The mutuel field, the 24th or “all others” option, is a lukewarm favorite in the fourth of five pools in the 2022 Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which closed Sunday evening along with the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager following the customary three-day run.

The field closed at 4-1 and was followed by Smile Happy at 6-1, the lowest price on any of the 23 individual interests. The field also was favored in the first three pools when offered Nov. 26-29, Jan. 21-23, and Feb. 11-13, respectively, closing at odds of 3-5, 9-5, and 2-1.

Grade 2, $350,000 Tampa Bay Derby, 1 1/16 miles, Tampa Bay Downs, March 12, 2022
(50 Derby qualifying points for first, 20 for second, 10 for third, 5 for fourth)

Winner: Classic Causeway, by Giant’s Causeway
Trainer: Brian Lynch
Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.
Owner: Kentucky West Racing and Clarke Cooper
Beyer Speed Figure: 84

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Secret Oath has emerged as the dominant 3-year-old of the Oaklawn Park meet, and Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas said Saturday the filly will get a shot against male rivals in the Grade 1, $1.25 million Arkansas Derby on April 2.

“We’re going to lead her over there,” he said.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Trainer Chad Brown has tweaked his plans for some of his bounty of stakes horses, including his 3-year-olds who are or were pointing to Kentucky Derby points-scoring races.

Brown said Friday that he plans to scratch Money Supply from Saturday’s Grade 2, $400,000 Tampa Bay Derby. Brown said the combination of post 11 and an expected wet track given an ominous forecast are the reasons to scratch. In his only start, Money Supply won a six-furlong race at Tampa on Feb. 12.

OLDSMAR, Fla. – A key Kentucky Derby prep already featuring plenty of unknown variables apparently will have another one thrown into the mix when the Tampa Bay Derby is run amid what forecasters are saying is a 100 percent chance of rain for Saturday.

OLDSMAR, Fla. – Oh, great. Local forecasters are calling for a 100 percent chance of rain for the biggest day of the Tampa Bay Downs meet Saturday, although the prospect of a sloppy track sure didn’t keep horsemen from flooding the entry box for the Tampa Bay Derby.

A capacity field of 12 3-year-olds was entered here Wednesday for the Tampa Bay Derby, the only points qualifier toward the May 7 Kentucky Derby scheduled for this weekend or next.

Shipsational

Midshipman – Regal Approach, by Thunder Gulch

Bred in New York by Mr. and Mrs. Bertram R. Firestone ($27,000 Keeneland November weanling purchase by Blackwater Sales; $210,000 OBS March juvenile purchase by High Point Bloodstock)

The consistent Shipsational, a statebred stakes winner who reaches for the brass ring in this weekend’s Tampa Bay Derby, is from a family that has found success at a variety of pursuits.

WHO’S HOT

Eddie Barker’s favorite movie is “Hoosiers,” and there’s a line in the film, uttered by the actor Gene Hackman, that Barker has kept at the forefront of his mind in recent weeks.

“There’s a tradition in tournament play to not talk about the next step until you’ve climbed the one in front of you,” Hackman, who plays coach Norman Dale, tells his team in the locker room before a pivotal game.

Eight new names are among the 23 individual betting interests in the fourth of five pools in the 2022 Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which opens Friday along with the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager.

Both pools open Friday at noon Eastern, with closing time for Pool 4 set for Sunday at 6 p.m. and the Oaks pool closing 30 minutes later.