STAFF PICKS

VIC CANGIALOSI

1. AUDIBLE: Nyquist. Always Dreaming. The Florida Derby is the prep that keeps on giving. Javier Castellano has him positioned to pounce turning for home. Can he get the additional real estate? 2. JUSTIFY: Mr. Perfect. Justifiable favorite has won all three starts for Bob Baffert but must reverse the “unraced as a 2-year-old” curse.

3. MENDELSSOHN: Mr. Versatility. Won BC Juvenile Turf last year. Enters off an 18-length steamrolling in the UAE Derby, a race whose winners have failed miserably in Kentucky.

DEBBIE LITTLE

1. AUDIBLE: Breaks from post 5, which has produced a Derby-high 10 winners since 1930, including 2017 champ Always Dreaming. Could give multiple Eclipse Award-winning jockey and Hall of Famer Castellano his first Derby win.

2. MENDELSSOHN: Has been taking a lot of late money in Vegas, narrowing the gap on favorite Justify. The last five Derbys have been won by the post-time favorite, but no horse has won the Derby from post 14 since 1961.

3. JUSTIFY: Is the morning-line favorite for four-time Derby champ Baffert. Six Derby winners have broken from post 7 since 1930, but the only horse to win the Derby and not race as a 2-yearold was Apollo in 1882.

ANTHONY BARSTOW

1. BOLT D’ORO: Has fired off triple-digit Beyers in his past two off the long layoff, and you have to love the rider switch to Victor Espinoza, who knows how to win this race.

2. HOFBURG: He came from wide in the Florida Derby to be clear secondbest behind Audible, and with a better break could have a special run in him.

3. MAGNUM MOON: All he does is win, and he has not taken a step back while stretching out each of his past three tries. With a clear path, he’ll be hard to track down.