Trainer Pletcher has four strong entries at 144th Kentucky Derby
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — It’s a typical morning around Todd Pletcher’s Barn No. 40 at Churchill Downs, horses standing in a line, being bathed after training, steam rising from their backs as teams of grooms tend to them.
There’s an element of clockwork to this. And, like clockwork, Pletcher shows up at Churchill Downs in May with not just one, but with a handful of Kentucky Derby hopefuls.
Make a pie chart and cut the expected 20-horse Derby field into five slices, and one of those would be in Pletcher’s barn.
That’s not all too unusual in itself. With four more entries expected to saddle up Saturday for the 144th Run for the Roses, he’ll take over the lead for lifetime Derby starters from his old mentor, D. Wayne Lukas, with 53 total this year. Still, neither Pletcher — nor anyone else — has had many stronger hands than he brings into the race this year.
“Best since last year,” Pletcher said with a little smile, a subtle reference to his having the 2017 Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming, who will race again at Churchill the day before the Derby. “... We’ve been here before in what appeared to be strong position, but we’ve never been here with four horses that won their final prep like these have. So it makes you feel good about it. We’ve had a great spring.”
Magnum Moon just won the Arkansas Derby in impressive fashion, rolling to a four-length victory to improve to 4-for-4 lifetime. Atop the Derby points standings, he’ll be among the Derby favorites, despite not racing as a 2-year-old, something no Derby winner has successfully pulled off since 1882.
A short drive south, Noble Indy won the Louisiana Derby for his third victory in four lifetime starts his previous time out.
Draw a line East, and Audible comes to the Derby off a win in the Florida Derby, coming from far off the pace to further show off his versatility, having run near the lead in his three previous lifetime wins.
Up the Atlantic Coast, Vino Rosso comes to Louisville off a three-length victory in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct in New York.
It’s rare enough to have four starters in the Kentucky Derby. It’s rarer still to come in with four who have a graded stakes victories in their most recent preps.
“It’s a remarkably consistent group,” Pletcher said. “They all seem to show up and run well every time. With the exception of Rosso’s Tampa Derby, I haven’t been disappointed one time. They’re adaptable to different pace scenarios . ... I wouldn’t even be too concerned if it rains. It’s nice when you have a group that is versatile in running styles.”
Pletcher is relaxed. He’s harddriving, but with his second Derby victory a year ago, there’s little question that some of the pressure is off. He long has been one of the best in the game, winning races at every stop. But he was, for so long, the “best trainer to never win a Derby,” that now having won two, that narrative can die.
“You’ve got to be thankful anytime you can win one, and now we’re blessed to win two,” Pletcher said. “It does take some pressure off when you’ve won a couple, but it doesn’t make you want to win another one any less.”
Magnum Moon, along with Bob Baffert’s Justify, will be viewed as the race favorite. The only knock on him is that he didn’t race at 2, but Pletcher wanted to be patient with him.
“It was a conservative decision at that point,” Pletcher said. “He was a May foal, but he impressed us from the beginning. Talking to Jacob West the racing manager for [owners] Mr. and Mrs. [Robert] Low, we just thought, ‘We think a lot of this colt, let’s give him a chance to fill out.”
Audible has shown unusual versatility and has gotten better with each successive race. He has tactical speed and has rated just off the pace, but also dropped back all the way to last in his Florida Derby win, when he didn’t want a part of the fast early pace.
This Kentucky Derby field, on paper, could be the strongest in years. In addition to Pletcher’s horses and Justify, Mendelsson was a runaway winner of the UAE Derby and will ship in for trainer Aiden O’Brien.