Derby Updates

MIDWEST/LANE'S END OVERFLOW DELAYS STRONG CONTENDER'S STAKES DEBUT- Saturday's $500,000 Lane's End Stakes (GII) at Turfway Park was supposed to be a coming out party for John Oxley's unbeaten Strong Contender, but an overflowing entry box sent the lightly raced son of Maria's Mon back to his winter home in Florida.

The John Ward trainee has banked $36,000 in earnings in his two career starts and that total was not enough to get him into the maximum field of 12 for the 1 1/8-mile race. Preference is given to entrants in the Lane's End based on earnings, and when a larger than expected field was entered for the race Strong Contender was left standing in the unlucky 13th position on the earnings list.

Ward learned of the bump while Strong Contender still was en route from Gulfstream Park to Turfway in a 15-hour van ride, and managed redirect the colt to his stable at Keeneland. Strong Contender was scheduled to return to Florida on Friday and will be pointed toward the $750,000 Wood Memorial (GI) at Aqueduct on April 8.

Strong Contender is no stranger to diversion to a new plan. After he won impressively at first asking for Ward in August at Arlington Park, Strong Contender cracked a shin - an injury that put an end to what was a promising juvenile campaign. He returned to action on Feb. 22 in an allowance race at Gulfstream Park in which he easily defeated a promising field by five lengths.

The defection of Strong Contender further muddied a renewal of the Lane's End that was already set to be a wide-open affair. Turfway Park track announcer and morning line oddsmaker Mike Battaglia told the Louisville Courier-Journal that he's never had more trouble establishing a favorite for the race, but he settled on Robert LaPenta's Superfly as the lukewarm morning line choice at 7-2.

The Nick Zito-trained son of 2000 Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus finished third to First Samurai in the Champagne and fifth to 2-year-old champion Stevie Wonderboy in the Bessemer Trust Breeders' Cup Juvenile (GI), but enters the Lane's End off two allowance defeats as the race favorite at Gulfstream Park.

His most recent outing was a third place finish to the well-regarded Sunriver in a 1 1/8-mile allowance race. Superfly will break from post three in the Lane's End with jockey Jeremy Rose flying in to Turfway Park for the mount.

Four other horses join Superfly at odds of 5-1 or less on Battaglia's morning line. Claiborne Farm's Laity, winner of the John Battaglia Memorial in his first race of the year, and Kinsman Stable's Hemingway's Key, also trained by Zito, are co-second choices at 4-1. The Frank Brothers-trained Laity, who is not nominated to the Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown, earned a hard-fought win over Turfway's Polytrack surface in the Battaglia, which was his first race since being gelded last fall.

Hemingway's Key joins stablemate Superfly as the only horses to have competed at the Lane's End distance. The chestnut son of Notebook was eighth last out in the Fountain of Youth and picks up the services of jockey Edgar Prado, who had been previously been booked to ride Strong Contender.

Other contenders include Edgewood Farm's Tahoe Warrior (9-2), a two-time winner on turf for trainer Todd Pletcher after six failed attempts on the dirt, and European invader Silent Times (IRE), who may be the most intriguing member of the Lane's End field. The son of Danehill Dancer, owned by John Fretwell and trained by Eoghan O'Neill, will make his first start since winning the Group II Champagne at England's Doncaster on Sept. 9. Jockey Robby Albarado will travel from Oaklawn Park for the mount aboard Silent Times.

Also entered are Seaside Retreat (12-1); the D. Wayne Lukas-trained Sharp Attack (15-1); the Steve Asmussen-trained More Than Regal (15-1); Pair of Kings (20-1); Malameeze (20-1); Starspangled Gator (30-1); and With a City (30-1).

Pletcher Looks For Rushaway Rebound For High Cotton - Peachtree Stable's High Cotton, runner-up in both the Iroquois (GIII) and Kentucky Jockey Club (GII) last fall at Churchill Downs, will look to rebound from a disappointing 3-year-old debut when he competes in the $100,000 Rushaway Stakes on Turfway's Lane's End undercard.

The Todd Pletcher-trained son of Dixie Union stumbled badly and then was eased in his season debut in the Gulfstream Park allowance race won by Strong Contender in February. Pletcher said that High Cotton bled during that race and will get another chance in the 1/16-mile Rushaway.

With Pletcher's first-call jockey John Velazquez overseas for the Dubai World Cup, Chris DeCarlo will be aboard High Cotton on Saturday. Other Rushaway contenders include Tracy Farmer's Fabled, fifth last out in the Hutcheson (GII) for Zito; WEBN Stakes winner Warrior Within; Mark of Success, fifth last out in the Oaklawn's Southwest; Fidyrich, who stretches out for trainer John Servis after a second-place effort in the six-furlong Mountain Valley at Oaklawn; and Kings Challenge and In a Flash (IRE), allowance winners for trainers Bob Holthus and Patrick Biancone, respectively.

EAST/CORINTHIAN OUT WITH HAIRLINE FRACTURE - Another major contender dropped from the Derby Trail when veterinarians revealed on Wednesday that Centennial Farm's Corinthian with a hairline fracture in his left hind leg.

The winner of Gulfstream Park's Fountain of Youth (GII) before being disqualified to third for interference in the stretch, the Jimmy Jerkens-trained son of Pulpit will now rest before he returns to the races later this summer.

"The injury is fairly minor and he will not have surgery," said Pat Lamberty, spokesman for Centennial Farms. "He's not even going to the farm; he's going to stay in Jimmy Jerkens' barn at Belmont."

Corinthian was being pointed toward a run in the Wood Memorial on April 8.

Great Point To Miss Florida Derby - Robert LaPenta's Great Point, second in the Holy Bull (GIII), will miss his next scheduled start, the $1 million Florida Derby (GI) on April 1. The Nick Zito trainee finished last in the Fountain of Youth, injuring his ankle during that March 4 event, and subsequent complications will force the son of Point Given to skip the Florida Derby.

Back Spasms to Blame for Achilles of Troy's Poor Outing - Trainer Frank Amonte Jr. and Paraneck Stable owner Ernie Paragallo say they now have a reason for the disappointing run by their 3-year-old star in last week's Gotham (GIII) at Aqueduct. Amonte said the Notebook colt suffered from back spasms in that race.

"His upper back was hurting him, so we had one of our vets come out and do some work on him," Amonte said. "He'll be fine." Paragallo had planned to keep Achilles of Troy in New York for the $750,000 Wood Memorial on April 8, but said the colt would now run in the $1 million Arkansas Derby (GI) on April 15.

"There are two reasons I'm coming," Paragallo said. "First of all, the race comes a week after the Wood, which gives us more time. And, secondly, it's a million bucks. That grabbed my attention."

Paragallo said he would probably ship the winner of Aqueduct's Whirlaway and Count Fleet Stakes to Oaklawn approximately two weeks before the race so he can acclimate to the new surroundings.

DUBAI/DISCREET CAT MUST IMPRESS TO EARN TRIP TO KENTUCKY - Saturday's $2 million United Arab Emirates Derby (GII) has drawn a diverse and competitive field of thirteen - but the eyes of most observers will be on Godolphin's Discreet Cat, who could earn a trip to Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby with a big effort in the 1 1/8-mile race.

But the key word there is "could." Godolphin representatives say the colt needs an impressive win at Nad Al Sheba to earn a trip Kentucky because of concerns over Discreet Cat's ability to handle the classic distance of 1 ¼-miles and the short gap between the Triple Crown races.

"He is still a little bit light-framed and we expect that, as he matures, he will fill out and develop into a very imposing colt," said Simon Crisford, Godolphin's racing manager. "He has tons of speed and it is highly questionable whether a mile and an eight is the true distance for him. He may turn out to be a miler or even a seven-furlong horse."

Crisford did not rule out a trip to Churchill Downs for Saeed bin Suroor-trained Discreet Cat if he turned in a big performance in a field that includes seven 4-year-olds and a half-dozen 3-year-olds. But he did little to encourage speculation about such a trip in pre-UAE Derby comments.

"Discreet Cat strikes us very much as a colt who could get better as the year goes on," Crisford said. "He is still very immature, but he has so much potential and talent. Maybe the horse will tell us that a longer time between races will help him."

Discreet Cat scored an impressive win in his lone start as a 2-year-old in a Saratoga maiden race. He defeated Superfly, the favorite in Saturday's Lane's End at Turfway Park, in his debut for trainer Stanley Hough. Godolphin purchased the colt privately after that win and Discreet Cat finally made his return to competition in a romp in a one-mile race at Nad al Sheba on March 9.

The UAE Derby allows participation by Southern Hemisphere 3-year-olds - horses foaled in the second half of 2002 - which would be considered 4-year-olds in the United States. Discreet Cat is one of four Triple Crown nominees among the 3-year-olds competing in the race.

Another highly touted Triple Crown nominee in the field is WinStar Farm's Well Armed. He won a seven-furlong allowance event at Nad Al Sheba in January, but the son of Tiznow followed that race with a disappointing ninth-place finish in the $250,000 UAE 2000 Guineas (GIII) on Feb. 10. Well Armed is trained by Clive Brittain, who saddled the British-based Bold Arrangement to finish second to Ferdinand in the 1986 Kentucky Derby, and his connections have shown interest in pursuing the Kentucky Derby and have speculated that their colt will thrive at longer distances.

The other two Triple Crown nominees also exit the UAE 2000 Guineas. Godolphin's Testimony, a Yes It's True colt who captured a Belmont maiden event last October before running unplaced in Churchill Downs' Iroquois Stakes (GIII), has not started since finishing eighth in that race. Sheikh Maktoum's Unification, who last year took the Grey Breeders' Cup (GIII), has been well beaten in both of his starts this season.

The Triple Crown nominees will line up against several seasoned older foes. Prince Sultan Mohammed Saud Al Khabee's Gold For Sale (ARG) remained undefeated after capturing the UAE 2000 Guineas. That owner will also be represented in the race by Simpatico Bribon (CHI), who collected his seventh consecutive win in the $150,000 Al Bastikiya earlier this month. Other unbeatens in the UAE Derby include Ocean Breeze Stables' Peruvian-bred Dominguin, who has secured the riding services of John Velazquez, and the Kiaran McLaughlin-trained Invasor (ARG).

SOUTHEAST/OWNERS THINKING DERBY FOLLOWING OCALA STAKES SCORE - The Kentucky Derby may have picked up another contender last weekend after Stephen Screnci and Gregory Kaufman's Bushmill's Best captured the $100,000 OBS Championship Stakes at the Ocala Sales Center. With Jose Lezcano aboard, the Kirk Ziadie-trained son of Concerto led throughout en route to a 1 ½-length win over fellow Ocala Breeders' Sales graduates in the 1 1/16-mile non-wagering event.

SATURDAY DEADLINE FOR LATE DERBY, TRIPLE CROWN NOMS - Owners and trainers who hope to make their horses eligible in the late nomination phase for the Kentucky Derby and the Triple Crown face a deadline of midnight on Saturday, March 25 to do so.

A fee of $6,000 must accompany those nominations in order to make those 3-year-olds eligible to run in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness (GI) and Belmont Stakes (GI).

Early nominations for the three-race series, which could be made at a cost of $600, closed in January.

Horsemen who miss Saturday's late nomination deadline can still make their horses supplemental nominees to the Derby and the Triple Crown at the time of entry for the Derby, but the cost of a supplemental nomination is $200,000.

Churchill Downs Incorporated Senior Vice President of Racing Don Richardson is in Florida this weekend to collect late nominations. Information is available by calling Triple Crown Productions at (502) 636-4400, or by contacting the racing offices at Churchill Downs, the Maryland Jockey Club and the New York Racing Association. The number for Churchill Downs Racing is (502) 636-4470.

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