The curse of the 2-year-old champion reared up and struck again on Friday when the undefeated Declan's Moon, last year's Eclipse Award-winning 2-year-old male and the favorite for the May 7 Kentucky Derby, was declared out of the Derby with a small fracture in his left knee.
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Afleet Alex and Lost in the Fog were slightly favored at 6-1 midway through the second of four days of wagering into Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.
As of 5:30 p.m. Eastern on Friday, and with the handle standing at $86,450, Afleet Alex had drawn nearly $10,500 in the win-only future wager, about $650 more than Lost in the Fog. Next in line were Sun King (7-1), Rockport Harbor (8-1), the mutuel field (10-1), and Bandini (12-1). Real-time odds are available on kentuckyderby.com.
Afleet Alex opened as the 4-1 favorite amid relatively light betting in the opening hours of wagering into Pool 2 of the , which began its four-day run Thursday at noon Eastern.
As of 5:40 p.m., Afleet Alex was slightly favored over Lost in the Fog (5-1), Rockport Harbor (5-1), Declan's Moon (8-1), the mutuel field (10-1), and Sun King (11-1). Handle was $33,643.
The field, or the "all others" option among 24 wagering interests, closed as the 2-1 favorite in Pool 1, conducted Feb. 10-13. Handle for Pool 1 was a record $620,362.
Declan's Moon, the champion 2-year-old male of 2004 and the future book favorite for the Kentucky Derby, emerged from his victory in the Santa Catalina Stakes last Saturday with heat in a knee, trainer Ron Ellis said.
Ellis, speaking from his base at Hollywood Park, downplayed the situation and said that Declan's Moon was scheduled to return to the track for exercise on Friday.
"He's got a little heat in a knee," Ellis said on Thursday. "It's not a big deal. I think it's normal stuff. If I get worried, I might have it X-rayed."
NEW ORLEANS - High Limit has run only twice, both times at Delaware. He has yet to compete in a stakes race, and has not raced in more than four months.
Yet when entries were taken Wednesday for the Grade 2, $600,000 on Saturday at Fair Grounds, Mike Diliberto, the linemaker at Fair Grounds, made High Limit the 5-2 favorite in the field of nine.
"His first two starts were very impressive, and Bobby Frankel proved with Peace Rules that he can take a horse, improve him, and win the Louisiana Derby," Diliberto said. "He's got a lot of upside."
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Five new horses are among the 23 separately listed interests in Pool 2 of the , which opens for the customary four-day run Thursday at noon Eastern at tracks and wagering sites throughout the United States.
The new names for Pool 2 are Don't Get Mad, Fusaichi Rock Star, Golden Shine, Noble Causeway, and Scipion. They replace horses who were separate interests in Pool 1: Closing Argument, Harlington, Rush Bay, Texcess, and Storm Surge.
NEW ORLEANS - After a weekend in which four highly regarded 3-year-olds, including early Kentucky Derby favorite Declan's Moon, won stakes races in Arkansas, California, and Florida, the Derby scene now shifts to Louisiana, where on Saturday several horses looking to reach the upper echelon will compete in the Grade 2, $600,000 Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds.
ARCADIA, Calif. - This is an anxious time for trainers whose horses shined at 2 but have yet to race at 3. Last week, it was Sun King's turn to show if he had progressed, and he ran better than even his trainer, Nick Zito, could have expected. In two weeks, it will be time for Afleet Alex, Rockport Harbor, and Wilko to make their 2005 debuts. But this week, all eyes will be on Declan's Moon, the gelding who was last year's champion 2-year-old.
At the start of the 1997 Preakness Stakes, Touch Gold stumbled so badly that he tore off a chunk of his left front foot. It was a bloody, ugly mess after the race. Yet three weeks later, Touch Gold ruined the Triple Crown bid of Silver Charm by re-rallying to take the Belmont Stakes.
The victory was a testament to the courage of the colt, a clever ride by Chris McCarron, and the training skill of David Hofmans. But Hofmans is the first to admit that if not for Ian McKinlay, Touch Gold never would have been in the race.