Monba and Gayego Make The 2008 Kentucky Derby Field

[I Heart Gambling Online]

Pyro runs poorly on Polytrack; Gayego outgames Z Fortune in Arkansas

A Column by Steve Davidowitz
April 16, 2008

Three times this season heavily backed favorites have run so poorly in important Kentucky Derby prep races that serious doubts have been raised about their chances to win America's most famous race.

First, unbeaten War Pass finished last as the prohibitive betting favorite in the Tampa Bay Derby on March 15th. More recently, odds on favorite Denis of Cork seemed to be running uphill when fifth in the Illinois Derby on April 5th. And of course, Pyro never got out of his own way while finishing tenth in the Blue Grass Stakes on Keeneland's Polytrack last Saturday.

War Pass' defeat was blamed on the Tampa Bay racing surface by his connections but it might also have been due to a brief fever he endured several days before his surprisingly weak performance.

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