Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
From claim box to Derby gate
Wayne Scherr had tried to reach the Kentucky Derby via traditional ownership routes, buying young horses at yearling and 2-year-old auctions. But when the search for his Derby horse proved fruitless, he proposed a different avenue to trainer Chris Hartman.
“A couple years ago, he decided, why don’t we claim a horse?” Hartman recalled. “I said, ‘Wayne, they don’t run Derby horses for a tag. It just doesn’t happen. You don’t claim Derby horses. But I’ll be more than glad to look.’ ”
As it turns out, they do run Derby horses for a tag. Necker Island, a $100,000 claim in June for Hartman and the ownership team of Scherr, Raymond Daniels, and Greg Harbut, finished third in both the Grade 3 Indiana Derby and Ellis Park Derby. He is now seeking to become the fourth horse since 1999 to cross the finish line first in the Derby after running for a tag earlier in his career.
Charismatic won a maidenclaiming race, running for a $62,500 tag, in November 1998 at Hollywood Park. He could have been had for the same price the following February, when he was promoted to first in a claiming race at Santa Anita. He went on to win the 1999 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes before finishing third in his Triple Crown bid in the Belmont Stakes while being injured during the race. Nearly a decade later, Mine That Bird won his maiden for a $62,000 tag at Woodbine in his second start. He went on to win three stakes that season to be named Canada’s champion 2-year-old before springing his $103.20 upset in the 2009 Kentucky Derby.
Maximum Security famously won his debut for a $16,000 tag in December 2018. He rose through the ranks to cross the finish line first in last year’s Derby, but was disqualified to 17th for interference.
Necker Island, who was originally trained by Stanley Hough for Sagamore Farm, was the only starter running for the $100,000 tag in a four-horse allowance-optional claiming field on June 13 at Churchill Downs. The race turned out to be a salty one. The victor was subsequent Blue Grass and Runhappy Ellis Derby winner Art Collector, expected to be the second choice in the Kentucky Derby. Finishing second was subsequent Indiana Derby winner Shared Sense, while third-place Finnick the Fierce also is a Derby candidate.
“It was a two-race deal, then to see if he was going to be able to get the points to get into the Derby,” Hartman said. “And as it works out, it appears that maybe you’re going to have a horse that’s going to start with no points. But we didn’t know that at the time. He actually ran a really good race in the Indiana Derby. He stumbled out of the gate and had a lot of trouble.”
– Nicole Russo
Dime superfectas offered
Unlike in past years, when a $1 minimum for superfecta wagers was in effect for all races on the Kentucky Oaks and Derby cards, Churchill this year will be offering 10-cent superfectas on all Sept. 4-5 races.
The logic behind the former policy was that dime supers could cause logjams at wagering windows both at the track and at simulcast outlets. Theoretically, dime-super bettors would spend more time calling out numerous combinations that could create long delays at mutuel windows at brick-andmortar facilities.
But with the coronavirus pandemic limiting attendance here and elsewhere, and with the vast majority of handle being generated through online account wagering, the track is offering dime supers “for obvious reasons,” said track spokesman Kevin Kerstein.
Churchill first offered a superfecta on the Derby in 1996. The largest payoff for the $1 increment was $864,253, when Giacomo won the 2005 running at 50-1.
A 99-1 shot, finally?
It’s been nearly 20 years since a Derby starter was 99-1 on the Churchill toteboard – but will that drought finally end this year?
Tiz the Law is expected to be in the even-money range when the Derby is run Saturday, making him one of the heaviest favorites in years. With Art Collector and Honor A. P. among those also sure to attract strong support, the odds on at least one outsider, if not more, could reach into triple digits. Probably the most logical candidate for that dubious honor is Winning Impression, although Finnick the Fierce, Necker Island, and Mr. Big News also will be big odds.
The last time a Derby starter was triple-digit odds was 2001, when Startac ran 10th at 102-1 and Arctic Boy was 12th at 101-1.
One thing is certain: The record for highest Derby odds is safe once again. A horse named A Dragon Killer was an astronomical 294-1 when finishing seventh behind Tim Tam in the 1958 Run for the Roses.