Kentucky Derby

It's that time of the year, when Todd Pletcher is in the headlines virtually every weekend. He won last Saturday's GII Louisiana Derby with Kingsbarns (Uncle Mo), has the favorite in Saturday's GI Curlin Florida Derby in Forte (Violence) and the following week will head to Keeneland for the GI Toyota Blue Grass, where Tapit Trice (Tapit) could be the horse to beat. To get Pletcher's latest thoughts on his wealth of 3-year-old talent we had him join us on this week's TDN Writers' Room podcast presented by Keeneland. Pletcher...

Andrew Warren and Rania Warren's Raise Cain (Violence), who romped home in the Mar. 4 GIII Gotham S., will likely forego a return trip to Aqueduct and make his next start in the GI Toyota Blue Grass S. at Keeneland Apr. 8, according to trainer Ben Colebrook. Raise Cain had his first work since the Gotham when going four furlongs in :49.00 (1/3) at Keeneland Mar. 22. "He's been training great and put on weight," said Colebrook. "He'll breeze again [Thursday] at Keeneland. I think he really gets it now...

Pin Oak Stud's Empirestrikesfast (Empire Maker) has been added to the list of late Triple Crown nominations. The connections paid the $6,000 before Monday's deadline, but the colt's name was inadvertently omitted from the list of 12 others published Tuesday. Trained by Bill Mott, Empirestrikesfast broke his maiden in his first career start Mar. 11 at Gulfstream Park. In total, there are now 382 sophomores eligible to compete in the Triple Crown series.

It felt like a literal solstice, a moment marking our transition to a different phase in the alignment of the Thoroughbred firmament. Because the meteoric performance of Equinox (Jpn) in Dubai on Saturday night, as highlight of another momentous evening for Japan, left rival breeders everywhere speechless. Perhaps, they wondered next morning, this was what was meant by a Sunday silence. There are so many lessons in Japan's accession as a dominant influence on the 21st Century Thoroughbred, a trend that even the most obtuse and parochial of us cannot...

Forte (Violence), who goes postward in Saturday's GI Curlin Florida Derby, was tabbed the 5-2 favorite in the field of 39 individual horses, plus a 40th option for all other 3-year-olds, in the final pool of the GI Kentucky Derby Future Wager. Unlike the first five Future Wager pools, Pool 6 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager will close Saturday at 6 p.m. ET., which is 40 minutes before the Florida Derby and one hour and 50 minutes ahead of GI Arkansas Derby. Here is the complete field for Pool...

Frank Sumpter's Wild On Ice (Tapizar), winner of Sunday's GIII Sunland Park Derby, is one of a dozen 3-year-olds nominated to the Triple Crown with a late payment of $6,000 by Monday's deadline. The other late nominees (pending late mail) are:  Middleham Park Racing's Road to the Kentucky Derby Condition Stakes winner Brave Emperor (Ire) (Sioux Nation); Adam Ference and Bill Dory's El Camino Real Derby winner Chase the Chaos (Astern {Aus}); John Salzman Jr., Fred Wasserloos and Anthony Geruso's multiple stakes winner Coffeewithchris (Ride on Curlin); Mrs. John Magnier,...

We've taken the plunge into the deeper end of the prep pool for the GI Kentucky Derby. Five nine-furlong stakes each awarding 100 qualifying points are scheduled over the next two Saturdays, after which this list will expand to the Top 20. 1) FORTE (c, Violence--Queen Caroline, by Blame) 'TDN Rising Star'. O-Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable; B-South Gate Farm (KY); T-Todd Pletcher. Sales history: $80,000 Wlg '20 KEENOV; $110,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: Ch. 2yo Colt, MGISW, 6-5-0-0, $1,833,230. Last start: 1st GII Fountain of Youth S....

Spendthrift Farm's Kingsbarns (c, 3, Uncle Mo--Lady Tapit, by Tapit) made it a perfect three-for-three in a dominating, front-running performance in Saturday's GII Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds. 'TDN Rising Star' Disarm (Gun Runner) was second; 'TDN Rising Star' Jace's Road (Quality Road) was third. Well-backed at odds of 9-2 from a 6-1 morning-line quote, Kingsbarns was sent to the front by Flavien Prat from post six and led the way through easy fractions of :24.71 and :49.60 with Jace's Road shadowing in second. Kingsbarns began to shake free...

Sent off the 3-2 favorite, Mitono O (Jpn) (Logotype {Jpn}) led every step of the way en route to a 2 1/2-length victory in Saturday's nine-furlong Fukuryu S. (allowance) at rain-soaked Nakayama Racecourse. The win was worth 40 points on the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby and secures connections a berth in the Run for the Roses should they choose to accept. Soon in front for jockey Takuya Kowata, the blaze-faced chestnut went along comfortably on the lead, cruising through an opening 800-meter split of :49 flat and six...

Edited Press Release Both National Treasure (Quality Road) and Skinner (Curlin) worked five furlongs Sunday in preparation for the GI Santa Anita Derby that also serves as a final west coast prep for the GI Kentucky Derby. A day earlier, Geaux Rocket Ride (Candy Ride {Arg}) had his first work since finishing second in the GII San Felipe S. National Treasure, the morning-line favorite in the San Felipe before scratching due to a bruised foot, worked five furlongs in 1:00 for trainer Tim Yakteen. Stablemates Practical Move (Practical Joke) and...

Practical Move (Practical Joke), coming off a win in the Mar. 4 GII San Felipe S., worked four furlongs in :47.60 (8/39), while stablemate Reincarnate (Good Magic), most recently third in the GII Rebel S., went six furlongs in company in 1:12.40 (3/4) at Santa Anita Saturday for trainer Tim Yakteen. "He came out of the San Felipe in great shape and it's all systems go," Yakteen said of Practical Move, who is expected to start next in the Apr. 8 GI Santa Anita Derby. Reincarnate is likely heading back...

It's been a memorable few months for trainer-turned-jockey-agent Kiaran McLaughlin. He's been nominated to the Hall of Fame for the first time and, as the agent for Luis Saez, has his client lined up with many of the top horses in the sport, including top candidates for the GI Kentucky Derby in Tapit Trice (Tapit) and Instant Coffee (Bolt d'Oro). With plenty to talk about, McLaughlin joined this week's TDN Writers' Room podcast presented by Keeneland. McLaughlin was this week's Green Group Guest of the Week. McLaughlin was asked his...