The Road to the Kentucky Derby- February 3rd – VOLUME 2
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It is a New Year and a whole new season for horse racing as a number of quality Thoroughbreds just celebrated their third birthday on January 1st and are ready to start their journey on the 2011 Triple Crown Trail.
Leading up to horse racing’s premier event; the Kentucky Derby this May, there are close to 60 prep races between the beginning of the year and the end of April that determine this year’s field. These prep races also provide some solid insight into which horses have the best chance to win the Derby and possibly go on to earn the Triple Crown by winning the Preakness and the Belmont as well. Here is a brief re-cap of the key prep races from last weekend.
Dancing Count Stakes – Saturday, Jan.29 from Laurel Park
The Dancing Count is an ungraded stakes race for three-year old Thoroughbreds with a prize purse of $75,000. It is contested on a dirt track over a distance of six Furlongs. Wicked Thunder used a clean break out of the gate on a muddy track and stayed just off the lead for the entire race before pulling ahead down the stretch to beat the odds-on-favorite Diski Dancer by a nose in last Saturday’s Dancing Count. Afternoon Action, who ended-up 2 ½ lengths in back of the leaders, finished third. 
This was Wicked Thunder’s first added money victory after recording three wins and five seconds in his previous eight races. He is trained by Gary Capuano and was ridden by Josean Ramirez. Capuano was still unsure of the next possible outing for this colt.
The Holy Bull- Sunday, Jan.30 from Gulfstream
The Holy Bull is a grade III stakes race for three-year old Thoroughbreds with a prize purse of $400,000. It is contested on a dirt track over a distance of one mile. Trainer Nick Zito was somewhat hesitant about running a fairly inexperienced Dialed In in one of the biggest early season prep races for the Derby, but his decision paid off with a huge win in the Holy Bull. Dialed In, in just his second career start, bolted to a 1 ½-length victory over Sweet Ducky to move his name to the top of the list of this year’s Derby hopefuls.
Going off as the second favorite, this colt was actually 10 lengths off the lead before jockey Julien Leparoux made a move towards the inside to gain ground on the field. Once in full stride he easily swept by the field down the stretch for the win. Gourmet Diner finished a close third behind Sweet Ducky and the 2-1 favorite Mucho Macho Man finished three lengths back in fourth place. There was no word from Zito when Dialed In will run again.
Next Weekend’s big races include the Whirlaway Stakes from Aqueduct and the Hallandale Beach Stakes from Gulfstream.
David Schwab is a regular contributor to the Cappers Picks Blog. While not cheering for his beloved Philadelphia Eagles David can be found working on his blog. David wants to hear from you so please comment below.
One reply on “2011 Kentucky Derby Prep Race Previews – Feb. 3rd”
I cant wait Kentucky Derby this May. thanks for this info.