Summary:
Hopefully the connections
of Fear the Kitten kept the receipts for their Derby hats as they may be of no
use Saturday. In a near-last minute decision, owner Andy Cohen decided to throw
Giant Finish, 3rd last time out in the Spiral (G3) at Turfway, into the
Kentucky Derby mix. Giant Finish’s 10 points trump Fear the Kitten’s 6, which
force the latter to enter as an also-eligible and hope for a defection before
Friday. It appeared a second also-eligible was possible with the connections of
Carving (2 points) showing interest to enter their colt during Wednesday’s
scheduled draw. However, trainer Mike Puhich didn’t seem keen on the idea of
waiting for two to drop out// It was also announced late Tuesday that Dallas
Stewart has chosen Robby Albarado as the rider for Golden Soul. The team will
be among the longest shots in the race, but if they happen to pull off a
miracle get ready for the onslaught of stories on Albarado’s fairly recent
transgressions// Somehow news that Ryan Moore was named to ride Lines of Battle
was labeled “breaking” today but we actually knew that Friday. Lines of Battle
arrived on the Churchill grounds early Wednesday morning// Eddie Plesa confirmed
that Itsmyluckyday will not have a ‘blow out’ or short breeze between now and
the Derby. Itsmyluckyday’s last work was Thursday and his overall time was a
very slow 4-furlongs in 53 seconds flat// No serious workouts took place at
Churchill Tuesday, but several people noted Falling Sky’s strong gallop. It is
safe to assume he will be fairly aggressive in the early stages of the Derby.
For gallop videos and interviews see the links below// Andrew Beyer theorizes
that Todd Pletcher’s 1-for-31 record in the Kentucky Derby can be attributed to
his training methods producing horses that perform better in races well spaced
apart as opposed to the compact prep and Triple Crown schedules// Features on Kevin Krigger, Vyjack, Kelly Breen, Golden
Soul, Joel Rosario, Orb, and much more below…
Articles:
Giant Finish owner: ‘You only live once’ (Bloodhorse)
Derby update 4/30 (Churchill Downs)
Falling Sky looks to set the pace in Kentucky Derby (Washington Post)
Kentucky Derby news minute 4/30 (Bloodhorse)
Ramseys hoping for Charming Derby result (Bloodhorse)
The Kentucky Derby through the eyes of Molly Jo
Rosen (Insider Louisville)
Riding high, Rosario readies for Derby on Orb (Bloodhorse)
Haskin’s Derby Report: Oh, happy day (Bloodhorse Blog)
Kevin Krigger “embracing the opportunity” to make
Derby history (Sports Illustrated)
Kelly Breen, an Old Bridge native, changes leads in
search of a dream (NJ.com)
Kentucky Derby full of intrigue with Pletcher’s pack, O’Neill’s return (The Baltimore Sun)
Kentucky Derby full of intrigue with Pletcher’s pack, O’Neill’s return (The Baltimore Sun)
Female families and the Kentucky Derby (Horse Racing Nation)
Vyjack would love to follow Funny Cide’s path (Bloodhorse)
Derby Dreams: Mylute (Paulick Report)
The Kentucky Derby: handicapping the field (Up The Track)
Pedigree: Bringing the battle to Kentucky (Bloodhorse)
Breaking down every horse and jockey in the race (Bleacher Report)
No lack of buzz on Churchill Downs backside (Business First Louisville)
Videos:
Verrazano gallops 4/30 [video] (Churchill Downs)
Normandy Invasion gallops 4/30 [video] (Churchill Downs)
Mylute gallops 4/30 [video] (Churchill Downs)
Charming Kitten gallops 4/30 [video] (Churchill Downs)
Frac Daddy gallops 4/30 [video] (Churchill Downs)
Vyjack gallops 4/30 [video] (Churchill Downs)
Chad Brown on Normandy Invasion [video] (Bloodhorse)
Alan Garcia on Fear the Kitten [video] (Bloodhorse)
Ken McPeek on Frac Daddy and Java’s War [video] (Bloodhorse)
Shug McGaughey on Orb [video] (Bloodhorse)
Eddie Plesa on Itsmyluckyday [video] (Bloodhorse)
Krigger talks about Goldencents in Kentucky Derby
[video] (Courier Journal)
Rankings:
Haskin’s Derby Dozen 4/30 (Bloodhorse Blog)
Quotes and Tweets:
"Just got a text from
Dallas Stewart naming Robby Albarado to ride Golden Soul in the Ky Derby"-
Jay Privman via Twitter
“Trainer Eddie Plesa Jr.
confirms Itsmyluckyday will not have a blow out before Derby. ‘No upside but
downside if he went too fast’ ” - Mike Welsch via Twitter
