May 3 (UPI) — The 151st Kentucky Derby headed to the post Saturday with the prospect of a wet track, an open slot in the starting gate and no firm favorite.
Aside from the potential weather, the race shaped up as an entertaining and potentially lucrative wagering opportunity — and a chance for one or more of the 19 3-year-olds to separage toward eventual stardom.
Journalism, the Santa Anita Derby winner, remained the favorite in the early wagering, his odds holding steady around the 3-1 of the morning line as post time for the first Churchill Downs race neared.
After him, it was a scramble on the odds board with 2024 2-year-old champion Citizen Bull, Arkansas Derby winner Sandman and Florida Derby runner-up Sovereignty all getting some support.
Citizen Bull is trained by Bob Baffert, who seeks a record seventh Kentucky Derby win. D. Wayne Lukas trains long shot American Promise as the 89-year old conditioner shoots for his fifth score in the Run for the Roses.
There’s also foreign intrigue in the 1 1/4-mile race.
Japan sends two runners — Admire Daytona, who won the Grade II UAE Derby in Dubai to earn his way to Louisville, and Luxor Café, winner of the Churchill Downs-sponsored “Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby,” which guarantees a spot in the race to the top points-getter in the series.
Godolphin, owned by Sheik Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, owns two of the 19 runners and is flush with victory in Friday’s Grade I Kentucky Oaks. Sheik Mohammed has yet to win the race after nearly two decades of trying.
Other overseas interests in Derby horses come from Ireland and Saudi Arabia.
Friday’s Kentucky Oaks program was interrupted by a strong thunderstorm late in the afternoon and the Oaks itself was run on a sloppy track. The call for Saturday was less dire, featuring intermittent rain and showers with some potential breaks and no thunderstorms.
The track was listed as sloppy for the first race and the turf course was rated “good.” Both drain well, so there was a chance for improvement.
Only six of the 19 horses has raced on a wet track.
