A few days before this weekend’s Florida Derby, Saratoga native Joseph DeSantis is doing errands in Lexington, Kentucky, shuttling between the three farms that his employer, Shadwell Stable, owns. With the exception of a three-year stint in Oklahoma, he’s made his home in the Bluegrass of central Kentucky for the last 20 years, most recently…
by Brian Nadeau of Horseplayer Now and Capital OTB TV. Fair Grounds: The GII, $1 million Louisiana Derby at 1 1/8 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points: 100-40-20-10) #1 Gun Runner (3-1): Heavy-hitter sat a dream trip in winning the local prep, the GII Risen Star last month, as he settled off the hot pace to the inside, tipped…
It’s that time: time to try to bolster your lead or make a move on the leader by adding a couple of horses to your charity league stable. Last week Cindy Reid regained the lead after ceding it briefly to 2014 winner and 2015 runner-up John Perotti in a dead-heat with turf writer and first-year…
by Brian Nadeau of Horseplayer Now and Capital OTB TV. Oaklawn Park: The GII, $900,000 Rebel at 1 1/16 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points: 100-40-20-10) #1 Creator (6-1): Deep closer drew perfectly for his style and is one of two sons of Tapit in here for Asmussen; both come in off breakthrough runs, and this one blitzed a…
by Brian Nadeau of Horseplayer Now and Capital OTB TV. Tampa Bay Downs: The GII, $350,000 Tampa Bay Derby at 1 1/16 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points: 50-20-10-5) #1 Morning Fire (15-1): One of three exiting last month’s local prep, the GIII Sam Davis, will need to improve on that third-place finish to have a say here, as…
by Brian Nadeau of Horseplayer Now and Capital OTB TV. Santa Anita: The GII, $400,000 San Felipe at 1 1/16 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points: 50-20-10-5) #1 Uncle Lino: Improving runner really answered the bell last time when he was a good second behind fellow heavyweight Mor Spirit in the local GIII Robert Lewis, in what was his…
by Brian Nadeau of Horseplayer Now and Capital OTB TV. Aqueduct: The GIII, $400,000 Gotham at 1 1/16 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points: 50-20-10-5) #1 Laoban (15-1): The most well-traveled maiden in the country was scratched out of the GII Risen Star at Fair Grounds a few weeks back and now ends up in South Ozone Park in…
Fair Grounds: The GII, $400,000 Risen Star at 1 1/16 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points: 50-20-10-5) #1 In Equality (30-1): NY invader will be one of the longer shots in the field, but if nothing else, it’s nice to see Gyarmati ship many a mile with a closer who should appreciate the long stretch here.…
Oaklawn Park: The GIII, $500,000 Southwest at 1 1/16 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points: 10-4-2-1) #3 Collected (5-2): Son of City Zip represents another Santa Anita invader for Baffert, who has won about 15 of these OP 3yo prep over the past decade or so, including a pair last year with Triple Crown hero American…
Golden Gate Field: The GIII, $200,000 El Camino Real Derby at 1 1/8 miles (Kentucky Derby qualifying points: 10-4-2-1) With synthetic racing going out of flavor in recent years, there’s little doubt that Golden Gate’s signature Kentucky Derby prep has followed suit, but if nothing else, this year’s renewal offers a deep, competitive and robust…
Brooklyn Backstretch 