Stars to shine on both coasts Saturday (Kentucky Derby trail)

thoroughbredtimes ^ | April 03, 2009 | Jeff Apel

[gate2wire]

Pioneerof the Nile and I Want Revenge, familiar foes on the California circuit, will start on opposite coasts on Saturday in two graded stakes races for three-year-olds that serve as important preps for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) on May 2 at Churchill Downs.

Grade 3 winner I Want Revenge was installed as the 4-to-5 morning-line favorite in a field of eight entered in the $750,000 Wood Memorial Stakes (G1) at Aqueduct. California-based trainer Jeff Mullins said his decision to enter I Want Revenge in the Wood Memorial Stakes has nothing to do with Grade 1 winner Pioneerof the Nile’s presence in the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby (G1).

Pioneerof the Nile outran I Want Revenge en route to winning the CashCall Futurity (G1) on December 20 at Hollywood Park and the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G2) on February 7 at Santa Anita Park.

[gate2wire]

Wood Memorial S.
April 04, $750,000, 3yo, 1 1/8M, Aqueduct, 5:19 PM ET
Post Horse Sire Weight Jockey Trainer
1 I Want Revenge 3, c. Stephen Got Even 123 Joseph Talamo Jeff Mullins
2 Lord Justice 3, c. A.P. Indy 123 Charles Lopez Todd Pletcher
3 Cellar Dweller 3, c. Rahy 123 A. Napravnik John Campo, Jr.
4 Atomic Rain 3, c. Smart Strike 123 Joe Bravo Kelly Breen
5 West Side Bernie 3, c. Bernstein 123 Stewart Elliott Kelly Breen
6 Imperial Council 3, c. Empire Maker 123 Edgar Prado Claude McGaughey III
7 Just a Coincidence 3, c. Forestry 123 John Velazquez Nicholas Zito
8 Lime Rickey 3, c. Lemon Drop Kid 123 Javier Castellano Frank Alexander

Santa Anita Derby
April 04, $750,000, 3yo, 1 1/8M, Santa Anita Park, 2:36 PM PT
Post Horse Sire Weight Jockey Trainer
1 Chocolate Candy 3, c. Candy Ride (ARG) 122 Joel Rosario Jerry Hollendorfer
2 Z Day 3, c. Five Star Day 122 Aaron Gryder Mike Mitchell
3 Unbridled Roman 3, c. Roman Dancer 122 Tyler Baze Christopher Paasch
4 Pioneerof the Nile 3, c. Empire Maker 122 Garrett Gomez Bob Baffert
5 Mr. Hot Stuff 3, c. Tiznow 122 Corey Nakatani Eoin Harty
6 Feisty Suances 3, c. Suances (GB) 122 Victor Espinoza Darrell Vienna
7 Take the Points 3, c. Even the Score 122 Christopher DeCarlo Todd Pletcher
8 Cape Truth 3, c. Cape Town 122 Michael Baze Doug O'Neill
9 Gallant Son 3, c. Malabar Gold 122 Rafael Bejarano Frank Lucarelli
10 The Pamplemousse 3, c. Kafwain 122 Alex Solis Julio Canani

[gate2wire]

Illinois Derby
April 04, $500,000, 3yo, 1 1/8M, Hawthorne Race Course, 4:15 PM CT
Post Horse Sire Weight Jockey Trainer
1 Nowhere to Hide 3, c. Vindication 122 Paco Lopez Nicholas Zito
2 Giant Oak 3, c. Giant's Causeway 122 Shaun Bridgmohan Chris Block
3 Lord Justice 3, c. A.P. Indy 122 Christopher DeCarlo Todd Pletcher
4 Toccet Rocket 3, c. Toccet 122 Tanner Riggs Brian La Mew
5 His Greatness 3, c. Honour and Glory 122 Larry Sterling, Jr. Marco Salazar
6 Perfect Song 3, c. Pleasantly Perfect 122 Jeremy Rose Michael Trombetta
7 Free Country 3, c. Big Country 122 Eusebio Razo, Jr. Kenneth McPeek
8 Musket Man 3, c. Yonaguska 122 Eibar Coa Derek Ryan
9 Al Khali 3, c. Medaglia d'Oro 122 Cornelio Velasquez Todd Pletcher
10 Il Postino 3, c. Distorted Humor 122 Jesse Campbell Todd Pletcher
11 Knight Shot 3, c. Red Bullet 122 Inez Karlsson Frank Kirby

[RU88]

I like Imperial Council to place in the Wood and Chocolate Candy to show in the Santa Anita. Any thoughts?

[gate2wire]

I think I Want Revenge will regress a little in the Wood, but he should still be good enough to win.
Imperial Council second best again.
Expect a better effort from West Side Bernie.

Love The Pamplemousse at SA.
Your horse likes to win, but his figures are a little slow. Would not be surprised to see him in the money.

[gate2wire]

I just noticed you used “to place” and “to show.”
You’re probably right on.

[RU88]

Always look forward to this time of year leading up to the Triple Crown. Best of luck to you.

[gate2wire]

Thanks, you too.

Derby preps get me through the winter after football ends. :-)

[gate2wire]

Meant to ping you. Accidently pinged ELT.

[supremedoctrine]

gate2wire-———
I was waiting to see if you’d put up a thread on this Trial day, otherwise I’d get to you early and just post to you;
All I have looked at is the WOOD.
Here are my thoughts: I already posted them to another FReeper who is not on your ping list, but whose home page revealed the fact that he’s seen every Travers Stakes since 1967.
First of all , scanning down through the entries list, you show EIGHT horses, where as far as the DRF tells me there is a 1 and 1a entry of Atomic Rain and West Side Bernie in this race, when you have them listed as #4 and #5.
This is doubly important considering how I think the race will develop./
I saw I Want Revenge’s Gotham a month ago, and it did look
impressive. However, this could be more an open race than it looks-—it actually could be more a betting race.
Since I am always interested in beating the favorite, and since that favorite will be IWR, I tried to find some weak spots in him, and looked further into the field. I found West Side Bernie (whose name, you’ve gotta admit, is every bit as good as Revenge’s) and whose PPs are yet more interesting. HE is my spoiler, my sleeper. I can see Atomic Rain, his entrymate, being sent from the gate as a rabbit to ensnare both Revenge, and Council, not to mention other speedsters in this race, and involve them in a speed duel which will burn them out, setting it up for WSBernie to close, which his race record indicates he can do. I also like WSB’s record in what it shows me about how many horses he can, and has beat in his four most recent races: this counts for something with me. His most recent four involved FOURTYFOUR horses and he beat 28 of them.
Johnny V’s horse , Just a Coincidence, has a similar pattern, so I can’t throw him out of superfecta contention either, and he’s likely to be about , what 12-1?
Lime Rickey I like also, although the knock against him is that ALL his races are on the Turf. I say, so what, he could get fourth at 10 or 12 to 1 also.
So, as with the Louisiana Derby , here are some Supers that might pay off, that, THIS time I WILL play.
1 with 2+5 with 2+5+6+7 with 2+5+6+7. This has got to pay SOMETHING, but certainly not the $1000 the LA Derby paid, that I did not win, though the winning numbers were the ones I posted on FR.
I might also put LIME RICKEY first and the 1+2+5 configuration 2nd and 3rd, with 6 third.
NOW I have got to look at the others in that Pick 4 graded stakes for today: My early picks in those four races are
Captain Candy Man, Cool Coal Man, West Side Bernie, and
Fabulous Strike, probably heavily bet all of them except for BERNIE. GOOD LUCK TO ALL.

[gate2wire]

Yes the numbers posted for the Wood are post positions, NOT saddle cloth numbers. I hadn’t noticed. Copied that from the Times.
I think we’ll see a better race from Bernie. Wouldn’t be surprised to see him second.

[gate2wire]

Past Performances here courtesy ETL:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2222219/posts

[gate2wire]

Proper saddle cloth numbers for the Wood Memorial S.

April 04, $750,000, 3yo, 1 1/8M, Aqueduct, 5:19 PM ET
Horse Sire Weight Jockey Trainer
2 I Want Revenge 3, c. Stephen Got Even 123 Joseph Talamo Jeff Mullins
3 Lord Justice 3, c. A.P. Indy 123 Charles Lopez Todd Pletcher
4 Cellar Dweller 3, c. Rahy 123 A. Napravnik John Campo, Jr.
1 Atomic Rain 3, c. Smart Strike 123 Joe Bravo Kelly Breen
1A West Side Bernie 3, c. Bernstein 123 Stewart Elliott Kelly Breen
5 Imperial Council 3, c. Empire Maker 123 Edgar Prado Claude McGaughey III
6 Just a Coincidence 3, c. Forestry 123 John Velazquez Nicholas Zito
7 Lime Rickey 3, c. Lemon Drop Kid 123 Javier Castellano Frank Alexander

[ETL]

Here's the post that you linked to a short while ago...

TODAY'S MAJOR KENTUCKY DERBY PREP RACES...

SANTA ANITA PARK
6th Race , Santa Anita Derby
(TELEVISED LIVE ON NBC, BEGINNING AT 2PM PDT, 5PM EDT)
Post Time: 2:40 PM (local time)
Distance/Restrictions: 1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, 3 Year Olds,
Purse: $750,000 Grade: 1
FREE PAST PERFORMANCES FOR SANTA ANITA DERBY:
(direct link to pdf file from EQUIBASE -free/no catch)
http://ntra.equibase.com/eqbNTRAGetFreeFF.cfm?trk=SA&rd=04/04/2009&cty=USA&de=D&rn=6
________________________________________________

HAWTHORNE
7th Race , Illinois Derby
Post Time: 4:15 PM (local time)
Distance/Restrictions: 1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, 3 Year Olds,
Purse: $500,000 Grade: 2
FREE PAST PERFORMANCES FOR ILLINOIS DERBY:
(direct link to pdf file from EQUIBASE -free/no catch)
http://ntra.equibase.com/eqbNTRAGetFreeFF.cfm?trk=HAW&rd=04/04/2009&cty=USA&de=D&rn=7
________________________________________________

AQUEDUCT, NEW YORK
9th Race , Wood Memorial
Post Time: 5:19 PM (local time)
Distance/Restrictions: 1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, 3 Year Olds,
Purse: $750,000 Grade: 1:
(NO FREE PPs FOR THIS RACE FROM EQUIBASE.
However, individual PPs for all major Kentucky Derby contenders are available at link just below, see ***)
http://www.ntra.com/races.aspx?id=36979&section=races
_________________________________________________________________

Click here for a list of the 2009 Derby contenders:
http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2009/racing-information/contenders

*** Free (individual) Past Performances for all major KD contenders:
"Brisnet's weekly updated PDF past performance file of Kentucky Derby hopefuls"
(includes video for many prior races):
http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2009/racing-information/contender-pps

For more info at the site (http://www.kentuckyderby.com/), hover your mouse pointer/cursor over "Racing Information" and select from the drop-down menu.

---------------------------------------------------------

Prep race schedule from mid-March to Derby Day, May 2nd

March:

Mar 14 2009: Louisiana Derby - Fair Grounds, Grade II, 1 1/16 miles, $600,000

Mar 14 2009: San Felipe - Santa Anita, Grade II, 1 1/16 miles, $200,000

Mar 14 2009: Rebel - Oaklawn, Grade II, 1 1/16 miles, $300,000

Mar 14 2009: Tampa Bay Derby - Tampa Bay Downs, Grade III, 1 1/16 miles, $300,000

Mar 18 2009: Kempton Challenge - Kempton, GB 1 1/8 miles $150,000

Mar 21 2009: Lane’s End - Turfway Park, Grade II, 1 1/8 miles, $500,000

Mar 21 2009: Rushaway - Turfway Park 1, 1/16 miles $100,000

Mar 28 2009: Florida Derby - Gulfstream, Grade I, 1 1/8 miles, $750,000

Mar 28 2009: Swale - Gulfstream, Grade II, 7 furlongs, $200,000

Mar 28 2009: UAE Derby - Nad Al Sheba, Grade II,, 1 1/8 miles $206

Mar 28 2009: San Miguel - Santa Anita, 6 furlongs, $70,000

Mar 29 2009: Sunland Derby - Sunland Park 1 1/8 miles $800,000

---------------------------------------------------------

April:

Apr 4 2009: Santa Anita Derby - Santa Anita, Grade I, 1 1/8 miles, $750,000
TELEVISED LIVE ON NBC BEGINNING AT 2PM PDT, 5PM EDT

Apr 4 2009: Wood Memorial - Aqueduct, Grade I, 1 1/8 miles, $750,000

Apr 4 2009: Illinois Derby - Hawthorne, Grade II, 1 1/8 miles, $500,000

Apr 4 2009: Bay Shore - Aqueduct, Grade III, 7 furlongs, $200,000

Apr 11 2009: Blue Grass - Keeneland, Grade I, 1 1/8 miles, $750,000

Apr 11 2009: Arkansas Derby - Oaklawn, Grade II, 1 1/8 miles, purse: 1 million

Apr 18 2009: Lexington - Keeneland, Grade II, 1 1/16 miles, $325,000

Apr 25 2009: Derby Trial - Churchill Downs, Grade III, 1 mile, $100,000

Apr 25 2009: Withers - Aqueduct, Grade III, 1 mile, $150,000

---------------------------------------------------------

May:
May 2 2009: Kentucky Derby - Churchill Downs, Grade I, 1 1/4 miles, purse: 2 million
_________________________________________________________________

2009 Derby Prep Schedule:
http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2009/racing-information/preps-schedule

---------------------------------------------------------

Also see...

Countdown to the Crown (ESPN):
http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/horse/triplecrown09/index

National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA):
(Free official Past Performances for many of the big stake races)
http://www.ntra.com/

Complete stakes race schedule for entire year, all classes of races:
http://www.ntra.com/races_index.aspx

[gate2wire]

Wood:
Straight tri’s 2/1a, 5/ 1a, 5

SA D:
Straight tri’s 10/4/7,5

Ill D:
6 wn/pl.

That’s it. For amusement only.

[ETL]

Santa Anita Derby:
Pre-race imaginary wager: “Take The Points” - $20,000 to Show. Should pay $5 or $6 to Show for a return of $50-60,000!!

http://ntra.equibase.com/eqbNTRAGetFreeFF.cfm?trk=SA&rd=04/04/2009&cty=USA&de=D&rn=6

:)

[ml/nj]

I admit it's not a particularly clever selection but I'll be going with a single exacta bet in the Wood in my only bet of the day (unless you count my NCAA pool where I'm guraanteed at least third if Mich St wins today).

  2 - I Want Revenge / 5 - Imperial Council

(But first I think I watch the Ashland from Keeneland.)

ML/NJ

[ml/nj]

I lost. But I Want Revenge ran an absolutely amazing race. You have to see this race from the start, not just the stretch run that the NBC schmucks chose to show.

ML/NJ

[ETL]

Videos for all of these major prep races should be available at:

http://www.ntra.com/

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/horse/triplecrown09/index

http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2009/racing-information/contenders

[ETL]

Here’s a link to a replay of the Wood Memorial:
http://www.ntra.com/video.aspx?id=38623

[supremedoctrine]

Sorry you lost. A IWR Imp Council exacta would’ve paid little more than what the Santa Anita Derby paid, which was
a whopping $4.60. Payoffs don’t get much worse than that.
Yup, he did run an amazing race, and I was surprised to see him break so badly, and figured I had the race won with West Side Bernie, and maybe IWR 2nd or 3rd. I’ve been watching the amazing Talamo for some months and he’s a phenom reminiscent of Steve Cauthen, I think, but it seems before they got to him he went into some kind of slump, and still no one knows his name outside of us horseracing aficionados. Or maybe it’s just that it’s not the 70s anymore, and the whole sport is still in a “There will NEVER be another Triple Crown WInner” slump.
Anyway, I wasn’t surprised to see ONE of the faves get burned up in a “speed duel” (even at that slow pace) and finish out of the money. West Side Bernie looked like he could win it at about the 1/8th pole, but IWR was coming strong and running the exact OPPOSITE race he ran in the Gotham. As I predicted, one of the longies finished 3rd, and the triple (no super) still only paid , what , $77.?