Wandering Eyes

When Tom Ryan of SF Bloodstock made his most recent trip to the 2019 Australian Easter Yearling Sale, he noticed firsthand how the process of scoping yearlings at an Australian sale is handled. The horse is scoped just once using state-of-the-art video scopes and the images are either put in the repository or kept by the consignors to show anyone who wants to examine the yearling. Being heavily involved in the industry in Australia and abroad, Ryan had already known that such systems were in place at the major sales in several different countries, but seeing in person how well it worked–how simple it was and that it seemed to serve the best interests of all parties–he couldn’t believe that such a system had not been adopted at U.S. sales. Here, there’s no limit to how many times a horse can scoped. Yearlings drawing a lot of attention from buyers might be scoped as many as 25 times by 25 different vets. To Ryan, after seeing how things were done in Australia, this made no sense. “Watching horses all these years at U.S. yearling sales being twitched and scoped, five, 10, 15, 20 times, depending on their level of popularity, it is just so unnecessary,” Ryan said. “I was in Australia and watched the sales process, where the veterinarian breezes in and breezes out of the stall and a few minutes later with the click of a mouse you can see perfect images of what the scope shows. The horse goes right back to the stall resting in a very safe environment. It’s safer for the handlers, safer for the veterinarians.” Though there has been some resistance from veterinarians to changing the system, most involved with the sales industry have come to agree that the way scoping is done in Australia is simply a better system. According to Dr. Michael Hore, a veterinarian with Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, horses are also scoped only once at sales in England, Ireland, France and Japan. “I am very much in support of bringing in the technology to implement video scopes into the repository system or have them at the barn for a veterinarian to be able to look at, and for several reasons,” Hore said. “One is to improve logistics. Many times it can be quite chaotic if you’re trying to perform an endoscopic exam so potential buyers can look at a horse. I think it will help everybody involved, the seller, the buyer, the veterinarians, the horse itself. Every year the technology is getting better. Our scopes are so small the horse can’t even feel it going in. This change is going to happen and it will be the best for everybody.” Hore explained that there are numerous reasons why a horse needs to be scoped before going into the sales ring, as the information the images provides is a valuable asset to potential buyers. “We’re scoping the upper airway,” he said. “We’re looking for conditions of sale. The are seven conditions of sale that make a horse not suitable for sale. We are looking for those things, whether it be a paralyzed throat, a displaced soft palate, any kind of infection. We are looking for things that we think could lead to potential problems down the road when the horse is ready to become a race horse.” You cannot blame a veterinarian or a potential owner for wanting this information and there are still some vets who prefer to do the procedure themselves. But one consignor, Reiley McDonald, argues that the current way of doing things causes so many problems and reaps so few benefits that he can’t see how anyone can argue against making this change. “It’s inhumane to go in there and scope a horse as many as 25 times, and I’ve heard of horses that have been scoped that many times,” he said. “It’s inhumane, it’s dangerous for the horse and for the people holding the horse and the veterinarians. We’ve all seen a yearling backed into a corner, his eyes wide open and having a scope put in them and some whacking their heads on the ceiling, The scoping results we gets at the sales also change from the first day we get there to the second day to the third day to the day they sell. It can change depending on how tired the horse is, how hot it is outside, how many times the horse is being shown and how the horse is handling the stress of sale. They all handle it differently. My view is that all buyers aren’t getting the same information on the same horse because it is a dynamic result. It would much better if everyone were looking at the same information.” Apparently, the two biggest sales companies in the U.S. won’t be making any changes overnight, but both Keeneland and Fasig-Tipton admit interest in adopting the new system. “We agree, and have been meeting with the Consignors and Commercial Breeders Association and members of the veterinary community to determine how to assemble a working protocol that affords buyers the confidence they need in reviewing airways, while accommodating the unique burdens of the domestic marketplace that can have 4,000 plus horses on offer over a short period of time, said Bob Elliston, Keeneland Vice President of Racing and Sales. “The technology and capabilities of veterinarians to utilize these tools is improving rapidly, and we would like to be in position to extend our repository benefits to video scoping as soon as practical.” Fasig-Tipton also seems prepared to make the change. “We’re always looking for ways to improve the existing sales system in a sound environment and there certainly have been and will continue to be discussions about evaluating the feasability of implementing a similar (scoping) system here in the U.S. at our sales,” said Fasig Tipton President Boyd Browning. “Nothing has been finalized at this point, but it is on our radar screen.” Browning said there is very little chance any changes would be made before the 2019 yearling sales. But 2020 may be the year a horse will be scoped once and then the images will be available to everyone. “It’s very simple,” Ryan said. “This is called progress and as for anybody standing in the way of this I’d like to heart their explanation.” Have feedback about this article? Please email TDN V.P. of International Operations Gary King at garyking@thetdn.com. View the full article

King Abner and Title Ready will each be seeking their first stakes score in the April 28 Steve Sexton Mile at Lone Star, with Title Ready figuring to sit off the pace and trying to pass King Abner late View the full article

Nine-time Irish champion jockey Pat Smullen has joined the TDN team as our new weekly columnist to bring us invaluable insight on the racing and breeding scene as he continues his recovery from illness. There was a great turnout for the trial run day at The Curragh last week, which was very well organised. It is what we had all hoped it would be: a magnificent stand and facility which has been finished beautifully on the inside. At long last we have what The Curragh deserves: a world-class facility to go along with what is a world-class racetrack, which we haven’t had for many years. Now we can feel proud to invite and bring anybody from around the world to race at The Curragh and, most importantly, what the investors and everybody involved wants is to be able to encourage racegoers back to the races again. From a jockey’s perspective, they’ve done an excellent job in providing a huge weighing-room with everything you need in there. I was speaking to Adrian McGoldrick, our retired medical officer, and the only little negative was that the medical room was a bit small but that will be addressed along the way and in general it’s been a great success. As with any of these big projects there have been hold-ups, and that has doubtless been frustrating for those involved, but they’ve got it right and it’s been well worth waiting for. Now we have something to make the Irish racing industry very proud and we’re all looking forward to the first meeting on May 6. Dundalk Needs Addressing The all-weather track at Dundalk has been a revelation for Irish Flat racing. I think that word can be used because it has given a lot of smaller yards an opportunity to keep their businesses going all year long, which is greatly needed and it has been a very, very big success from word go. The middle-class to lower-grade horses have been kept on the go, having something to aim at, which keeps owners interested and keeps everybody going through the winter. So, Dundalk has been nothing short of a huge success, and it’s a great facility, very well run from a jockey’s perspective. But unfortunately, over the last few years, the surface has deteriorated. Though some measures have been taken in turning it over and getting another year out of it, history will tell you that, like Lingfield and Wolverhampton, eventually you have to replace the surface. All-weather tracks generally have an eight- to 10-year lifespan. Dundalk has exceeded this and it has become a problem. I really hope that the authorities there address it now, and do not allow it get to a stage where it’s going to become a bigger problem. We’ve had a few injuries on the track in recent meetings and as we saw at the last meeting there were concerns from the riders and trainers about the surface. The time has come now to replace it before it brings wider negative publicity to Dundalk and to Irish racing through more serious injuries to horses and riders. Over the years the likes of Dermot Weld, Aidan O’Brien and many more trainers have been very complimentary of Dundalk and have run good horses there. We don’t want to lose that. Now we’re starting to see reduced fields. The big supporters of Dundalk from the word go are not supporting it at the moment as they are conscious of horses coming off the track sore. Like any racetrack or gallop that is put down, there’s always a bedding-in period, so replacing the surface needs to be done immediately to give it time to settle ahead of the winter season. I know it’s a huge investment but if a racecourse doesn’t have a good, safe surface it has nothing. It’s a no-brainer. More Classic Pointers We had yet more cracking racing last week. The two Newmarket trials threw up two nice winners. Skardu (Ire) (Shamardal) was probably a little bit of a surprise, but he won very well, coming from off the pace on fast ground, and Qabala (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) did the same, also coming from off the pace. Last week I said that the 2000 Guineas was shaping up to be a really exciting race but we now know that Too Darn Hot (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) won’t be turning up, which is disappointing, and it also doesn’t seem as if Andre Fabre will be sending Persian King (Ire) (Kingman {GB}). To me, the horses we’ve seen so far in trials this year have to improve to win a Guineas, so at the moment, I’d be looking towards Ten Sovereigns (Ire) (No Nay Never). That said, I was impressed by Skardu, who is trained by an expert in William Haggas who knows all about getting one ready for the day, but improvement will need to come for him to get to the level of Ten Sovereigns. Qabala probably deserves to be favourite in what is an open 1000 Guineas. She’s a nice filly and will definitely be a big contender, but something tells me that Iridessa (Ire) (Ruler Of The World {Ire}) is a filly that will improve a lot from her last run at Leopardstown. She has a lot of racing under her belt and she’ll get the trip well. If it’s a fast-run race at Newmarket she’s going to be pretty competitive. It was good to see David Egan ride only his second group winner on Qabala. He’s a very talented rider and he’s had a great grounding from his father, John, who has been a stalwart of the weighing-room for many years. I don’t think there’s a tougher or braver man than John on a racetrack, and David seems to have inherited a lot of that from him. He’s a very stylish rider and he’s getting huge opportunities from Roger Varian. His future looks very bright. For me, the horse to take out of the Craven meeting was another one of Roger Varian’s, UAE Jewel (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who was impressive in the Wood Ditton. It’s a race which usually throws up a nice horse, and he won very well. He looks like he could make up into a lovely middle-distance horse. View the full article

2nd-Compiegne, €25,000, Mdn, 4-23, 3yo, c/g, 7fT, 1:25.09, gd. DUHAIL (IRE) (c, 3, Lope de Vega {Ire}–Single {Fr} {GSP-Fr}, by Singspiel {Ire}), sent off the 29-10 second favourite, soon slotted into second from his wide draw. Taking command with 300 metres remaining, the chestnut stayed on powerfully to account for Abolish (GB) (Sepoy {Aus}) by seven lengths. The dam, who was runner-up in the G3 Prix d’Aumale as a juvenile, is a Wertheimer-bred half-sister to Ballydoyle’s G3 Killavullan S. winner Kenya (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Zantenda (GB) (Zamindar), who took the Prix d’Aumale before running third in the G1 Prix Marcel Boussac. Also from the family of the sire Diableneyev (Nureyev)), she has a yearling colt by Zoffany (Ire) to follow. Sales history: €180,000 Ylg ’17 ARQAUG; €300,000 2yo ’18 ARQMAY. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, €12,500. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton. O-Al Shaqab Racing; B-Lynch-Bages Ltd & Camas Park Stud (IRE); T-Andre Fabre. View the full article

A Hong Kong trip has been months in the making for Japanese galloper Win Bright and jockey Masami Matsuoka is hoping to strike while the iron is hot after back-to-back wins at home.Connections were eyeing off a start at the Longines Hong Kong International Races last year, but the grey’s form had tapered off so they decided to give it a miss.But since then he has saluted at Group Three and Group Two level – most recently in the Nakayama Kinen – putting Sunday’s FWD QE II Cup back on the agenda… View the full article

Pakistan Star stamped himself as a legitimate Group One star with a stunning victory in last year’s QE II Cup and his new trainer Paul O’Sullivan hopes the warmer weather can help the popular galloper rediscover that form in Sunday’s HK$25 million feature.Even though he was already a social media sensation, Pakistan Star needed that QE II Cup performance to legitimise his standing and he added another top-level win in the Champions & Chater Cup a month later to cement himself as one of the top… View the full article

Young superstar Voyage Warrior was again sublime on his way to a blistering win at Sha Tin on Monday and already trainers are avoiding the lightning-fast three-year-old.Both Danny Shum Chap-shing and Jimmy Ting Koon-ho have admitted they avoided taking horses to the 1,000m Class Three at Sha Tin on Easter weekend, which Voyage Warrior won with ease in just 54.89 seconds.Shum’s Golden Dash and Ting’s Yee Cheong Baby will instead run in Wednesday night’s Class Three Seoul Handicap (1,000m) at… View the full article

Former shuttle stallion Mastercraftsman was yesterday provided with his 61st stakes winner courtesy of Agente Segreto’s victory in the Listed Emanuele Filiberto (2000m) in Milan. The three-year-old colt, who was last seen winning the Premio Razza di Vedano (2000m), continued that good form, beating Thunderman into second. Mastercraftsman, who stood at Windsor Park Stud in Cambridge for four seasons, now stands exclusively at Coolmore Stud in Ireland for a fee of €30,000 and his progeny is ... View the full article

The Mick Price-trained Savaheat made light work of his rivals at Sandown on Easter Monday winning the Le Pine Funerals Handicap (1800m). Ridden by Damien Oliver, the four-year-old gelding by Savabeel travelled nicely at the rear of the field before making his move with 800m to go. He looped the field and hit the lead at the 500m mark and held off his challengers to win by a length from Tavirun. “It was a good win,” stable representative Mick Nolan said. “The 1800m suits him. The way the ra... View the full article

Thursday’s Listed Manawatu ITM Anzac Mile (1600m) at Awapuni looms as the final run for the season for Group One winner Shadows Cast. Trainer Mark Oulaghan believes the son of Per Incanto is in good order ahead of the assignment and will have no issue with his allotted top-weight. “He’s got 60kgs and the bottom weight has got 53kgs, so it is a seven kilo spread but I don’t think that will be a huge burden for him,” Oulaghan said. “He ran in the race last year carrying 60kgs and jus... View the full article

Zed Em was being toasted on both sides of the Tasman when he was hailed as the King of Oakbank at the popular South Australian meeting on Saturday. Three of Zed Em’s five Wairarapa owners had a raceday experience they will never forget when being on course to watch the horse they refer to as Bobby extend his unbeaten Oakbank record to five with the completion of the Von Doussa (3250m) – Great Eastern Steeplechase (4950m) double for the second year in succession. Last year Zed Em became the f... View the full article

Trainer Patrick Payne on Kiwi jumper Zed Em, who continued his reign as the heavyweight champion of Oakbank with a dominant win in Saturday's $160,000 Thomas Farms Great Eastern Steeplechase.... View the full article

Rodd gets Zac ready but will sit out Rocket Man ride View the full article

Lightning-quick sit, but Moor’s all for Fun View the full article

Jockey Danielle Johnson is back on the horse, so to speak. Johnson has been on the sidelines since mid-November when she sustained three fractures to her collar bone in a race fall at Ruakaka. “I’ve been back riding trackwork for the last couple of weeks and I had four trial rides last Monday, but I won’t be back race riding until next season,” Johnson said. “I still have a plate and six screws in my collar bone and they’re coming out on July 23rd. “I couldn’t move my collar bon... View the full article

Trainer Scott Lake accomplished a major milestone April 22 when I'm the Talent won the fifth race at Parx Racing, awarding Lake his 6,000th career win. View the full article

Beauty Generation will “jump” out of the starting gate on Thursday morning when he has his final pre-race fast work ahead of the Gr.1 FWD Champions Mile at Sha Tin on Sunday. Trainer John Moore is keen to “switch on” his stable star into what will be his eighth race of an unbeaten campaign which began in October. “He’ll jump out of the gates, which isn’t usual for him. He’s been up a long time and we noticed last season that he was a little lethargic out of the gates at the back ... View the full article

Band Of Brothers, registered his second straight win at the Sha Tin 1400 metres and his second from just three starts in Hong Kong after being sourced in New Zealand. “He is a promising type of horse and he’ll get further than this. We’ll probably go to 1600 (metres) next time and he’ll be up to Class 3 but he’ll drop in weight with that rise in grade and he won well today. He copped a bit of a buffeting and overcame that,” trainer Paul O’Sullivan said. The aptly named four-year-o... View the full article

With the Kentucky Derby (G1) prep races in the books and little action in the handicap ranks, the status quo held in this week's National Thoroughbred Racing Association Top 3-Year-Old Poll and NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll. View the full article

Six Column Stables and Randy Bloch's Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2) winner Champagne Anyone turned in her third local work since her Florida victory, breezing five furlongs in company in :59 4/5 April 22 at Churchill Downs. View the full article

With the Kentucky Derby (G1) prep races in the books and little action in the handicap ranks, the status quo held in this week's National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Top 3-Year-Old Poll and NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll. View the full article

We’re now inside the two-week mark for the May 4 GI Kentucky Derby and big jumps in the pecking order have given way to behind-the-scenes strategizing, jockey intrigue, and the intensity of big-race anticipation. Please note the rankings below are independent from the “Road to the Derby” points leaderboard Churchill Downs uses to determine starting berths. That list can be accessed here. 1) OMAHA BEACH (c, War Front—Charming, by Seeking the Gold) O-Fox Hill Farms, Inc. B-Charming Syndicate (KY). T-Richard Mandella. Sales History: $625,000 RNA Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GISW, 7-3-3-1, $1,121,800. Last Start: 1st, GI Arkansas Derby, OP, Apr. 13 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 137.5. Omaha Beach has the momentum of a three-race win streak, elite-level tactical prowess, a stamina-sturdy pedigree, proven off-track ability, and a stylish résumé that includes back-to-back slugfest victories over the No. 2 and No. 4 contenders on this list. Now you can add the endorsement of Mike Smith, America’s most successful big-money jockey, who last week elected to vacate the mount on Roadster (Quality Road) in order to retain the ride on this War Front colt in the Derby. Smith’s choice will ensure Derby favoritism for Omaha Beach. But the most tantalizing asset is the fact that we have yet to see what this horse can do when fully unleashed to the true depth of his torque reserves. His GII Rebel S. win over the juvenile champ was visually impressive considering Game Winner (Candy Ride {Arg}) was being pushed on for run while Omaha Beach remained hand-encouraged. And in the GI Arkansas Derby, Smith was still sitting chilly turning for home while Improbable (City Zip) was driven hard without eroding the margin. In both of those Oaklawn races, it was a wide gap back to the third-place horses. Trainer Richard Mandella disclosed on Sunday that Omaha Beach has been training and racing with a patched quarter crack since breaking his maiden on Feb. 2. He termed it an “old issue” that has not affected the horse, and Mandella flew out his blacksmith, Ben Craft, from California to Churchill Downs to apply a new patch that went on when Omaha Beach had shoes changed on Sunday. 2) GAME WINNER (c, Candy Ride {Arg}—Indyan Giving, by A.P. Indy) ‘TDN Rising Star’. O-Gary & Mary West. B-Summer Wind Equine (KY). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $110,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: MGISW, 6-4-2-0, $1,846,000. Last Start: 2nd, GI Santa Anita Derby, SA, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 85. If ‘TDN Rising Star’ Game Winner ends up wearing a blanket of roses one week from Saturday, it’s because he’s a been-there/done-that pro who willingly takes cues from his rider, settles into a keen and often-imposing stalk mode, then fights through adversity without shying away from confrontation. Even though he didn’t beat Omaha Beach in their head-to-head tilt, he did determinedly close the gap, and this $110,000 KEESEP Candy Ride (Arg) bay did so while racing for the first time in four-plus months while the much tighter Omaha Beach was making his third start of 2019. The elusive Breeders’ Cup/Derby double has only been pulled off twice in 34 previous years (by Street Sense in 2007 and Nyquist in 2016). And you have to go back to Super Saver in 2010 to find any Derby winner who did not win a sophomore race prior to winning the Derby. But Game Winner is poised to buck both of those trends, and if you like his chances, you’ll be rewarded with a square price for the first time in his career. Game Winner has never gone off above 19-10 odds in his six races, but he’s shaping up to be about a 5-1 second choice in the Derby. 3) WAR OF WILL (c, War Front—Visions of Clarity {Ire}, by Sadler’s Wells) O-Gary Barber. B-Flaxman Holdings Limited (KY). T-Mark Casse. Sales History: $175,000 RNA Ylg ’17 KEESEP; €250,000 2yo ’18 ARQMAY. Lifetime Record: MGSW, 8-3-1-1, $501,569. Last Start: 9th, GII Louisiana Derby, Mar. 23 Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, CD, May 4 Equineline PPs. Caulfield on War of Will. KY Derby Points: 60. War of Will has now fired two consecutive bullet workouts at Keeneland, and both have served as “convincers” to his connections that the €250,000 ARQMAY War Front colt is physically ready to pick up where he left off prior to a scary slipping incident leaving the gate in the GII Louisiana Derby. That misstep caused him to lose his action and he was never truly in that race to win it. But to see the bigger picture, rewind War of Will’s career arc back to a solid foundation of five 2-year-old races (four at a mile or longer), including a trip-troubled fifth in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf. Trainer Mark Casse then transitioned him to dirt just before the start of his sophomore season, and War of Will responded with three high-impact wins (one in the slop at Churchill and two in stakes at Fair Grounds). Purely from a visual perspective, War of Will catches the eye as a sharp gate-breaker who can fluidly assert himself near the fore of large fields, and the way he advanced upon and inhaled overmatched competition in his first two New Orleans races stamped him as the most authoritative prep-race victor of 2019–until Omaha Beach came along. Right now I’m leaning toward War of Will being the most value-conscious Derby bet, probably somewhere in the 12-1 range. 4) IMPROBABLE (c, City Zip—Rare Event, by A.P. Indy) ‘TDN Rising Star’. O-WinStar Farm LLC, China Horse Club International Ltd. & Starlight Racing. B-St. George Farm LLC & G. Watts Humphrey Jr. (KY). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $110,000 Wlg ’16 KEENOV; $200,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GISW, 5-3-2-0, $619,520. Last Start: 2nd, GI Arkansas Derby, OP, Apr. 13 Equineline PPs. Caulfield on Improbable. KY Derby Points: 65. ‘TDN Rising Star’ Improbable, like stablemate Game Winner, will enter the Derby with two honest second-place efforts that demonstrate progression beyond what appears in his running lines. This $200,000 KEESEP City Zip chestnut was four wide on both turns of the GII Rebel S. and only beaten a neck, then came up one length shy of No. 1-ranked Omaha Beach after they locked horns the length of the homestretch in the Arkansas Derby. Improbable did show improved focus in that race (he had been cocking his head in previous works and races), but he was fractious in the post parade and anxious in the gate. Trainer Bob Baffert had been schooling Improbable to be more of a speed-oriented horse and even added blinkers as an experiment in the Arkansas Derby. But after the race Baffert said he didn’t think the blinkers helped, so maybe Improbable will remain a stalker in a Derby that does not have any tour-de-force early speed on paper. Improbable is athletic, light on his feet, and has a long stride. Last Breeders’ Cup weekend, Baffert told TDN this colt was a “50% version of Justify. He’s the same color and has the same markings on his face.” Even if Improbable hasn’t rounded into the other 50% of last year’s Triple Crown winner, another 20% or so of improvement would put him in the hunt as a legit Derby win threat. 5) TACITUS (c, Tapit—Close Hatches, by First Defence) O/B-Juddmonte Farms, Inc. (KY). T-Bill Mott. Lifetime Record: MGSW, 4-3-0-0, $653,000. Last Start: GII Wood Memorial S., AQU, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 150. As a Derby prospect, Tacitus brings a unique blend of patience (it might take him a mile to fully uncoil), aggression (he admirably fights for position when he has to, like on both the first turn and the stretch run of his GII Wood Memorial win), and stamina (by Tapit out of an Eclipse champion mare who excelled in dirt routes). Mott doesn’t generally gush about potential Derby prospects when they’re 2-year-olds, but he was on record as saying the colt might be the Classics threat to emerge from his barn. Is a body of four races enough to get Tacitus to the Derby winner’s circle? This gray has needed encouragement to stay engaged in his races, and firing from well off the pace in the 20-horse Derby can be a strategy that leaves even the best of horses at the mercy of traffic. Tacitus has also taken a path of lesser resistance to Louisville, as neither the GII Tampa Bay Derby nor the Wood Memorial drew A-list heavy hitters this year. Historically, only one horse has ever parlayed the Tampa/Kentucky Derbies (Street Sense). And it’s now nearly two decades since any Wood winner went on to capture the Kentucky Derby (Fusaichi Pegasus). 6) ROADSTER (c, Quality Road—Ghost Dancing, by Silver Ghost) ‘TDN Rising Star’. O-Speedway Stable LLC. B-Stone Farm (KY). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $525,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GISW, 4-3-0-1, $706,200. Last Start: 1st, GI Santa Anita Derby, SA, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 100. ‘TDN Rising Star’ Roadster’s stock dipped slightly when Mike Smith chose to ride No. 1-ranked Omaha Beach instead of this $525,000 KEESEP Quality Road gray. I have to think that if Smith believed the two horses were closer together ability-wise, he’d have retained the mount on Roadster considering trainer Bob Baffert routinely supplies Smith with a pipeline of Grade I mounts. But this “tell” might not matter dependent on post position draw, and Florent Geroux is a capable replacement. This athletic-framed colt was highly regarded last summer at Del Mar before he needed soft palate surgery to correct a breathing problem, and Roadster could be peaking at the right time based on the long, loop-the-group drive that he sustained through the GI Santa Anita Derby stretch with enough grinding determination to put away favored stablemate Game Winner. This decade has been good for Santa Anita Derby winners: They’ve won the Kentucky Derby in 2012, 2014 and 2018. But 25 consecutive grays have gone to post and lost the Derby since the last gray, Giacomo, roared home at 50-1 in 2005. 7) WIN WIN WIN (c, Hat Trick {Jpn}-Miss Smarty Pants, by Smarty Jones) O-Live Oak Plantation. B-Live Oak Stud (FL). T-Michael Trombetta. Lifetime Record: SW & MGSP, 6-3-2-1, $367,300. Last Start: 2nd, GII Blue Grass S., KEE, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 50. This Hat Trick (Jpn)-sired homebred has a pair of Derby-winning grandsires in his pedigree (Sunday Silence and Smarty Jones), and he started his sophomore season with a track-record score over seven furlongs at Tampa Bay Downs. He has intrigued but not truly delivered on his potential in a pair of two-turn stakes preps since then, although you could point to realistic excuses in both those efforts. In the Tampa Derby, Win Win Win was hooked five wide off the turn as the beaten fave behind upstart Tacitus, who has since gone on to convincingly win the Wood Memorial. And at Keeneland, Win Win Win was closing against the grain of a fairly potent Blue Grass Day speed bias. He has never been off the board from six lifetime starts, but then again, he’s also never won around two turns or at any other track besides Tampa or Laurel. At somewhere in the vicinity of 20-1 in the Derby, I’ve got him on my bet list as a horse to play underneath in exotics as insurance, but not as a key win threat. 8) PLUS QUE PARFAIT (r, 3, Point of Entry—Belvedera, by Awesome Again) O-Imperial Racing LLC. B-Calloway Racing LLC (KY). T-Brendan Walsh. Sales History: $24,000 RNA Wlg KEENOV ’16; $135,000 Ylg KEESEP ’17. Lifetime Record: GSW, 7-2-1-2, $1,590,400. Last Start: 1st, G2 UAE Derby, MEY, Mar. 30 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 104. Every year, the G2 UAE Derby winner has a perceived advantage at having won the longest race among any of the Kentucky Derby hopefuls (1 3/16 miles). But that’s a theoretical edge that has never translated into better than a sixth-place try in Louisville. This $135,000 KEESEP Point of Entry ridgling has dark-horse potential, though, if you dismiss his aberrational losses at the Fair Grounds on the basis of trainer Brendan Walsh’s assertion that Plus Que Parfait just didn’t like the track there. In five races over four other surfaces, he has never finished worse than third and has never been more than 3 1/2 lengths behind the winner. Plus Que Parfait showed promise in Dubai cutting through traffic for a sustained 2 1/2-furlong winning bid, and Walsh has said this ridgling has a mature enough temperament to handle the Derby hoopla. Plus Que Parfait will reunite with jockey Ricardo Santana Jr. in the Derby. The two teamed for a maiden win at Keeneland last October in front of second- and third-place finishers who subsequently won graded stakes. 9) VEKOMA (c, Candy Ride {Arg}—Mona de Momma, by Speightstown) O-R. A. Hill Stable & Gatsas Stables. B-Alpha Delta Stables, LLC (KY). T-George Weaver. Sales History: $135,000 Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: MGSW, 4-3-0-1, $788,850. Last Start: 1st, GII Blue Grass S., KEE, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 110. Vekoma owns three wins from four starts (two of them in graded stakes) but seems stuck with the “overachiever” label. Part of that has to do with him being a May 22 foal who is physically smaller in stature than his peers. Another part is his lack of stretch-run focus (he is prone to shifting and drifting and cocking his head; as a 2-year-old he was on the wrong lead). A third factor has to do with his GII Blue Grass S. victory being aided by a speed-friendly Keeneland surface (seven of eight main-track winners that day were first or second at the second call). But $135,000 KEESEP Candy Ride (Arg) colt keeps ending up in the winner’s circle after most of his races, so he must be doing something right. The main question Vekoma will have to answer in Louisville deals with his pedigree: With 2004 champion sprinter Speightstown as his dam-sire, is 10 furlongs under constant pace pressure in a 20-horse field within his grasp? 10) TAX (g, Arch–Toll, by Giant’s Causeway) O-R. A. Hill Stable, Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Lynch, Hugh and Corms Racing Stable. B-Claiborne Farm and Adele Dilschneider (KY). T-Danny Gargan. Lifetime Record: GSW, 5-2-2-1, $326,300. Last Start: 2nd, GII Wood Memorial S., AQU, Apr. 6 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 52. Tax is aiming to carve out a reputation as the $50,000 maiden-claimer who got away. He’s run third, first, then second in a trio of graded New York stakes since being claimed at the end of the Keeneland fall meet, and as an Arch gelding out of a Giant’s Causeway mare, it was evident that he had no problems distance-wise in back-to-back nine-furlong tries. In the Wood Memorial, Tax muscled his way to a contending position from the one hole despite traffic to his outside that resulted in a disqualification, and he settled well on the backstretch run behind daylight-margin duelers. Tax got first run on the wilting pacemakers, then fought on resolutely while pinned on the inside with the assertive Tacitus bearing down on him. This gelding’s ability to consistently attain a prime stalking position will likely serve him well in the cavalry charge that comprises the crucial first turn of the Derby. 11) CODE OF HONOR (c, Noble Mission {GB}—Reunited, by Dixie Union) O/B-W. S. Farish (KY). T-Shug McGaughey. Sales History: $70,000 RNA Ylg ’17 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW & GISP, 4-2-1-0, $384,820. Last Start: 3rd, GI Florida Derby, GP, Mar. 30 Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 74. Classics races aren’t always about brawn and power. Sometimes a race like the Derby is won by a nimble, agile stayer who lucks out with the right trip. If Code of Honor is to win a week from Saturday, that scenario could be the game plan for how he gets it done. This first-crop Noble Mission (GB) homebred is a light-bodied May 23 foal. While consistency has not been his calling card, Code of Honor has flashed glimmers of promise, like in his adversity-overcoming second in the GI Champagne S. or when he reeled in the field in the GII Fountain of Youth S. Although exact foaling date records are sketchy prior to 1940, ten known May foals have won the Derby dating to 1875, and three of those winners had a May 23 or later foaling date: Exterminator in 1918 (May 30), Northern Dancer in 1964 (May 27), and Thunder Gulch in 1995 (May 23). 12) COUNTRY HOUSE (c, Lookin At Lucky–Quake Lake, by War Chant) ‘TDN Rising Star’. O-Mrs. J. V. Shields, Jr., E. J. M. McFadden, Jr. &LNJ Foxwoods. B-J.V. Shields, Jr. (KY). T-Bill Mott. Lifetime Record: GISP, 6-1-2-1, $260,175. ‘TDN Rising Star’ Country House has run second, third, and fourth against graded stakes company in recent starts, but he’s still winless beyond the maiden level. Trainer Bill Mott has expressed confidence that the colt can get 10 furlongs, but Country House is a May 8 foal who has been green at times during his stretch runs. “He keeps knocking at the door and running at the end. He’s the type of horse that would benefit from a fast pace in the Derby and hopefully that’s the case and he can pick up the pieces.” Mott has not yet named a rider on Country House for the Derby. Rounding out the starting gate… 13) Cutting Humor (First Samurai): The Derby mount is still open on this $400,000 FTSAUG track-record holder (GIII Sunland Derby). If you exclude this colt’s seventh-place puzzler as the beaten fave in the GIII Southwest S., he’s never been off the board in five other starts. 14) Long Range Toddy (Take Charge Indy): This colt’s seven solid races of two-turn experience under the guidance of a trainer who has hit the board four times in the Kentucky Derby (including twice in the past three years with decent-odds horses) are obvious plusses. But the fact that this Take Charge Indy homebred was a non-threatening sixth in his only go against Grade I competition is what relegates him to long-shot status, probably somewhere north of 40-1 for the Derby. 15) Maximum Security (New Year’s Day): This undefeated wire-to-wire winner of the slow-tempo GI Florida Derby began his career with a 9 3/4-length romp in a $16,000 maiden-claimer at Gulfstream before dominating in a pair of optional claiming/allowance races by a combined 24 3/4 lengths. After Maximum Security stole the Florida Derby under pace conditions that he will be unlikely to replicate in the Kentucky Derby, trainer Jason Servis said, “Candidly, if you read between the lines, there had to be a reason why I ran him for $16,000. Am I glad I didn’t lose him? Hell, yeah. Is he training good and sound? Yes. But there was a reason why I ran him for $16,000.” 16) Spinoff (Hard Spun): Can you find true, legitimate frontrunning speed with staying power in this year’s Derby lineup? I have trouble doing so. Maybe you could make a 60-1 case for this colt, who hails from the barn of a two-time Derby-winning trainer and held on for as long as he could in the Louisiana Derby despite getting roughed up and hooked wide in the early stages of that stakes. 17) By My Standards (Goldencents): The 22-1 Louisiana Derby upsetter worked six furlongs in 1:12.80 Monday at Churchill (2/5) with regular jockey Gabriel Saez aboard. “That was about as good as you can get two weeks out from the race,” trainer Bret Calhoun said. “This horse is just hitting his best stride and I think that’s what we’ll see from him going into the Derby.” 18) Gray Magician (Graydar): Rallied credibly behind Plus Que Parfait in the UAE Derby, but the best stateside races in his past-performance block are a six-horse one-mile maiden romp at Del Mar and a six-horse, one-turn-mile second in a minor stakes at Laurel. 19) Haikal (Daaher): It will be a big jump from one-turn success exclusively at Aqueduct to 10 furlongs in the Derby. This colt is an opportunist, though, who knows how to close into collapsing pace scenarios, and there is enough stamina foundation deeper into his pedigree to aid his stretch-out journey. 20) Master Fencer (Jpn) (Just A Way {Jpn}): This year’s Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby invitee was fourth on the points scheme, and his connections accepted the Derby invitation after the first three qualifiers opted out. He ran in a pair of 10-furlong turf races prior to winning two nine-furlong dirt events, then rallied from last to finish second in his most recent race, the Fukuryu S. at Nakayama on Mar. 31. View the full article

Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA), the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF) and New Vocations have been named the co-beneficiaries of the Charitable Impact Group’s fifth annual Kentucky Oaks and Derby Handicapping Benefit Dinner. The event will be held at Fasig-Tipton in Lexington, Ky. Monday, Apr. 29 at 6:00 p.m. NBC racing analyst Donna Brothers will host a panel of handicappers including Daily Racing Form‘s Mike Welsch, Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey, and NBC’s Randy Moss. Limited tickets are available and can be purchased at cigevents.org. Tickets include expert handicapping advice, cocktails, dinner by multiple James Beard award nominee chef Ouita Michel, and a live and silent auction. “Through our Derby, Belmont and Breeders’ Cup Handicapping events, in partnership with DRF and the NBC racing team, we have been able to raise and donate over $300,000 to the jockeys and horses that make this beautiful and demanding sport so special,” said Dr. Pete Hester, president of the Charitable Impact Group. “We like to believe that we have, more importantly, created a much-needed awareness of these brave and bold athletes when they are injured or when their racing careers end.” View the full article

In the morning hours of April 22 at Churchill Downs, several contenders for the $3 million Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) put in works over a fast track. View the full article

Riding momentum as leading trainer of Laurel Park's current spring meet, trainer Mike Trombetta will ship record-setting stakes winner Win Win Win to Kentucky April 24 to finish preparations for the May 4 Kentucky Derby (G1). View the full article