LEXINGTON, Ky. - Buddy Gil bled from his nostrils in the test barn following his victory in Saturday's Santa Anita Derby, which puts him on the California state veterinarian's bleeders' list but should not prevent him from competing in the Kentucky Derby on May 3.
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Empire Maker was the solid 5-2 favorite when the third and final pool of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager closed Sunday, while Storm Flag Flying was the 7-2 favorite in the inaugural Kentucky Oaks Future Wager.
Empire Maker will return $7 for a $2 Pool 3 win wager if he wins the Derby on May 3. Only one Derby Future payoff has been lower, the Pool 3 return for Fusaichi Pegasus ($6.60), when he won in 2000. Empire Maker is scheduled for his final Derby prep Saturday in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Empire Maker was a 3-1 favorite midway through the second day of wagering in Pool 3 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which will remain open until Sunday at 6:30 p.m. Eastern.
As of 5:45 p.m. Friday, and with just over $37,000 in the pool, Empire Maker was the favorite over the mutuel field (6-1), Badge of Silver (7-1), Atswhatimtalknbout (10-1), Indy Dancer (11-1), and Kafwain (15-1).
ARCADIA, Calif. - David Flores was not merely returning a favor when he decided to ride Atswhatimtalknbout instead of Domestic Dispute last month. He certainly appreciated being elevated by trainer Ron Ellis after Chris McCarron, Ellis's main rider, retired last summer. But Flores has plenty of business from other clients, including Bob Baffert, who trains Domestic Dispute and has far more horses than Ellis.
No, Flores's reason was quite basic.
"He looked," Flores said Wednesday morning at Santa Anita, "like he had more talent than any other 3-year-old."
WHO'S HOT
Because of the defection from Derby consideration on Wednesday of the Florida Derby runner-up, Trust N Luck, Ten Most Wanted moves onto the top 25 for the first time. He is 40-1 on the future line set by Mike Watchmaker, Daily Racing Form national handicapper. Atswhatimtalknbout, the morning-line favorite for Saturday's Santa Anita Derby, is down to 5-1 from last week's 6-1.
WHO'S NOT
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Trust N Luck, winner of the Grade 1 Fountain of Youth Stakes and second behind Empire Maker in the $1 million Florida Derby, will not start in the 2003 Kentucky Derby, trainer Ralph Ziadie said on Wednesday.
Trust N Luck missed several days of training shortly after the March 15 Florida Derby because of a cough. He returned to the track earlier this week and worked an easy three furlongs at Calder on Wednesday. It was his first official work since the Florida Derby.
Buddy Gil, the recent winner of two graded stakes in California, is one of eight late nominees to this year's Triple Crown, bringing the total number of nominees to a record 454.
The other late nominees are New York Hero, the recent winner of the Lane's End Stakes; During, who has earned two 100-plus Beyer Speed Figures; Mr. Decatur, the winner of two stakes races at Sunland Park; Defrere's Vixen, who has run in three graded stakes at Fair Grounds this year; Herculated, an undefeated winner of two races; and maiden winners Fund of Funds and Mr. Amano.
ARCADIA, Calif. - It's a long way from the Baldwin Stakes to the Santa Anita Derby. It's also a long way from tiny Hagerman, Idaho, to Southern California. But Buddy Gil knows the way.
The tough, unheralded 3-year-old gelding was overlooked when he won the Baldwin Stakes, a turf sprint, at 26-1 on Feb. 23. He was a 9-1 shot when he won the 1 1/16-mile San Felipe Stakes two weeks ago. And next week, he will try to punch his ticket to the Kentucky Derby, when he goes for his third straight victory in the 1 1/8-mile Santa Anita Derby.
WHO'S HOT
New York Hero and Eugene's Third Son, the top two finishers in last week's Lane's End Stakes, make their first appearance on the Derby Watch top 25, as does Logician, who most recently finished fourth in the San Felipe Stakes. New York Hero is 40-1 on the Kentucky Derby future line set by Mike Watchmaker, Daily Racing Form national handicapper. Eugene's Third Son is 50-1, Logician 60-1.
WHO'S NOT