Champion War Pass, Pyro Early Favorites in Pool 2 of Kentucky Derby Future Wager

Unbeaten 2-year-old champion War Pass, winner of the $2 million Bessemer Trust Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (Grade I), and Pyro, the runner-up in the Breeders’ Cup and a dazzling winner of the recent Risen Star Stakes (GIII) at Fair Grounds, are the early favorites for Pool 2 of Churchill Downs’ 2008 Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which opens its four-day run on Thursday, March 6.

Robert LaPenta’s War Pass, trained by two-time Kentucky Derby winner Nick Zito, has been installed as the 5-1 favorite among 24 wagering interests in the second of three 2008 Kentucky Derby Future Wager pools by Churchill Downs handicapper and racing analyst Mike Battaglia. The son of Cherokee Run is a narrow choice of Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC’s Pyro, the 6-1 second choice who is the morning line favorite in Saturday’s $600,000 Louisiana Derby (GII) at the Fair Grounds. The mutuel field, the betting interest that consists of all 3-year-old Thoroughbreds other than the 23 individual horses on the Pool 2 betting roster, is listed as the 10-1 third choice. The “all others” wager was the 3-1 favorite in Pool 1 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which ran from Feb. 7-10. Pyro closed at 5-1 and War Pass stood as the 6-1 third choice in Pool 1.

The Kentucky Derby Future Wager is a minimum $2 wager and a win bet only. It offers fans an opportunity to wager on contenders for the $2 million Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (GI) at odds that could be greater than those they would receive on the day of the race. There are no refunds in the Kentucky Derby Future Wager. The third and final pool of the 2008 Kentucky Derby Future Wager is scheduled for April 3-6, while the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands is set for Saturday, May 3.

Betting on Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager is scheduled to open at noon (all times Eastern) on Thursday, March 6. The pool will close at 6 p.m. on Sunday, March 9, and winning payouts will be based on odds that are in place at the conclusion of wagering in the pool. Churchill Downs’ companion Kentucky Oaks Future Wager will also open at noon on Thursday. The Oaks wager will close at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday.

Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager includes seven horses that were not listed as wagering interests in the year’s first pool. The new horses are Cool Coal Man and Elysium Fields, the 1-2 finishers in the Fountain of Youth (GII) at Gulfstream Park; Sam F. Davis winner Fierce Wind; unbeaten J Be K; Turf Paradise Derby winner Nikki’sgoldensteed; San Pedro winner Gayego; and Visionaire, third in the Risen Star.

Wagering interests for the Kentucky Derby Future Wager are chosen by a committee that includes Brad Free, West Coast correspondent for the Daily Racing Form; Mike Watchmaker, national handicapper for the Daily Racing Form; and John Asher, vice president of Racing Communications at Churchill Downs.

More information and real time odds on the Kentucky Derby Future Wager can be found on the official Kentucky Derby 134 Web site at www.kentuckyderby.com.

Pool 2 And KDFW History