NEW ORLEANS – Increasingly, as the May 7 Kentucky Derby nears, earnings in graded stakes races will become a focal point of attention, and that critical factor got ratcheted up several notches this past weekend, when Pants On Fire, Twice the Appeal, Animal Kingdom, Decisive Moment, and Master of Hounds – none of whom were near the top of anyone’s list of Derby contenders – all likely made enough money to put them in the field.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – With three major contenders having turned in their final major Florida Derby preps on Sunday, the outsiders Bowman’s Causeway and Arch Traveler worked on Monday for Sunday’s $1 million race.

Bowman’s Causeway breezed an easy half-mile in 49.34 seconds at Gulfstream Park, and Arch Traveler went five-eighths in 1:01.30 up the turnpike at the Palm Meadows training center.

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

They can’t all be Uncle Mo.

They can’t all be brilliant from the get-go.

Some of these Derby hopefuls need a few starts to fit in. Then, after a couple of confidence-builders or a change to the right distance, the light bulb switches on and their heads get into the game.

FLORENCE, Ky. – The first two finishers in the Grade 3 Vinery Racing Spiral Stakes will both race next in the 137th Kentucky Derby, their respective connections said Sunday, the day after the annual Turfway Park showcase was run amid unseasonably cold weather.