Jockey Calvin Borel has won the Kentucky Derby three times in the last four years, but not until Wednesday did he line up a mount for this year’s race on May 7. Borel secured the assignment on Twice the Appeal, a horse he has never ridden and who only got into the Derby after scoring a 25-1 upset in the Sunland Derby with jockey Christian Santiago Reyes.

Silver Medallion, who finished fourth in the Lexington Stakes at Keeneland on Saturday, is not under consideration for the May 7 Kentucky Derby, a decision that affects the graded stakes earnings list and moves Anthony's Cross into the bubble at number 21.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Handicapping the Louisville weather isn’t quite as difficult as picking the Derby superfecta, but it can fool anybody at any time. Kathy Ritvo was second-guessing herself in mid-morning Wednesday as rain pelted the roof of Barn 41, albeit not quite as hard as earlier, when she went ahead and sent her Derby prospect, Mucho Macho Man, out for a two-mile gallop around 7 a.m.

“I thought I’d get him out before it got any worse,” Ritvo said. “But I do feel bad when I can’t show him off at 8:30.”

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The likely starting field for the May 7 Kentucky Derby came into sharper focus Tuesday when Uncle Mo, the heavy Derby favorite until his loss in the Wood Memorial, had an encouraging workout at Churchill Downs, and the connections of both J P’s Gusto and The Factor finally made official what had long been expected, that neither would participate.

Three days before last year’s Kentucky Derby, track announcer Tom Durkin found himself on a couch in a Louisville psychiatrist’s office getting hypnotized. Though he had called the world’s most famous horse race 13 previous times – nine for NBC Sports – Durkin was feeling stressed out.

“It’s always been stressful,” said Durkin, who was prescribed Inderal, a beta blocker, to deal with the anxiety.

Jockey Ramon Dominguez will ride Gotham Stakes winner Stay Thirsty in the Kentucky Derby on May 7, owner Mike Repole said Tuesday.

J P’s Gusto on Tuesday joined The Factor as horses who were not expected to run in the Kentucky Derby and whose connections finally made that news official.

“We're not running,” Dr. John Waken, who owns J P's Gusto under his GEM Inc. banner, said Tuesday. “As far as I know, he leaves for New York today or tomorrow.”

The Factor, who disappointed as the heavy favorite in the Arkansas Derby in his last start, on Tuesday morning was officially withdrawn from consideration for the May 7 Kentucky Derby, co-owner George Bolton said. That leaves his trainer, Bob Baffert, with just Midnight Interlude as a Derby starter. Baffert over the weekend officially took out Jaycito because of a foot injury.

KENTUCKY DERBY NEWS: Track all the 3-year-olds on the Triple Crown trail

LOUISVILLE, KY. - Tuesday morning’s Derby-Oaks training session ended in tragedy when Gilded Gem broke down crossing the finish line after breezing six furlongs in company with trainer Bob Baffert’s Oaks candidate Plum Pretty.