Kentucky Derby Blog

The horse who has been called the best of his generation will not run in the Kentucky Derby. Uncle Mo, who was supposed to be the horse to beat in Saturday’s Run for the Roses, was scratched from the race Friday morning. The team wanted to give Uncle Mo every chance to reach the starting gate. Pletcher considers Uncle Mo the best horse he’s ever had. The owner Mike Repole said he’s 5 to 7 lengths better than anyone else.

With Uncle Mo out, the Kentucky Derby field has been reduced to 19 runners. This is the second straight year Pletcher has had a runner out of the Derby. Last year, Eskendereya was ruled out of the Derby the week before the race.

Watch the press conference by Mike Repole.

jockey Robby Albardo is being replaced on Animal Kingdom by John Velazquez. Albardo was injured during post parade on Wednesday when his mount threw him and stepped on him. He was still hoping to ride on Saturday, but today was pulled from the lineup.

With fewer than two weeks remaining until the Kentucky Derby, Robert LaPenta’s Dialed In remains the top choice in the Thoroughbred Times Road to the Triple Crown poll of editors, reporters, and correspondents, for the third consecutive week after dislodging Uncle Mo following nine weeks on top of the poll.

Jaycito, who was ranked eighth on last week’s Triple Crown poll, was withdrawn from the Kentucky Derby, due to its battling a foot bruise for several weeks.

Here is the Triple Crown poll results for racing through April 24.
1. Dialed In
2. Uncle Mo
3. Toby’s Corner
4. Archarcharch
5. Mucho Macho Man
6. Nehro
7. Midnight Interlude
8. Soldat
9. Animal Kingdom
10. Stay Thirsty

Last Updated: May 1, 2010 5:48pm EST
Pool Total: $23,499,229.54

Lookin At Lucky, America’s champion 2-year-old of 2009 and a winner of six of eight career starts, has been installed as the 3-1 morning line favorite for Saturday’s 136th running of America’s greatest race, the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I) at Churchill Downs.

Lookin At Lucky (3-1), early Kentucky Derby favorite, starts from post 1 and Sidney’s Candy, the 5-1 second choice, didn’t fare any better at the opposite end of the starting gate — No. 20 — and will be taking the widest trip around Churchill Downs.

By compromising the two favorites, the Derby becomes a wide-open race a year after 50-1 shot Mine That Bird pulled off a last-to-first stunner under a rail-hugging ride by Calvin Borel.

Churchill Downs oddsmaker Mike Battaglia said the inauspicious No. 1 position didn’t significantly affect Lookin At Lucky’s odds and that he’ll still go off at 3-1, in part because Sidney’s Candy, the second choice at 5-1, drew the No. 20 position.

Although the No. 1 position has produced 12 Derby winners since 1900, tied for the most all time, many of those wins came before the field expanded to 20 horses. No horse has won starting on the rail since Ferdinand in 1986. Big Brown won from the No. 20 post in 2008 but was only the second horse to accomplish that feat.

The entire field will have to overcome a dismal forecast that calls for a 60 percent chance of rain Saturday, with accumulations of up to 2 inches.

The field from the rail out is: Lookin At Lucky, 3-1; Ice Box, 10-1; Noble’s Promise, 12-1; Super Saver, 15-1; Line of David, 30-1; Stately Victor, 30-1; American Lion, 30-1; Dean’s Kitten, 50-1; Make Music for Me, 50-1; Paddy O’Prado, 20-1; Devil May Care, 10-1; Conveyance, 12-1; Jackson Bend, 15-1; Mission Impazible, 20-1; Discreetly Mine, 30-1; Awesome Act, 10-1; Dublin, 12-1; Backtalk, 50-1; Homeboykris, 50-1; and Sidney’s Candy, 5-1.

2010 Kentucky Derby post position will be drawn today at Secretariat Lounge, 2nd floor of the Churchill Downs clubhouse at 12 p.m. EST and the field will be set. It will be live broadcast on HRTV (Dish Network channel 404; Insight Communications channel 564 in Louisville), WAVE-3, WHAS-11, WLKY-32.

The draw won’t be open to the public and invitations and media credentials only

For the first time since 1997, the draw will be a traditional “pill pull,” in which horses’ entry blanks are pulled simultaneously with a numbered pill to determine what stall a horse will break from in the starting gate.

The past 12 years, Churchill used a two-tier, made-for-television process in which the horses’ representatives picked the starting posts. With ESPN no longer televising the draw, that format was dropped.

Kentucky Derby is only 3 weeks away and the Derby field is starting to take shape. Here are the results of 3 Derby preps run last Saturday. I still strongly believe Pyro is something.

Blue Grass Stakes – Monba
Down to perhaps his last chance to return to the Kentucky Derby, trainer Todd Pletcher is headed to Churchill Downs after Monba won the $750,000 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland on Saturday, and stablemate Cowboy Cal finished second. Monba was ridden by Edgar Prado.

Pyro, generally considered the other top 3-year-old in the country and my top pick, failed to ignite in his synthetic track debut, finishing 10th of 12 as the even-money favorite in the Blue Grass.

Pgm Horse          Win   Place  Show
5 Monba          19.60   8.60   6.60
3 Cowboy Cal             8.80   6.60
2 Kentucky Bear                 8.20

Holy Bull Stakes – Hey Byrn
Hey Byrn won the $150,000 Holy Bull Stakes on Saturday at Gulfstream Park, beating Dream Maestro by 2 1/4 lengths in the Kentucky Derby prep. Ridden by Chuck Lopez, the 3-year-old Florida-bred son of Put It Back disposed of pacesetting Famous Patriot mid-stetch and gradually drew away from Dream Maestro to win his first graded race.

Pgm Horse         Win   Place  Show
2 Hey Byrn        4.00  3.00   2.20
6 Dream Maestro         4.80   2.80
1 Famous Patriot               2.20

Arkansas Derby – Gayego
Gayego won Grade 2, $1 million Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park. The winner was ridden by Mike Smith and trained by Paulo Lobo. Gayego passed pacesetter Tres Borrachos entering the home stretch and repelled an oncoming Z Fortune nearing the wire.

Gayego covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:49.63, faster than Curlin’s winning time of 1:50 last year.

Pgm Horse          Win   Place   Show
4 Gayego          6.40    4.40   3.80
10 Z Fortune              7.40   6.00
2 Tres Borrachos                14.80

I found some interesting KY derby props betting lines here. Click to check out the odds on Kentucky Derby horses and props.

Kentucky Derby 2008, kentucky derby contenders