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Tiz The Law Expected Favorite For Pool 6 Of Kentucky Derby Future Wager

Sackatoga Stable's multiple Grade I winner Tiz the Law has been at the top of the Kentucky Derby standings for nearly 10 months and is the expected favorite in Pool 6 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager (“KDFW”), which will run Friday to Sunday.

Pool 6 of the KDFW will run concurrently with Pool 2 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager. In addition to Win and Exacta betting, an Oaks/Derby Future Double is part of the wagering menu. The wagers will open Friday at noon (all times Eastern) and the KDFW will close Sunday at 6 p.m. while the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager will close 30 minutes later at 6:30 p.m.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both the $1.25 million Longines Kentucky Oaks (GI) and $3 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (GI) were postponed to the first Friday and Saturday in September, respectively. This weekend's Kentucky Oaks Future Wager will be the final opportunity to wager on the race prior to the Sept. 4 Kentucky Oaks while the KDFW will offer an additional pool on Aug. 7-9.

Veteran odds maker Mike Battaglia has installed Tiz the Law as the 5-2 morning line favorite out of 24 betting interests in Pool 6 of the KDFW. Trained by Barclay Tagg, Tiz the Law has been one of the top individual betting favorites in each of the first five pools of the KDFW. So far, the highest odds that Tiz the Law offered was 11-1 in Pool 1. In the last four pools, he closed at odds of 8-1, 7-1, 7-1 and 2-1, respectively. Tiz the Law is expected to have one additional prep race prior to the Kentucky Derby in the $1 million Travers Stakes (GI) on Aug. 8 at Saratoga.

One of the other horses that is likely take betting interest is Bruce Lunsford's $600,000 Blue Grass (GII) winner Art Collector. Trained by Tommy Drury, Art Collector went off at 20-1 in Pool 5 of the KDFW, which closed three weeks prior to his Blue Grass victory. Art Collector solidified his spot in the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby and currently sits at No. 4 on the leaderboard with 100 points.

Other top betting interests in Pool 6 of the KDFW include C R K Stable's $400,000 Santa Anita Derby (GI) hero Honor A.P. (5-1); Karl Watson, Michael Pegram and Paul Weitman's late Triple Crown nominee Uncle Chuck (10-1); and Spendthrift Farm, Starlight Racing and Madaket Stables' Santa Anita Derby runner-up Authentic (10-1).

Seven betting interests in Pool 6 of the KDFW were not offered in Pool 5: Attachment Rate (50-1); Dean Martini (50-1); Major Fed (50-1); Modernist (50-1); Shared Sense (30-1); South Bend (50-1); and Storm the Court (50-1). This is the first pool that Attachment Rate, Dean Martini and Shared Sense have been offered and the first time since Pool 1 that South Bend has been offered.

Dean Martini, Rushie and Shared Sense are not currently nominated to the Kentucky Derby but can become eligible with a $45,000 late payment due at the time of entry.

Here's the complete Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 6 field (with morning line odds): #1 Art Collector (9-2); #2 Attachment Rate (50-1); #3 Authentic (10-1); #4 Cezanne (20-1); #5 Dean Martini (50-1); #6 Dr Post (20-1); #7 Enforceable (30-1); #8 Honor A. P. (5-1); #9 King Guillermo (30-1); #10 Major Fed (50-1); #11 Max Player (30-1); #12 Modernist (50-1); #13 Mystic Guide (50-1); #14 Ny Traffic (50-1); #15 Pneumatic (30-1); #16 Rushie (30-1); #17 Shared Sense (30-1); #18 South Bend (50-1); #19 Storm the Court (50-1); #20 Thousand Words (50-1); #21 Tiz the Law (5-2); #22 Uncle Chuck (10-1); #23 “All 3-Year-Old Fillies” (12-1); and #24 “All Other 3-Year-Old Males” (15-1).

In the Oaks Future Wager, top 3-year-old fillies Gamine (9-5) and Swiss Skydiver (3-1) are expected to take much of the betting attention in the field of 24 interests.

Gamine, trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert and owned by Michael Petersen, scored a dazzling 18 ¾-length victory in the $300,000 Acorn (GI). The undefeated daughter of Into Mischief has been highly regarded since her debut in early March and defeated eventual $400,000 Ashland (GI) winner Speech two starts ago in a first-level allowance event at Oaklawn Park.

Gamine could clash with Peter Callahan's three-time graded stakes winner Swiss Skydiver on the first Friday in September. Trained by Kenny McPeek, Swiss Skydiver was the runner-up behind Art Collector in last weekend's Blue Grass at Keeneland. McPeek reported his plans remain in flux when it came to try Swiss Skydiver once again against males in the Kentucky Derby or point toward the Kentucky Oaks.

Other top fillies expected to take betting attention in Pool 2 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager include Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Madaket Stables' Speech; Kaleem Shah, Mrs John Magnier, Michel Tabor and Derrick Smith's come-backing $100,000 Santa Ysabel (GIII) winner Donna Veloce (12-1); Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC, Thomas Reiman, William Dickson and Deborah Easter's $300,000 Rachel Alexandra (GII) victor Finite; and Ciaglia Racing, Highland Yard, River Oak Farm and Dominic Savides' Ashland runner-up Venetian Harbor (12-1).

Pool 2 entrants Altaf (30-1), Mundaye Call (50-1), Paris Lights (50-1) and Project Whiskey (50-1) are not currently nominated to the Kentucky Oaks but can become eligible with a $500 late nomination on Aug. 15. Queen of God (50-1) was not originally nominated to the Oaks but Churchill Downs officials have received her late $500 nomination fee.

Here is the field for Pool 2 of the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager (with morning line odds): #1 Altaf (30-1); #2 Bayerness (50-1); #3 Bonny South (30-1); #4 Donna Veloce (12-1); #5 Dream Marie (50-1); #6 Envoutante (30-1); #7 Finite (12-1); #8 Gamine (9-5); #9 Harvey's Lil Goil (20-1); #10 Impeccable Style (30-1); #11 Mundaye Call (50-1); #12 Paris Lights (50-1); #13 Pleasant Orb (50-1); #14 Project Whiskey (50-1); #15 Queen of God (50-1); #16 Shedaresthedevil (30-1); #17 Speech (8-1); #18 Spice is Nice (20-1); #19 Swiss Skydiver (3-1); #20 Tempers Rising (50-1); #21 Tonalist's Shape (30-1); #22 Venetian Harbor (12-1); #23 Water White (50-1); and #24 “All Other 3-Year-Old Fillies” (20-1).

On March 17, Churchill Downs Incorporated announced the 146th running of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (GI) would be rescheduled from Saturday, May 2 to Saturday, Sept. 5 amid public health concerns in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wagers feature $2 Win and Exacta wagering, and provides fans of Thoroughbred racing with opportunities to place bets on possible entrants in the Kentucky Derby at odds that could be far greater than those available on the day of the race. A special Oaks/Derby Double wager also will be offered.

Bets for the KDFW can be placed on TwinSpires.com and other online wagering outlets across North America. There are no refunds in the Kentucky Derby Future Wager. Should Churchill Downs officials determine during the duration of the three-day pool that one of the wagering interests has experienced an injury, illness or other circumstance that would prevent the horse from participating in the Kentucky Derby, betting on the individual horse will be suspended immediately.

More information and real-time odds are available online at www.kentuckyderby.com/futurewager.

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‘Back With Another Chance’: Tiz The Law Arrives In Saratoga To Prep For Travers

Sackatoga Stables' Tiz the Law shipped from Belmont park up to Saratoga on Monday, reports The Daily Gazette, in order to prep for this year's edition of the Grade 1 Travers Stakes. The 3-year-old colt won the Belmont Stakes in his most recent outing, and is expected to run in the Aug. 8 Travers before the rescheduled Kentucky Derby on Sept. 5.

“Like (trainer) Barclay (Tagg) said, he's always wanted to win the Travers, and obviously I've always wanted to win the Travers,” Sackatoga's Jack Knowlton told The Daily Gazette. “We were deeply disappointed that (Sackatoga and Tagg's 2003 Kentucky Derby winner) Funny Cide got sick and we weren't able to run it. Now we're back with another chance, and maybe we can do what we did with the Belmont.”

Tiz the Law gave Tagg and Sackatoga the victory in the Belmont Stakes they'd been denied with Funny Cide, 17 years after the “gutsy gelding” took the first two legs of the Triple Crown. Though the three-race series is out of order in this unusual 2020 season, Knowlton and Tagg are looking forward to their chance to bring another New York-bred to racing's center stage.

“He's a good horse,” Knowlton continued. “We'll find out how good, because there's going to be challenges.”

Geroux Latest Jockey to Test Positive for COVID-19

Jockey Florent Geroux has joined a growing list of prominent jockeys who have tested positive for the coronavirus.
Geroux was scheduled to ride Wednesday at Canterbury Park and had to take a test before he would be allowed to ride there. He took the test Monday and came up positive.

“I don’t really have any symptoms,” Georux said. “I was a little bit tired Monday, but I had a long week last week. I didn’t have any shortness of breath or anything like that.”

In less than a week, jockeys Luis Saez, Martin Garcia, Victor Espinoza, Flavien Prat, Eduard Rojas Fernandez and now Geroux have tested positive.

Other than Geroux, the jockeys all rode at Los Alamitos and Saez, Garcia, Espinoza and Prat all rode at the Southern California track July 4.

Geroux does not know where and when he got the virus, but speculated that it might have happened Thursday at Keeneland when he dressed in the same room as Saez. Saez took a test Thursday, and when the results came back positive, the next day he was removed from all his mounts after the second race.

Geroux said he has returned home and has begun his quarantine period.

“I’m looking at the bright side of this,” he said. “It could be a lot worse. There are so many people in hospitals with this that are hooked up to respiratory machines.”

Geroux normally rides at Saratoga, but has decided to make Ellis Park his main base of operation for the remainder of the summer.

Saez and Geroux are two examples of riders who have crisscrossed the country of late only to wind up with the coronavirius, raising fears that traveling jockeys may be spreading the virus from track to track. Shortly before his positive test, Saez rode at Belmont, Los Alamitos, Indiana Grand and Keeneland. Prat rode at Del Mar Friday and at Keeneland Saturday. Geroux rode at Keeneland Friday, at Belmont Saturday and back at Keeneland on Sunday and was scheduled to fly out to Canterbury before returning to Ellis Friday.

Some tracks have put rules in place that only regular local jockeys can compete and there is a growing sentiment for more tracks to do the same. Geroux said the main problem with doing that would mean that it could prohibit out-of-town riders from coming in during the week of the GI Kentucky Derby.

“People are saying what about Saratoga, that Kentucky jocks or California jocks should not be allowed to go to Saratoga,” he said. “Maybe not, but what do you for Derby week? Should only the regular jockeys in Kentucky be allowed to ride? We welcomed everybody at Churchill [during the spring meet] and all the jockeys from New York came there to ride. At Keeneland last weekend, all the jockeys from New York came to ride their big horses at Keeneland and no one put a stop on that. So why shouldn’t Kentucky and California jockeys be able to ride in Saratoga? If they can’t, only the Kentucky colony should be allowed to ride Derby week.”

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‘Frozen Pizza And A Cold Beer’: Drury Celebrates Blue Grass Win In Style

Bruce Lunsford's homebred Bernardini colt Art Collector returned to his home base at Skylight Training Center in Goshen, Ky., on Saturday night following his 31/2-length victory under jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. in the $600,000 Toyota Blue Grass (G2) at Keeneland.

The victory gave trainer Tom Drury Jr. his first graded stakes triumph.

“It was a pretty special day,” Drury said Sunday morning, noting there was not much time for celebration. “You know how we horse trainers are. I had to get him back to Skylight last night and I had to be at Churchill Downs at 5:30 (this morning) for the first set. I wound up having a frozen pizza and a cold beer.”

With the Toyota Blue Grass victory, Art Collector picked up 100 qualifying points toward the $3 million Kentucky Derby (G1) to be run Sept. 5. That total is good for fourth place on the Derby leaderboard with only six points races remaining for the classic, which is limited to the top 20 point earners that pass the entry box.

“I am going to get with Bruce in the next couple of days and figure out what we will do,” Drury said about the eight weeks remaining before the Derby. “Art Collector will stay at Skylight for a little while because it is quieter there and then like we have done before, two weeks or so before he runs we will bring him back to Churchill.

“If we do anything, it likely would be Ellis (the Ellis Park Derby on Aug. 9).”

On Saturday evening, trainer Kenny McPeek tweeted that Peter Callahan's Toyota Blue Grass runner-up, Swiss Skydiver, “came back in good order. Very proud of her race today. We will likely point towards the Kentucky Oaks.”

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