Kentucky Derby News

February 17, 2023

Mimi Kakushi prevails over Ami Please in UAE Oaks battle

Friday’s $150,000 UAE Oaks (G3) turned into a match race between Dubai’s top filly Mimi Kakushi and Doug O’Neill shipper Ami Please. As they battled down the lane at Meydan, Mimi Kakushi kept finding more to outlast Ami Please and earn...

February 17, 2023

Japan Road: Perriere among Triple Crown nominees in Hyacinth

The Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby continues in Sunday’s Hyacinth S. at Tokyo, where Triple Crown nominees comprise nearly half of the 14-horse field. With an increased points structure of 30-12-9-6-3 to the top five, the Hyacinth will remake...

February 16, 2023

Tales from the Crib: Forte

Fifty years after Virginia-bred Secretariat took the Triple Crown by storm, a champion colt with deep connections to the Old Dominion is the early favorite for the 2023 Kentucky Derby (G1). Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) hero Forte is a Kentucky-bred...

February 16, 2023

Expert Pick of the Week: 2023 Risen Star Stakes

A full field of 14 three-year-olds will travel 1 1/8 miles on the Fair Grounds dirt in Saturday’s $400,000 Risen Star S. (G2). The 2023 Road to the Kentucky Derby challenge series contest will reward the top five finishers with qualifying points...

February 16, 2023

California shipper Ami Please takes on Mimi Kakushi in UAE Oaks

The Kentucky Oaks (G1) trail makes a stop in Dubai on Friday for the $150,000 UAE Oaks (G3), the first scoring race offering 50 points to the winner. Two-time Kentucky Derby (G1)-winning trainer Doug O’Neill has sent Ami Please as part of his Dubai...

February 15, 2023

Takeaways from 2023 Withers Stakes

Aqueduct offered the Withers (G3) on Feb. 11, the second of four Road to
the Kentucky Derby series qualifiers at the New York track in 2023, and the 1
1/8-mile race offered points on a 20-8-6-4-2 basis to the top five finishers.
1. Hit Show
a convincing...

February 15, 2023

Inside the Kentucky Derby Podcast: Risen Star Preview

Fair Grounds in New Orleans will be the proving ground for the 14-horse field in the Risen Star this weekend. On today’s show Darren and KK preview the first major stakes race in the Championship Series on the Road to the Kentucky Derby. They...

February 14, 2023

Takeaways from 2023 Sam F. Davis

The first of two qualifiers at Tampa Bay Downs, the Feb. 11 Sam
F. Davis (G3) offered points on a 20-8-6-4-2 scale as part of the Road to
the Kentucky Derby series, and the top four finishers made their stakes
debut in the 1 1/16-mile race.
1. Litigate
easily...

February 13, 2023

Victory Formation draws post 13 in Risen Star

Saturday’s $400,000 Risen Star (G2) at Fair Grounds ushers in the Road to the Kentucky Derby Championship Series. The points on offer now increase to a 50-20-15-10-5 structure to the top five.
A full field of 14 has entered the 1 1/8-mile contest,...

February 13, 2023

Triple Crown-nominated Hoosier Philly returns in Rachel Alexandra

Budding star Hoosier Philly kicks off her sophomore campaign in Saturday’s $300,000 Rachel Alexandra (G2) at Fair Grounds. The 1 1/16-mile feature is a key race on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks, worth points on an enhanced 50-20-15-10-5 scale to...

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