Posted on 04/02/2008 4:35:42 PM PDT by gate2wire
With the final Derby preps approaching, there is no more room for error. It’s time to earn your way into the Run for the Roses or pack up and go home. The three graded stakes this weekend – the grade I Santa Anita Derby and Wood Memorial and grade II Illinois Derby – offer intriguing plot lines that will make or break aspiring Derby hopefuls. Those plot lines include some juicy questions:
Can last year’s champion 2-year-old War Pass rebound in the Wood Memorial following a dreadful performance at odds of 1-20 in the Tampa Bay Derby (gr. III)?
Will War Pass be vulnerable once again with the addition of Inner Light to help set it up for stablemate Court Vision?
Can El Gato Malo turn the tables on Colonel John with a better trip in the Santa Anita Derby?
Can Todd Pletcher slip quietly into the Derby this year with Atoned (Illinois Derby), Texas Wildcatter (Wood Memorial), or On the Virg (Santa Anita Derby)?
Will the surprising, last-minute decision to skip the Rebel Stakes (gr. III) and wait seven weeks to run in the Illinois Derby, come back to haunt Denis of Cork’s connections or will the race prove to be a perfect prep for the Run for the Roses?
Can Tale of Ekati bounce back from a sixth-place finish in the Louisiana Derby (gr. II), in which he had a terrible start, and get enough out of the Wood Memorial to give him any kind of a shot in the Kentucky Derby?
(Excerpt) Read more at tcm.bloodhorse.com ...
ML/NJ
That’s right...forgot about that.
You’ll be heading out there soon.
Enjoy.
What?? Not one word about Big Brown?? The winner of the G1 Florida Derby?? He’s my favorite at the moment....
He’s not running this weekend.
Anyway, can’t blame you. Excellent fractions he ran last weekend. Think he ended up favorite in the last Derby Futures.
Yea.. I know he’s not running... but, I still think an article about “potential Derby favorites” should have included a mention.... guess, I read it wrong.
I’ve been to 6 consecutive Derby’s now, and have picked 5 winners and two exactas... Sorry, I missed Giacomo. :-(
Big Brown looks to me,... a little.. like Barbaro. I’m no where near as sold on him as I was on Barbaro.... but, he sure looks to have what’s needed.
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