THURSDAY MORNING – JAY PRIVMAN OF DAILY RACING FORM captures the scene for training at CHURCHILL DOWNS:
The entries are rolling in for the Thoroughblog Kentucky Derby Contest – send your comment in with your 3 picks and final time for a chance to win!
HANDICAPPING CONTEST ON THOROUGHBLOG!
Win a copy of the movie 50 to 1, the story of MINE THAT BIRD if you can win the Kentucky Derby handicapping contest!
Here’s what you do (please only one entry per VALID email address – YOU HAVE TO USE A VALID EMAIL ADDRESS TO ENTER THE CONTEST!)
1 – Pick your TOP THREE finishers
2 – Include a time for the 1 1/4 mile race (record Derby is 1:59 2/5, Secretariat)
3 – send as a COMMENT on THOROUGHBLOG (to any post beginning today through Saturday morning)
Scoring – you gets points coinciding with where your horse placed –
1st – 1 point
2nd – 2 points
etc.
e.g. if you pick Dortmund and he wins, you get 1 point, if he is last, 20 points.
THE LOWER NUMBER THE POINTS – the winner!
The time of the race is the tiebreaker!
Good Luck and thanks for reading the ‘Blog
INTERNATIONAL STAR, like MINE THAT BIRD, won the grey Stakes at Woodbine CINDY PIERSON DULAY PHOTO
KENTUCKY DERBY – 22 ENTRIES, DORTMUND IN THE MIDDLE, PHAROAH ON THE OUTSIDE
GRAPHIC FROM USA-TODAY
Not one owner or trainer seemed unhappy with their post positions for America’s great race and the major players, DORTMUND and AMERICAN PHAROAH drew well enough.
The gorgeous FIRING LINE is ready to fire – he is from the first crop of LINE OF DAVID – Cindy Pierson Dulay photo
QUEEN’S PLATE NEWS – Queenston sets up locals
CONQUEST BOOGALOO – from Conquest Stables
The top of the heap of Queen’s Plate contenders include AMI’S FLATTER, who is at Woodbine and working out, and DANZIG MOON, who races in the Kentucky Derby.
But one of the more exciting prospects for the Derby is the speedy maiden winner UNBRIDLED JUAN, a Stronach Stables homebred named for Don Juan Demarco, who is hoping to get into an allowance race after the Kentucky Derby at Churchill on Saturday. The 1 1/16 mile dirt allowance event drew 13 horses and only 12 will race.
Also at Churchill, CONQUEST TYPHOON is 5 to 1 in the Grade 2 American Turf Handicap on the grass for Conquest Stables. Trainer Mark Casse has been wondering about the colt’s distance ability and he will get a goo dtest again in this 9 furlong race.
And at Woodbine, the locals are in the QUEENSTON STAKES, the traditional first step to the Plate, albeit just a 7 furlong long-sprint that is often targeted by Canadian-breds who may not be of 1 1/4 mile stature.
This year’s edition appears to be made up of all sprinting, middle distance runners.
Stakes winners CONQUEST BOOGALOO (Scat Daddy) and PHIL’S COCKTAIL (Philanthropist) are coming off winter vacations for the 59th Queenston.
Boogaloo has had a lot of workouts in Florida but has the rail post in the 8 horse field while Phil has post 7 for owner/breeder Ron Clarkson.
GOODOLDHOCKEYGAME has been pointed ot this race and he was a stakes winner last year at 6 furlongs . He is son of Old Forester for owner/breeder Frank DiGiulio Jr.
The very fast JACKS ESCARPMENT lost a tough one in the Woodbine at 6 furlongs and pace buddy Imperial Dream has to prove he can pass horses. HAMMERSTEIN is an interesting one foe Bill Sorokoliit as he had a good rally in his opener and R U WATCHING BUD ran a deceptively good race at Keeneland.
Shipper MIDNIGHT TRACE, who was a paddock buddy as a foal with ‘Boogaloo’ gets blinkers and an important turn-back in distance for trainer Graham Motion.
So, while the Queenston is a cool race in itself, it is the Plate contenders out of town on Saturday who will prove to be the major players come July 5.
MORE CANADIAN STUFF TO WATCH FOR SATURDAY
Saturday, Churchill Downs, post time: 4:44 p.m. EDT
WOODFORD RESERVE TURF CLASSIC S.-GI, $500,000, 4yo/up,
1 1/8mT
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 Optimizer English Channel Lanerie Fernandez 118
2 Sky Captain K Sky Mesa Bridgmohan Casse 120
3 Umgiyo (Aus) Danehill Dancer (Ire) Geroux de Kock 118
4 Scrumpdilicious Northern Afleet Rocco Jr Sharp 118
5 Finnegans Wake Powerscourt (GB) Espinoza Miller 120
6 Coalport Kitten’s Joy Mena Maker 120
7 Jack Milton K War Front Castellano Pletcher 124
8 Stephanie’s Kitten K Kitten’s Joy Velazquez Brown 115
9 Seek Again Speightstown Rosario Mott 118
10 Chocolate Ride K Candy Ride (Arg) Talamo Cox 120
11 Slumber (GB) K Cacique (Ire) Ortiz Jr Brown 118
12 Grand Arch K Arch Hernandez Lynch 118
CHURCHILL DOWNS S.-GII, $500,000, 4yo/up, 7f
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 C. Zee Elusive Bluff Ortiz Jr Zito 118
2 Bayern Offlee Wild Garcia Baffert 123
3 Brewing Maimonides Vazquez Lukas 118
4 Private Zone K Macho Uno Pedroza Navarro 123
5 Pants On Fire Jump Start Lopez Breen 118
6 Gentlemen’s Bet Half Ours Santana Jr Moquett 118
7 Nates Mineshaft Mineshaft Geroux Smith 118
Saturday, Churchill Downs, post time: 2:59 p.m. EDT
CHURCHILL DISTAFF TURF MILE S.-GII, $300,000, 4yo/up, f/m, 1mT
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 Personal Diary City Zip Rosario Oliver 118
2 Grand Elmendorf K A.P. Indy Graham Sancal 118
3 Tepin Bernstein Leparoux Casse 118
4 Lady Lara (Ire) Excellent Art (GB) Alvarado Mott 120
5 Coffee Clique Medaglia d’Oro Velazquez Lynch 118
6 I’m Already Sexy Ready’s Image Geroux Catalano 118
7 Solid Appeal K Successful Appeal Hernandez Baker 118
8 Sandiva (Ire) Ftstpsinthesnd (GB) Castellano Pletcher 118
9 Strike Charmer Smart Strike Ortiz Jr Carroll 118
10 Maid On a Mission Strategic Mission Osorio Mills 118
11 Water Hole (Ire) Oasis Dream (GB) Stevens Brown 118
12 Kitty Wine K Lemon Drop Kid Ortiz Kenneally 118
13 Kiss Moon K Malibu Moon Lanerie Vance 118
Saturday, Churchill Downs, post time: 1:19 p.m. EDT
AMERICAN TURF S.-GII, $250,000, 3yo, 1 1/16mT
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 Luck of the Kitten Kitten’s Joy Rosario Ward 120
2 Wireless Future K Scat Daddy Geroux Amoss 118
3 Granny’s Kitten Kitten’s Joy Ortiz Jr Maker 118
4 Royal Son Tiznow Stevens Pletcher 118
5 Another Lemon Drop K Lemon Drop Kid Rocco Jr Bauer 118
6 A Lot K Tapit Velazquez Mott 118
7 Nun the Less K Candy Ride (Arg) Lezcano Block 118
8 Conquest Typhoon K Stormy Atlantic Smith Casse 123
9 Firespike K Flower Alley Castellano Maker 120
10 Indianaughty K Indian Charlie Bejarano Romans 118
11 Divisidero K Kitten’s Joy Hernandez Bradley 118
12 Majestico K Majesticperfection Saez Lukas 118
13 Tuba K Magna Graduate Mojica Jr Smith 118
14 World Approval Northern Afleet Leparoux Casse 120
HUMANA DISTAFF S.-GI, $300,000, 4yo/up, f/m, 7f
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 Sweet Reason K Street Sense Ortiz Jr Gyarmati 118
2 Thank You Marylou K Birdstone Rosario Maker 118
3 Dame Dorothy K Bernardini Castellano Pletcher 120
4 Clearly Confused K Successfl Appeal Leparoux Baltas 118
5 You Bought Her Graeme Hall Lanerie Hinsley 118
6 Moonlit Stroll K Stroll Hernandez Jr Forster 118
7 Sweet Whiskey Old Fashioned Velazquez Pletcher 118
8 Judy the Beauty K Ghostzapper Smith Ward 123
