Dream Shake, third in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby on April 3, will start in the Grade 2 Pat Day Mile on May 1 at Churchill Downs and not the Kentucky Derby on the same day, trainer Peter Eurton said Friday.
The decision was made after conversations through the week between Eurton and the partnership that owns the colt – Exline-Border Racing, Philip Hausman, and SAF Racing. The Pat Day Mile distance compared to the Kentucky Derby distance of 1 1/4 miles was the difference.
ARCADIA, Calif. – At 6 o’clock every morning here at Santa Anita, Ron McAnally arrives to watch his handful of horses train. He’s kept the same routine for decades, back when he was the nation’s champion trainer three times, before he got into the Hall of Fame. He craves the stability, the familiarity, and, most of all, the horses. They have given him everything. And he came from nothing.
Churchill Downs
Weather: Clear
Track: Fast
Temperature: 36
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The snow was gone but the cold weather lingered at Churchill Downs on Thursday, where the temperature hovered at a chilly 36 degrees when the racetrack opened for business at 5:15 a.m.
Medina Spirit has been a constant presence in 3-year-old stakes at Santa Anita since the beginning of the year, and consistent enough to merit a start in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 1.
Medina Spirit won the Grade 3 Robert Lewis Stakes on Jan. 30, and was second in the Grade 3 Sham Stakes in early January, the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes on March 6, and Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby on April 3.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – They just ran the Kentucky Derby, what, a few months ago? Now it’s that time again, with Churchill Downs once again a hub of activity to suggest that this pandemic might actually be on its way out.
Derby 147 is all set for May 1, less than eight months after 146 was run last September, marking the shortest span between renewals of America’s greatest race. That’s a dubious record everyone would just as soon forget – so it’s onward and upward as things get underway Saturday evening with a 10-race card.
Churchill Downs
Weather: SunnyTrack: SloppyTemp: 36
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Of all the four-letter words regularly uttered around the racetrack during the course of the year, one not heard very often in the lead-up to the Kentucky Derby was on everybody’s lips when the racetrack opened for training Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs. Snow!
Dream Shake, third in the Santa Anita Derby on April 3, and Get Her Number, fourth in the Arkansas Derby on April 10 at Oaklawn Park, remain in consideration for the Kentucky Derby on May 1 at Churchill Downs, their California-based trainers said Wednesday.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – His two victories in Triple Crown events have come in unconventional ways, so why can’t Ken McPeek make it a full set?
After winning the 2002 Belmont Stakes with Sarava, a 70-1 shot, McPeek won the 2020 Preakness with the filly Swiss Skydiver. As the 2021 Kentucky Derby draws near, McPeek is hoping to complete a personal Triple Crown with King Fury, who looks like he’ll have to make the May 1 race off the also-eligibles list. The Derby is limited to 20 starters, with an AE list of as many of four horses being maintained.
Bourbonic
Bernardini - Dancing Afleet, by Afleet Alex
Bred in Kentucky by Calumet Farm
The biggest upset during this Kentucky Derby prep season was recorded by Bourbonic, who triggered a $146.50 return when he rallied to win the Wood Memorial. Approaching the Derby, he is likely to again be double-digit odds. However, what wouldn’t be an upset is continued success for the A.P. Indy sireline in classic events.
