Hinging On The Holy Bull

Spin Wheel breaks from post 12 trailing the pack to rally with a fourth place finish at Keeneland. If he finishes in the top four in the Holy Bull he will get Kentucky Derby prep points.
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Spin Wheel finished in the money at Keeneland this Fall.  Today he hopes to gather Kentucky Derby prep points!
Spin Wheel finished in the money at Keeneland this Fall. Today he hopes to gather Kentucky Derby prep points!

This weekend there are three Grade 3, Kentucky Derby prep races. Today the Withers Stakes is at Aqueduct and the Holy Bull Stakes is at Gulfstream. Tomorrow, Santa Anita will host the Robert B. Lewis Stakes. Writing from my very chilly Kentucky home, my thoughts are with warmer Florida today. For nine thoroughbreds, their chances at getting Kentucky Derby prep points today are hinging on the Holy Bull.

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Derby Dispatch: Details of the Kentucky Derby

Essential Quality races to the finish in the Blue Grass Stakes. He is a favorite for the 147th Kentucky Derby!
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Essential Quality races to the finish in the Blue Grass Stakes. He is a favorite for the 147th Kentucky Derby!
Essential Quality races to the finish in the Blue Grass Stakes. He is a favorite for the 147th Kentucky Derby!

The time has come. The first Saturday in May is homecoming, here in The Horse Capitol of the World. We welcome all, to join in our enthusiasm, as we watch the The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports. Churchill Downs is The Home of the Kentucky Derby.

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The Last Laps: On The Road To The Kentucky Derby

Keenland hosts some of the final Kentucky Derby preps. Last week the Blue Grass Stakes raced.
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Essential Quality, hot on the Kentucky Derby trail won the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland.
Essential Quality, hot on the Kentucky Derby trail, won the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland.

Following forty four prep races over the course of eight months there are now only two stakes left that offer points to qualify for the Kentucky Derby. Saturday, we will see the final two preps, the Lexington Stakes and the Arkansas Derby. These are the last laps, on the Road to The KY Derby.

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Keeneland- A Joyride On The Road To The Kentucky Derby

Keeneland's Spring Meet features two Kentucky Derby prep races!
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Keeneland's Spring Meet features two Kentucky Derby prep races!
Keeneland’s Spring Meet features two Kentucky Derby prep races!

We are just one month away from the 147th Kentucky Derby! Only six preps remain. All these preps will be raced in the next ten days, to shape the final ranking of the leaderboard. Two of these last preps will be held at Keeneland race course! Time spent at the track is always a great pleasure. It is pure joy to ride on The Road, especially when it is at Keeneland. Ride with me now!

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Doors to The Derby

2019 Florida Derby winner, Maximum Security.
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2016, Florida Derby winner, Nyquist!
2016, Florida Derby winner, Nyquist!

The 147th Road to The Kentucky Derby explodes this Saturday with a record four prep races on the same day! Prepare for swift changes to the KY Derby leaderboard as each race offers significant point value including the international spotlight and nomination pool. Read on to briefly examine each of these important preps. The doors of opportunity to enter the KY Derby are wide open!

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A Treble of Trouble to Transform the Top of the Kentucky Derby Leaderboard

Highly Motivated fought hard for the win in the Nyquist Stakes at Keeneland!
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Sittin On Go races by as the sun sets on the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.
Sittin On Go races by as the sun sets on the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

Saturday, the sixth of March, serves up three more Kentucky Derby Prep races! 255 points are up for grabs in this trio and that is going to shake rank up on the KY Derby leaderboard. Greatest Honour holds the top spot with 60 points, following two wins in preps. He is trailed by Mandaloun with 52 points, from a win and a show on The Road. Third rank is held by Essential Quality, with 40 points from three winning preps. Each of this Saturdays races grant 50 points to the winner. Therefore, this Saturday’s winners will rise to the top 5 rank and even higher, if the talented thoroughbreds have prior points. Currently ranked horses need to watch out for this treble of trouble to transform the top of the Kentucky Derby leaderboard.

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Three For the Road: Kentucky Derby

Hard Rye Guy will compete for Kentucky Derby points in the John Battaglia Memorial Stakes on 2/26/2021!
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Hard Rye Guy will compete for Kentucky Derby points in the John Battaglia Memorial Stakes on 2/26/2021!
Hard Rye Guy will compete for Kentucky Derby points in the John Battaglia Memorial Stakes on 2/26/2021!

It’s three for the road to the Kentucky Derby as this weekend and month wraps! Rebounding from some bitter winter storms and with Spring on the mind, anticipation of the 2021 Kentucky Derby is building. The prep races that began awarding points as far back as September are racing towards the roads end. The preps end the second week in April and the first Saturday in May, the world watches. Take time to enjoy each critical race. There are many points up for grabs over this weekends three KY Derby prep races!

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Details for the Derby

The twin spires of Churchill Downs will watch over the 146th Kentucky Derby while the spectators will not be on site.
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The twin spires of Churchill Downs will watch over the 146th Kentucky Derby while the spectators will not be on site.
The twin spires of Churchill Downs will watch over the 146th Kentucky Derby while the spectators will not be on site.

Delayed but not dismissed, the Derby is on at the Downs! The 146th Kentucky Derby field developed over a long and altered road but on Saturday, September 5, 2020, Churchill Downs will deliver “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports”! Read on for the most important details for the Derby.

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Points from the Pegasus: Last Kentucky Derby Prep

The 2020 Pegasus Stakes serves as the final race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby
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The 2020 Pegasus Stakes serves as the final race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby
The 2020 Pegasus Stakes serves as the final race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby!

The elongated and altered Road to the Kentucky Derby is finally coming to an end. When Churchill Downs hosted the first KY Derby prep race, the Iroquois Stakes, in September 2019 we had a firm series of races to lead us to the first Saturday in May. Nearly a year has passed and the KY Derby, delayed by a global pandemic, will race this September. There is a nice long list of potential contenders and one more race to try to qualify for the Kentucky Derby. The Pegasus Stakes offers just enough KY Derby points to make entry into the great race possible. Four of eight contenders in today’s Pegasus Stakes are in the top 25 of the leaderboard. Read on to see who might climb up to squeeze into to the top 20, to Run for the Roses.

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Tiz the Travers

2020 Travers Stakes at Saratoga!
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Saratoga presents the 2020 Runhappy Travers Stakes.

Tiz the season to be racing! It is Travers Eve and all of the good little racing fans are receiving an early Mid-Summer Derby. The 151st edition of the Runhappy Travers Stakes is indeed the gift that will keep on giving. This Grade I Classic traditionally serves as the highlight of the Thoroughbred racing season for 3 year-old champions. That is still true but this year is so much more mysterious. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, everything is different in 2020. Horse racing has done a marvelous job withstanding a current cancellation culture. Despite alterations to the typical racing schedule, the win, place and show must go on. Tiz the Travers and the presents are the Man o’ War Cup and a post position in the Kentucky Derby!

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