Kentucky Derby 2023

Tomorrow is the Florida Derby. The current favourite for the Kentucky Derby is Forte who lines up for the Florida Derby. Forte was champion juvenile and won the Breeders Cup Juvenile.

All the major trials takes place in the next two weeks, Florida Derby, Arkansas Derby, Santa Anita Derby, Toyota Blue Grass Stakes and to a lesser extent the Wood Memorial.

Forte who is the current favourite for the Kentucky Derby won the Florida Derby yesterday. Forte raced way off the pace so I think he is going to need a fast pace in the Kentucky Derby to kick on. The distance will not be a problem.

Angel Of Empire won the Arkansas Derby.

Florida Derby replay

Kentucky Derby 2023 Field



Note there are 3 Also Eligibles/Reserve Runners

From Bonski

On tv in SA?

There are 2 scratchings at the moment number 10 and 19 so numbers 21 and 22 will now get a run.

Last years winner, Rich Strike, was an Also Eligibles/Reserve Runner.

Number 22, is Mandarin Hero, a Japanese horse. That's definitely my outsider. Derma Sotogake and Continuar are the other Japanese horses and worth following but all the Japanese horses drew extreme wide though its better than very inside draws.

From the fancied runners, Tapit Trice, has impressed me.

Will check the stats to see how many 2yo champions as won the Kentucky Derby the following year as Forte is in that category.

The Japanese horse Derma Sotogake seemed very impressive in his his last race. Will back Two Phills as cover. Exciting race this to watch

Champion 2 year olds that have won the Kentucky Derby the following year.

Street Sense won in 2007 but before that there was no winners for a period of 27 years.

Recently American Pharoah in 2015 and Nyquist 2016 have won.

While searching I came across that there are 3 to 4 winners of the Kentucky Derby that biological/technically was 2yo's as their birth/foaling date was in late May and horses turn a year older on 01 January in the Northern Hemisphere. The most famous of them being the legendary Northern Dancer.

WHAT ARE BEYER SPEED FIGURES?

Horse racing handicapper Andrew Beyer designed BSF in the early 1970s as a handicapping tool. The purpose was to quantify a horse’s speed in a given race to compare with other horses. Win margin tells only half the story – was the field fast? Slow? BSF sorts through track length, field strength, and all other variables to create a tidy number that can be applied to future races.

Godolphin second string, Pretty Mischievous, won the Kentucky Oaks.

All three Also Eligibles/Reserve runners now make the field after scratchings.

That was an impressive win considering the wide draw and running wide for most of the race👏