It’s the biggest weekend on the Kentucky Derby Trail as three major prep races will be contested on Saturday, April 7, 2018. Santa Anita Derby McKinzie’s defection due to injury ruled out the rematch with Bolt d’Oro, so Bob Baffert changed his strategy and is now sending his brilliant but untested colt Justify to challenge Bolt d’Oro. The original plan was for Justify to race in the Arkansas Derby on Saturday, April 14. The Santa Anita Derby is a 7 horse field, and outside of Instilled Regard, is devoid of any serious contenders. This is Justify’s first attempt at stakes company. He will need to finish at least second in order to earn enough points to guarantee a start in the Kentucky Derby. As I have written before, he is attempting to break the curse of Apollo, the last horse to win the Derby without the benefit of any starts at age 2. The belief here is that Justify is a budding superstar. He will win the Santa Anita Derby with Bolt d’Oro and Instilled Regard rounding out...
A stream of consciousness blog on a multitude of topics which interest me - horse racing, politics, sports, movies, music, pop culture, science, and last but not least; pointing out those people and moments which leave us shaking our heads. I deal in facts, logic, and critical thinking.