Blog of a Horse Racing Enthusiast

Dullahan is an Even the Score and Mining My Own colt. He has two career wins in eight career starts, his latest coming in the Blue Grass over the heavily favored Hansen. The discussion after the Blue Grass amongst horse racing experts was that jockey Ramon Dominguez (on Hansen) never saw Dullahan coming and put away the whip too early. Regardless, it was still an impressive win in a tough field.

While in recent years, the Lexington Stakes has become more of a race to prep late bloomers for the Preakness than a Derby Trial, this year Bob Baffert's Castaway could earn a Kentucky Derby spot. Here is a breakdown of the field and how I'll be betting.

Liaison is an Indian Charlie and Galloping Gal colt. He has three wins in seven careers starts. His most recent race was the Santa Anita Derby where he was beaten out by I'll Have Another and Creative Causes and ended up with a sixth place finish. He's also only raced the California tracks - Santa Anita, Hollywood Park and Del Mar - which always concerns me going into the Kentucky Derby.

Prospective is a Malibu Moon and Spirited Away colt. In 8 career starts he is 4-2-0 and won the Tampa Bay Derby on March 10. However, in the Blue Grass, his latest race against guaranteed Kentucky Derby competition, he finished a disappointing 6th. He still has enough graded earnings for a spot in the Kentucky Derby on May 5th.

Drill is a Lawyer Ron and Cat Dancer colt. Drill is 3-2-0 in 10 career stars, his most recent being a place in the Northern Spur at Oaklawn Park. However, big wins by other horses will keep Drill out of the Run for the Roses on May 5th.

On Fire Baby is a Smoke Glacken and Ornate filly. In 6 career races she is 4-0-1 with only one finish out of the money. On Fire Baby made our list purely based on her career earnings as of April 1st. However, her connections have her lined up to run in the Kentucky Oaks on May 4th and not the Derby.

Went the Day Well is a Proud Citizen and Tiz Maies Day colt. Trained by Graham Motion, he's got two wins in three career starts, including a convincing win in the Spiral G3 at Turfway Park.

Rousing Sermon is a Lucky Pulpit and Rousing Again colt. In 9 career starts he's 2-2-4 with only one finish out of the money. His most recent third place finish in the Louisiana Derby has him right on the bubble for graded stakes earnings with a shot at the Kentucky Derby.

Mark Valeski is a Proud Citizen and Pocho's Dream Girl colt. In 5 career starts he has two wins and two places, with his most recent being a second place finish in the Louisiana Derby. His finish in the Louisiana Derby netted him $200,000 in extra earnings and he sits at 21st in the earnings list as of this writing. There's still a few prep races left that could shake things up, but he'll need a break to run on May 5th.

One thing this year's Blue Grass has is an abundance of talented horses. This mob of equine athletes is lead by the great Tapit colt, Hansen. Here is a breakdown of the field and how I'll be betting.