With the arrival of the month of March the temperatures have begun to rise and so has the intensity of prep races for the Kentucky Derby (Grade I).

At least one "major" prep race is scheduled in each of the next six weeks, starting with Saturday's San Rafael (GII) at Santa Anita and culminating in Keeneland's Coolmore Lexington (GII) on April 17.

WEST - CALIFORNIA - With only a couple of exceptions, major contenders for Kentucky Derby 130 have gotten least one prep race under their belts in the early months of 2004. One of those prominent exceptions will end his stay on the sidelines on Saturday at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Cal.

Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith's Lion Heart, a $1 million yearling purchase who is unbeaten in three career starts, will make his anticipated 3-year-old debut the one-mile $200,000 San Rafael (GII).

Trained by Patrick Biancone, Lion Heart was last seen in December when he scored an easy win in the Hollywood Futurity (GI) and Biancone decided shortly thereafter to launch his colt's 2004 campaign in Saturday's race. Two of Lion Heart's three victories have come in stakes company, but his large reputation did little to scare off competitors as an overflow field of 12 was entered, but only 10 will be allowed to run.

Lion Heart, who will start from post position seven, will be ridden again by Mike Smith. He will carry highweight of 121 pounds and will concede up to six pounds to his rivals, but he has been installed as the 2-1 morning line favorite.

One of Lion Heart's chief competitors will be San Vicente (GII) winner Imperialism. The gray colt, a Calder Race Course import trained by Kristin Mulhall, raised eyebrows after an impressive last-to-first move in the San Vicente. Jockey Victor Espinoza returns aboard the son of Langfuhr, who is the 5-1 third choice.

Lion Heart will attempt to buck a statistical trend if he makes it to Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby. Biancone plans just one other prep race for the son of Tale of the Cat before the Kentucky Derby. Jet Pilot (1947) and Sunny's Halo (1983) are the only horses since 1947 to win the race with only two preps in their 3-year-old seasons.

The San Rafael will also be a showcase for a pair of promising and unproven colts, Quinton's Gold Rush and Castledale. The former is a Mike Mitchell-trained son of Wild Rush who is coming off his first career win, a 3 1/2-length romp in his second start. He is the 9-2 morning line second choice. The latter is an Irish import who scored a narrow victory in his U.S. debut in the Generous (GIII) on the Hollywood Park turf on Nov. 29, but has been idle since then. The San Rafael will be Castledale's ninth career start, but his first race on the dirt. The race could have provided an unwelcome sense of "deja vu" for Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella, as Spellbinder, one of his Kentucky Derby hopefuls, was on the "also eligible" list. Spellbinder found his way into the field on Friday when trainer Laura DeSeroux scratched Toasted. A week earlier, the Mandella-trained Minister Eric, runner up in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (GI), faced a similar situation in Santa Anita's Baldwin (GIII). Minister Eric was schedule to make his 3-year-old debut in that race but was excluded after he failed to draw in off the list of "also-eligibles."

In other California news, Madeleine Paulson's Rock Hard Ten cruised to a 1¾-length victory over Teton Forest in a one-mile optional claiming allowance race. The well regarded son of Kris S. covered the distance over a "fast" track 1:36.37 under jockey Gary Stevens and won for the second time in as many starts.

Trainer Jason Orman indicated that Rock Hard Ten would likely make his next start in the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby (GI), but has yet to commit his inexperienced colt to the Kentucky Derby trail. Orman's father, Mike, saddled Lake George in the 1995 Kentucky Derby.

SOUTH - LOUISIANA - Talented Kentucky Derby contenders from Florida, Louisiana and California have converged on the Fair Grounds as members of an 11-horse field entered in the $600,000 Louisiana Derby (GII). Leading the Louisiana contingent are pair of Kentucky-based horses, Risen Star (GIII) winner Gradepoint and Lecomte (GIII) winner Fire Slam. The former, trained by Neil Howard, overcame a slow pace to close from the back of the pack to win the Risen Star. The well-bred son of A.P. Indy will be joined in the starting gate by stablemate Breakaway. The two will run as a single betting interest and the Howard-trained entry has been installed as 5-2 favorite in the morning line for Sunday's race.

Fire Slam, who is the 4-1 second choice, has remained on the sidelines since his Lecomte win in January because of a severe quarter-crack in his back left foot. Trainer David Carroll said the colt won the Lecomte despite that foot problem and the injury has not fully healed.

"(The crack) is still there," Carroll said. "It's not going to go away for another four or five weeks, but there's not as much soreness and he is more comfortable with it. We'll have to patch him again this weekend."

Trainer Todd Pletcher nominated a record 35 horses to the Visa Triple Crown and is shipping two from his Florida winter base to Louisiana for Sunday's race. Shaniko, whom many observers believe could be the best of Pletcher's 3-year-old hopefuls, comes into the race off a runner-up finish to Swingforthefences in a Gulfstream allowance race. Pletcher's other entrant, Pollard's Vision, scored a 5¾-length victory last time out at Gulfstream.

A pair of intriguing California invaders includes Beau Greely-trained Borrego and Wimbledon, who is trained by three-time Kentucky Derby winner Bob Baffert.

Borrego is a son of El Prado has been idle since a runner-up finish to Master David in last month's Sham Stakes at Santa Anita. Since moving to the dirt two starts ago, he has a win and the Sham second-place finish. Wimbledon scored the first victory of his career in his most recent start. He had failed to win in four previous outings, but had lost to highly regarded rivals such as Quinton's Gold Rush, Minister Eric, and Spellbinder.

EAST - FLORIDA - One of the more "mysterious" horses on the "Road to the Kentucky Derby" will reveal himself next week in the $1 million Florida Derby (GI) at Gulfstream Park.

The race is now scheduled to be mark the 3-year-old debut of Winchell Thoroughbreds' Tapit, who has not run since an impressive victory in the Laurel Futurity (GIII) in November. Tapit was slated to run in last month's Risen Star at the Fair Grounds, but a shin problem prompted trainer Michael Dickinson to take the colt back to his Tapeta Farm in Maryland. The son of Pulpit impressed observers in a recent public workout between races at Laurel, so Dickinson elected to ship him to Florida to make his anticipated 3-year-old debut against a small but accomplished group in the Florida Derby.

The unbeaten gray colt would make history with a win in the 1 1/8-mile race. No horse has won that important Kentucky Derby prep without the benefit of a prep race during his 3-year-old campaign and only three horses have ever won the race without a previous start in Florida.

Meanwhile, three Derby contenders will get new riders for upcoming prep races and Edgar Prado picked up two of those mounts from Jerry Bailey. Prado will replace Bailey aboard Swingforthefences in the Tampa Bay Derby (GIII) and Eddington in Aqueduct's Gotham (GIII). Pat Day replaces John Velazquez aboard the Todd Pletcher-trained Limehouse in the Tampa Bay Derby.

« Back To Derby Updates