The Factor, who banked
$180,000 for his gate-to-wire triumph in Saturday’s Grade II, $300,000 Rebel
Stakes at Oaklawn
Park, jumped into a tie
for fifth position on the Kentucky Derby 137 Graded Stakes Earnings List. The
list will likely determine the field for the “Run for the Roses” on Saturday,
May 7 at Churchill Downs.
The $2 million guaranteed
Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I) has been restricted to 20
starters since 1975. Graded stakes earnings accumulated in races on the “Road
to the Kentucky Derby” have determined the field for the 1 ¼-mile classic since
1986.
Uncle Mo leads the way
with $1.26 million in graded stakes earnings and is the early Derby favorite. J P’s Gusto, who
earned a $1,500 seventh-place check in the Rebel, takes over the second
position with $541,500 after Gourmet Dinner ($780,000) was dropped from
the list due to inactivity. Soldat is No. 3 with $510,000 and Comma
to the Top is fourth with $471,000. The Factor shares the fifth position
with Mucho Macho Man, who’ll attempt to add to his total Saturday in the
Grade II, $1 million Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds. Rogue Romance
($288,000) was declared Saturday when trainer Ken McPeek discovered a
small fracture in the inside quarter of the colt’s left front foot. He’ll be
sidelined 60-90 days.
In other movement on the list,
Rebel third Archarcharch banked $30,000 and moved up two spots from No.
17 to No. 15 with $180,000 overall. Runner-up Caleb’s Posse catapulted
from No. 53 to No. 24, thanks to a $60,000 check that brought his total to
$90,000. Sway Away, sixth as the 9-5 second betting choice, earned
$1,500, which brought his earnings to $61,500 and broke a tie for No. 25 with Wilkinson,
who is entered in the Louisiana Derby.
Here’s the official Kentucky
Derby 137 Graded Stakes Earnings Top 25 through March 20 (graded stakes
earnings rank, trainer, and next possible start):
1. Uncle
Mo, $1,260,000, Todd Pletcher (April 9
Wood Memorial or April 3 Florida Derby)
2. J P’s Gusto, $541,500, Joe Petalino (TBA)
3. Soldat, $510,000,
Kiaran McLaughlin (April 3 Florida Derby)
4. Comma to the Top,
$471,000, Peter Miller (April 9 Santa Anita Derby)
5. Mucho Macho Man, $270,000, Kathy Ritvo
(March 26 Louisiana Derby)
5. The Factor,
$270,000, Bob Baffert (April 16 Arkansas Derby or April 9 Santa Anita Derby)
7. Stay Thirsty, $260,000, Todd Pletcher (April
3 Florida Derby
or April 16 Arkansas Derby)
8. Jaycito,
$250,000, Bob Baffert (April 9 Santa Anita Derby)
8. To Honor and Serve, $250,000 Bill Mott
(April 3 Florida Derby)
10. Santiva, $240,254, Eddie Kenneally (April 16
Toyota Blue
Grass)
11. Dialed In, $240,000, Nick Zito (April 3 Florida Derby)
* Watch Me Go, $232,500, Kathleen O’Connell
(April 3 Florida Derby) – late Triple Crown nominations due
March 26
12. Premier Pegasus, $228,000, Myung Kwon Cho
(April 9 Santa Anita Derby or race out of town)
13. Decisive Moment, $206,000, Juan Arias (March
26 Vinery Racing Spiral)
14. Archarcharch, $180,000, Jinks Fires (April
16 Arkansas Derby)
15. Anthony’s Cross, $162,000, Eoin Harty (April
9 Santa Anita Derby)
16. Brethren, $155,000, Todd Pletcher (April 16 Arkansas Derby)
17. Riveting Reason, $147,500, Myung Kwon Cho
(April 9 Santa Anita Derby or race out of town)
18. Willcox Inn, $139,000, Mike Stidham (April
16 Toyota Blue
Grass)
19. Silver Medallion, $124,334, Steve Asmussen
(April 9 Santa Anita Derby)
20. Sweet Ducky, $120,000, Herman Brown (March
26 UAE Derby) –
sold, might be out of Triple Crown picture
21. Astrology, $105,893, Steve Asmussen (March 27
Sunland Derby)
22. Flashpoint, $90,000, Rick Dutrow Jr. (April 3 Florida Derby
or Swale)
23. Caleb’s Posse, $71,504, Donnie Von Hemel (TBA)
24. Sway Away, $61,500, Jeff Bonde (April 16 Arkansas Derby)
25. Wilkinson, $60,000, Neil Howard (March 26 Louisiana Derby)
Dropped Out: Gourmet Dinner, $780,000 (no works,
status unknown) and Rogue Romance, $288,000 (fractured foot).
The Kentucky Derby 137 Graded
Stakes Earnings List only includes active 3-year-olds that were made eligible
to the Triple Crown for $600 during the early nomination which closed Jan. 22.
Also, their connections have suggested that they’re considering a run in the 1
¼-mile classic. Those contenders who were not nominated early – such as Tampa
Bay Derby winner Watch Me Go, who would be ranked No. 12 this week with
$232,500 – have until midnight ET on Saturday to pay a $6,000 late nomination.
Twenty horses have entered the Derby every year since
2004, and 10 of the last 12 years. The 20th
and final spot in the starting gate – a.k.a. “the bubble” horse – has varied
year to year. Last year, it took a record $218,750 for eventual fourth-place
finisher Make Music for Me to make the field. In 2009, it took only
$55,500 for Nowhere to Hide to complete the 20-horse lineup. Over the
last five years, the final horse to make the field has earned an average of
$130,450 in graded stakes races.
Sixteen open graded stakes races
for 3-year-olds remain to be run before the Derby, including four this weekend, six weeks
in advance of the first Saturday in May. Saturday’s lineup includes the Group
2, $2 million UAE Derby (1 3/16 miles over Tapeta) at Dubai’s Meydan
Racecourse; the Grade II, $1 million Louisiana Derby (1 1/8 miles) at
New Orleans’ Fair Grounds Race Course and Slots; and Grade III, $500,000 Vinery
Racing Spiral (1 1/8 miles over Polytrack) at Turfway Park in northern
Kentucky. The Grade III, $800,000 Sunland Derby (1 1/8 miles) at New
Mexico’s Sunland Park will stand alone Sunday.