STRENGTHS: The Santa Catalina victory in January catapulted him into the Derby picture and he's had legitimate excuses since. He was wide, then checked late in the San Felipe when sandwiched in the lane. Was too close to the pace in the Santa Anita Derby, and wide on a rail-favoring Keeneland strip in the Lexington, missing the place by a neck despite the tough journey. Has the pedigree to stay the trip.

STRENGTHS: Triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures in his last three races stamp Buddy Gil as the leading California contender. A stalker, he will get the jump on the deep closers and there are plenty of them. His stakes experience as a 2-year-old is a plus. He's gutty, too, something you can't put a number on. Rider Gary Stevens has won this race three times.

STRENGTHS: He's improving by leaps and bounds. He will offer value, which is the single most important element. His San Felipe third-place finish was impressive, especially since it came in his first try against winners. It is very difficult to go from maidens to Grade 2 company and run a career best. He could have bounced next out in the Blue Grass, but he did the opposite and ran a solid second. He has foundation races as a 2-year-old, a staple of most Derby winners. His tactical speed and the ability to get the Derby distance add to his appeal.

STRENGTHS: The Kentucky Derby buzz began when this son of 1992 Belmont and BC Classic winner A.P. Indy swept past 10 rivals in an eye-catching debut. Despite winning just one of his next four, Atswhatimtalknbout has kept hope alive with his late-closing style, long-winded pedigree, and impressive appearance. His wide near-miss in the San Felipe earned him favoritism in the Santa Anita Derby, in which he finished fourth. Those forgiving that loss could be rewarded by a much improved effort over a Churchill Downs strip that can play kinder to stretch-runners than Santa Anita.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Sir Cherokee, the longshot winner of the Arkansas Derby, was scratched from Saturday's Kentucky Derby on Friday morning with a small fracture in his right hind ankle, his trainer Michael Tomlinson said.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Empire Maker returned to the track at Churchill Downs on Thursday morning for a jog, which means he missed only one day of training because of a bruise to his right front hoof at mid-week. The setback, however, has raised palpable doubts about him on the eve of Saturday's 129th Kentucky Derby.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - It was late one Saturday afternoon in March 1999 and trainer Wally Dollase was sitting in his Santa Anita barn office going over charts with his daughter and assistant trainer, Aimee, when the phone rang.

On the other end of the line was Richard Mulhall, president of The Thoroughbred Corporation, for whom Dollase had taken a private job in December 1997. When Dollase hung up, he turned to Aimee and said "I've just been fired.''

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Watching Empire Maker jogging over the racetrack shortly after dawn on Thursday morning was a welcome sight for his legion of supporters. He doesn't have the prettiest way of going when he jogs, but he moved along willingly and seemingly unaffected by the foot bruise that has had the entire racing world holding its breath over the past 48 hours.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Trainer Wayne Lukas doesn't exactly lurk in the shadows, either as a personality or a professional, but his contenders for this year's Kentucky Derby haven't kept him in the limelight as much as usual. But Scrimshaw, whom Lukas trains for owners Bob and Beverly Lewis, won the Lexington Stakes at Keeneland, and the handsome colt has some intriguing ties to earlier Derby successes for Lukas.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Tyler Baze was 5 years old in 1988, the first year he can recall the Kentucky Derby.

Baze had a rooting interest. His uncle at the time, Gary Stevens, was aboard Winning Colors, who turned for home with the lead.

"I remember sitting in the front room hollering and screaming, 'Come on, Uncle Gary. Come on!' " Baze recalled.