The morning after Bellamy Road ran off to an astounding 17 ½ length victory in the $750,000 Wood Memorial, trainer Nick Zito was at his barn at Belmont Park preparing to head to Louisville with not one, but possibly five contenders for the May 7 Kentucky Derby.

Bellamy Road, owned by New York Yankee boss George Steinbrenner's Kinsman Farm, was the latest addition to Zito's Fab Five, which includes High Fly and Noble Causeway, the 1-2 finishers in the Florida Derby; Tampa Bay Derby winner Sun King, set to go in Saturday's Toyota Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland, and rising star Andromeda's Hero, who is scheduled to start in the Arkansas Derby.

"If you're a horse trainer," observed Shug McGaughey, whose Gotham winner Survivalist finished second in the Wood, "you'd want to be in Nick Zito's shoes."

D. Wayne Lukas is the only trainer in history to have started five horses in one Derby. In 1996, he sent out Prince of Thieves, Editor's Note, Victory Speech, and Honour and Glory - and won it with his "bench" horse, Grindstone. "Bless his heart, I hope he gets all of them there," Lukas told the Associated Press. "I'm pulling for him. But it's tough just to get one there."

That one just might be Bellamy Road, an $87,000 purchase who now has earned $570,000 in graded stakes earnings, guaranteeing him a spot in the Derby.

In the Wood Memorial, Bellamy Road went straight to the front under Javier Castellano, toying with the field before pulling off to win in a stakes-record 1:47.16 for the mile and an eighth. The time was also considered the equal of Riva Ridge's track record of 1:47, set in 1973 when times were recorded in fifths of a second, not hundredths.

"I hope he stays this way for four weeks, and he'll have a good shot, too," Zito said .

It was the second victory in as many starts this year for the Florida-bred son of Concerto, who was 2-for-3 last year under the care of Michael Dickinson. In his first start of 2005, he romped to a 15 ¾ length victory in a second-level allowance race at Gulfstream Park on March 12.

" He had a great race first time out," said Zito, a nominee for racing's Hall of Fame this year. "Obviously, he ran back to that race. I'm happy for George (Steinbrenner). He might be a special horse. This is tremendous, his last two races."

Zito, 57, is training the Fab Five for five different owners. In addition to Steinbrenner, he is also training for Tracey Farmer (Sun King), Robert LaPenta (Andromeda's Hero), Charlotte Weber (High Fly), and Leonard Riggio (Noble Causeway).

Any pressure?

"I'm just happy to be in the game with this many horses at this time," said Zito, who has won the Kentucky Derby twice, with Go for Gin (1994) and Strike the Gold (1991). "I have to pay attention. We're lucky we're in this position. I have to stay the course. I can't worry about anything other than preparing every single one of them the way we have to. Somehow, some way, I'd like to get them all there."

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