came with Improbable, the favorite in 2019, who was elevated from fifth to fourth following the disqualification of Maximum Security from first. However, Ortiz feels Mo Donegal, fifth behind longshot Rich Strike was, to date, his best chance.
Renegade
Into Mischief – Spice Is Nice, by Curlin
Bred in Kentucky by Robert and Lawana Low ($975,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase by West Bloodstock, agent for Repole Stable)
Renegade’s performance in the Arkansas Derby made him the early Kentucky Derby favorite. He has a pedigree befitting a Derby favorite, as he is by one of the leading sires in the race’s history and from a strong female family with plenty of two-turn success.
Chief Wallabee, beaten a half-length when third behind Commandment and The Puma in the Grade 1 Florida Derby on March 28, will most likely be equipped with blinkers when he runs in the Kentucky Derby, trainer Bill Mott said Monday.
“To me, he seemed slightly distracted in his last run,” Mott said Monday. “Something to keep him a little more focused. He’s still a little green.”
LEXINGTON, Ky. - A handful of Kentucky Derby candidates breezed Friday morning in the Bluegrass State as plans and the field for the May 2 classic continue to come into focus.
