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.
With the year well into its seventh week, and the Kentucky Derby drawing ever closer, it had become a mite disconcerting that Afleet Alex, one of the nation's elite 3-year-olds, had yet to have a recorded workout, what with his 2005 debut only 4 1/2 weeks away. But last year's runner-up for champion 2-year-old finally got back to serious business Wednesday morning at Oaklawn Park, with a four-furlong drill in 47 seconds.
Bob Baffert, Patrick Biancone, and Ron Ellis might not have a better one in the barn, but this past weekend showed that they at least have another one in the barn. All three trainers strengthened their hand for the Kentucky Derby with top performances by colts considered their second-stringers.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - A record handle for a Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool was established Sunday when the mutuel field closed as the 2-1 favorite, marking the seventh time in as many years that the field has been favored in the first of three pools.
Handle on Pool 1 was $620,362, including a record one-day handle of $346,159 on Sunday, the last of four days of wagering into the parimutuel, win-only pool. The previous record for any Derby Future Wager pool was $577,889 on Pool 1 in 2002.
In order to allow fans to see the results of Sunday's San Vicente Stakes at Santa Anita before betting, the deadline for Pool 1 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager has been extended to 6:30 p.m. Eastern.
Post time for the Grade 2, $150,000 San Vicente, which includes Consolidator as one of the 23 individual betting interests in Pool 1, is 6:07 p.m. Betting for Pool 1 had been scheduled to end at 6 p.m.
Churchill Downs also changed the closing time for the first round of future wagering on the Kentucky Oaks until 6:45 p.m., 15 minutes later than originally scheduled.
Steady wagering action on several separately listed contenders led to a more balanced odds board Friday, the second of four days for Pool 1 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.
As of 5:20 p.m. Eastern, the mutuel field, or the 24th and "all others" option, was still the 3-2 favorite, having drifted upward from as low as 2-5 when a sizable bet was placed on it Thursday. Churchill Downs officials reported the bet, most likely in the $25,000 range, had been placed through a hub in Maine, a commonly used conduit for many offshore sites.
A sizable mid-afternoon wager made the mutuel field the 2-5 favorite when the first of three pools in the annual Kentucky Derby Future Wager opened Thursday at tracks and wagering sites throughout North America.
As of 5:35 p.m. Eastern, the field, or the 24th and "all others" option, had attracted $28,427 of nearly $50,000 bet into the win-only, four-day wager. Afleet Alex was the 14-1 second choice, followed by Harlington at 19-1 and Declan's Moon at 22-1.
Pool 1 of the Derby futures closes at 6 p.m. Eastern Sunday.
