\nWith three Bluegrass Derby Lock Preps on the card for this Saturday\nit might be easy to say that the Corkscrew in Kentucky looks like the\nlightest. There are only three prior graded winners in the field and\nnone have won at the grade one level yet. Even so the number of\nstrong up and coming three year olds makes this a very interesting\nrace and it is easily possible that the Bluegrass Derby winner could\ncome from among this group. Let\u2019s take a look at the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#1 Techno\nHorror\t\t\t13\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A scratchbred son of\nShanghai Bobby x Storm Bird x Miswaki, Techno Horror has won four of\nhis eight starts but importantly he is two for two in routes. Those\ntwo races were his only starts of the year. He got about two months\noff over the winter before running in a one mile allowance race. It\nwas a short field \u2013 only five runners \u2013 but he made short work of\nhis competition, closing from about ten lengths back at the midpoint\nand blowing by the front runners to win by almost three lengths. He\n\u2018only\u2019 ran a 90 speed that day but the ease of his win suggested\nthat he had a lot more in the tank. He returned about six weeks\nlater to run in a listed going a mile and a sixteenth and again he\nwas around ten lengths back at the midpoint and again he closed\nstrongly to win by open lengths. This time he ran a very strong 101\nspeed and again, considering the ease of his victory it suggests\nthere may be more in the tank. The one thing I question is how far\nhis pedigree will take him. Shanghai Bobby did win the Breeders\u2019\nCup Juvenile but never won at a longer distance. Storm Bird did win\nthe Preakness but Miswaki\u2019s biggest win came at seven furlongs. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#2 Democratic\nProcess\t\t\t9\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the three\ngraded stakes winners in the field is Democratic Process. He\u2019s won\nfour of seven starts including two of four routing. He took a one\nmile grade three last August, enough to propel him into the Breeders\u2019\nBowl Juvenile but he didn\u2019t fire in that race finishing ninth. \nIt\u2019s possible that a two month layoff was a bit too long for the\ncolt because after just a month off he took another grade three, this\ntime going a mile and a sixteenth and running a very fast 103 speed\nin December Again he got two months off between starts, this time\ncoming back in February of this year to run a dull fifth in the Grade\nThree Risen Star Stakes although he did hit the triple digit speed\nmark with a 101 there. So now he\u2019s had another two month break. \nWill that hurt his chances here? Hard to tell. He\u2019s a son of\nConstitution out of a More Than Ready x Encosta de Lago mare. She\nherself never won beyond a mile and a sixteenth and he is her first\nfoal. Democratic Process does have tactical speed which is always a\nbonus in a race like this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#3 House of\nRock\t\t\t10\/1 \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Interestingly House\nof Rock is a son of the turf horse Bricks and Mortar who of course\nwas named Horse of the Year in 2019. Bricks and Mortar famously won\nthe Breeders\u2019 Cup Turf at a mile and a half but he was likely best\nat a mile and a quarter. As a son of Giant\u2019s Causeway who excelled\non the turf there was little interest in standing Bricks and Mortar\nin the United States and he was purchased by Japanese interests. \nHouse of Rock started his career on the lawn but after switching to\nthe dirt he\u2019s gone four for four including two wins from two starts\nthis year, both at a mile and an eighth. He has a lot of speed,\nwanting to be on or near the lear early on. His last start came in\nhis stakes debut and he lead the field on a merry chase, winning by a\ncomfortable two and a half lengths with a 104 speed. House of Rock\nis out of a stakes winning Street Cry x A.P. Indy mare. She scored\nall of her wins on the grass but she never won beyond a mile. He\u2019s\nher third foal and second stakes winner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#4 No Keg\nUntapped\t\t\t12\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second grade\nthree winner in the field is the gelding No Keg Untapped. He\u2019s a\nson of the turf monster No Nay Never based on a Tapit x Dark Angel\nhemare. No Keg Untapped won his debut last February with a strong 78\nspeed and oddly was immediately gelded. He was graded placed as a\ntwo year old, once at seven furlongs and again at a mile. He enters\nthis race off a two month layoff after winning the Grade Three Good\nCow Stakes at a mile back in January. In that start he came from\ntenth early on to win by a length and a half. He really motored down\nthe stretch as he was in seventh, five lengths away from the leaders\ncoming off the far turn. He ran a 101 speed which fits nicely with\nthis field. In his only turf start he finished unplaced in a graded\nsprint race. The one question about this colt is if he wants to go\nthe distance of both this race and, if he were to win, the Bluegrass\nDerby. No Nay Never was a sprinter, as was Dark Angel. The hemare\nhe was produced by never won at a route. Certainly No Keg Untapped\u2019s\nrunning style can be helpful in getting longer distances but the\npedigree is a big question mark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#5 Cat and Zap\t\t\t9\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cat and Zap has\nexperience at this distance and at a mile and three sixteenths, which\ncould benefit him here. In his two starts this year he was fourth in\na listed going that longer distance before returning to win a listed\nat a mile and an eighth. He\u2019s a confirmed front runner which can\nbe a detriment but his last start was in an eleven horse field and he\nhad speed to burn, leading by over five lengths at one point before\nholding off the closers to win by a comfortable two and a quarter\nlengths. He ran a 102 speed in that race which came just about a\nmonth ago. In that aspect he reminds me very much of his sire\nGhostzapper who could run his opponents off their feet and had speed\nto burn, although Ghostzapper was also rateable. Cat and Zap is a\nscratchbred with a Storm Cat x Rubiano backend. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#6 Paynty\nRaid\t\t\t14\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At 14\/1 you might be\nlulled into thinking Paynty Raid is not a quality horse. Nothing\ncould be further from the truth. He\u2019s got one of the best records\nin the field with five wins and two seconds from seven starts\nincluding four wins from five route races. So why is he at such long\nodds? It\u2019s because he\u2019s making his dirt debut. All of his other\nraces have come over a synthetic surface. The son of Paynter is out\nof a Carpe Diem x War Chant mare who won fourteen starts over the\nsynthetics. He\u2019s her first foal but her two year old by Maximum\nSecurity is already stakes placed although he did it on the dirt. In\nhis most recent start he won a listed stakes at a mile and an eighth\nwith a 97 speed. His style is to press the early leaders before\ntaking over around the turn but making the surface switch can easily\ncause horses to change their running style for better or worse. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
#9 Jabuk Thaja\t\t\t9\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jabuk Thaja won his\nstakes debut in a listed at one mile back in October. This season he\nhas only made two starts but both came in graded races. He was third\nin the one mile Grade Three Good Cow Stakes after a contentious\nbattle for the early lead before tiring to finish third. He was in\nfront through the turn but the horse who pressed him that day was\nable to inch forward and take the lead down the stretch before being\nrun down by late runner No Keg Untapped. Jabuk Thaja\u2019s next start\ncame in the mile and a sixteenth Felipe Alou Stakes and again he won\na battle for the early lead before tiring late, this time finishing\nsecond and again the horse who pressed him early was able to outlast\nhim at the end. He did run a 104 speed in that race which came on\nMarch 7th<\/sup>. The son of Bernardini is out of a stakes\nwinning Awesome Again x City Zip mare. He\u2019s her first foal. She\nscored her big win going a mile and three sixteenths but the second\ndam was a grade three winner at a mile and three sixteenths (go\nfigure for a City Zip mare!). \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n #8 Senator To\nBe\t\t\t7\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n Senator To Be is\nowned and trained by sjmeola and if you hang around the chatroom at\nall you\u2019ll know he is a big proponent of gelding his horses right\nfrom the start. The scratchbred son of Gun Runner x Unbridled\u2019s\nSong x Danzig started his career as a gelding and did well sprinting\nbut really blossomed going routes. His last three starts have come\nat a mile or more. Last November he won an allowance at a mile with\na 97 speed. He improved to run a 102 speed in his stakes debut in\nJanuary and most recently won a listed with a 104 speed going a mile\nand a sixteenth. He really likes to be on the lead which is going to\nbe a contentious place to be in this field. His listed win came in\njust a seven horse field so he got a fairly easy lead and won by\nthree and a half lengths. Obviously trying a fourteen horse field\nwith a lot of speed is a big ask but this colt has shown he has\nquality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #9\nThinkalittleless\t\t\t13\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sire Ghostzapper is\nwell represented in this field with both Thinkalittleless and Cat and\nZap. Thinkalittleless is out of a Graydar x Distorted Humor mare and\nhis her first foal. She never won at a route and is a half sister to\na grade three winning sprinter. That does not bode well for\nThinkalittleless\u2019 chances of going too far but so far he\u2019s outrun\nthat pedigree with two wins and a second in three route starts. \nThinkalittleless is one of two horses in the field with only four\nstarts under his belt. He won his first three races by running wire\nto wire. His only loss came in his most recent start but it was one\nof those races where a horse shows you more in losing than they do in\nwinning. That race was the mile and a sixteenth Grade Two Moises\nAlou Cap. He didn\u2019t even get close to the early lead, running in\nsixth early on before rallying to finish second by only a length. He\nran a very good 102 speed in that start. Aside from showing a\ndifferent dimension in style, Thinkalittleless had to close against a\nhorse who got loose on the lead and just held on, the style that this\ncolt had applied in his previous runs. But showing that tractability\nand running a quick speed bodes very well for this colt\u2019s future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #10 Legacy\nWeapon\t\t\t7\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n The other colt with\nonly four starts to his name is Legacy Weapon. All of his starts\nhave come at a mile or more and he\u2019s won three with one second. \nThe scratchbred son of Arrogate x Storm Cat x Blushing Groom has\nplenty of stamina influences in his pedigree and his last two starts\nhave come at today\u2019s distance. The second choice in the field also\nhas the second fastest last out speed of a 105. He ran that number\nin his stakes debut where he closed from eleventh to win going away. \nHe showed a lot of courage coming from eighth at the stretch call to\nget that win. He was much further back in that race than he had been\nin any of his previous races although it was his first time facing a\nfull field. Prior to that the most opponents he ran against was\nseven. Given the amount of speed in this race this colt will have\nplenty of pace to run at and his experience with the distance gives\nhim another edge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #11 Amazing\nAura\t\t\t16\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n The longest shot in\nthe field, Amazing Aura comes off two mile and an eighth races in his\nonly two runs this year. The first was an easy win in a five horse\nfield in a non-winners of two lifetime allowance. In that race he\nallowed an early pace setter to take a commanding lead before making\na bold move down the backstretch and sprinting home to win by three\nlengths. That was good enough for his connections to try a listed in\nhis next start. He fell further behind early on both in terms of\ndistance behind the early leader and in position but he made a steady\nmove, putting himself five lengths behind the front end at the\nstretch call before motoring home to lose by just half a length with\na 98 speed. He\u2019ll have to improve off that run here but that\npowerful late close is certainly as asset. He\u2019s a son of Oxbow\nout of a Sky Mesa x Mr. Greeley mare and is her first foal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #12 King\nTutzig\t\t\t11\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n King Tuztig has the\nmost starts of any horse in this field with ten but has only one win\nto his name. He\u2019s a scratchbred son of American Pharoah x Danzig x\nAwesome Again so one hopes he would get better with age and distance,\neven though his connections have not had the patience to give him\nthat time. After running third in his debut last March he jumped\nstraight to listed company and finished second by a half length in\nthe race. He stayed in stakes or graded competition for six more\nstarts before dropping back to a maiden in December. He did win that\nrace easily but went straight back to graded company finishing eighth\nin the Grade One Vermont is 4 Lovers Stakes in February. Overall\nhe\u2019s finished in the money in four stakes or graded races but the\nthought here is that this horse needs a rest and a chance to run\nthrough his conditions before trying stakes races again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #13 Blast\nFuel\t\t\t\t6\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our favorite is\nBlast Fuel who owns the highest last out speed in the race and is the\nonly grade two winner in the field. He did both of those in the mile\nand a sixteenth Sleepy Fan Stakes, running fifth early on before\ntaking the lead down the stretch and winning by a length with a 109\nspeed. Prior to that he ran a 104 speed when winning a one mile\nlisted stakes where he was ninth of thirteen early on before pouring\nit on down the stretch. Those are his only two starts this year. \nOverall he\u2019s got a 6-4-1-0 record, all in dirt routes and is easily\nthe horse to beat in this race. He\u2019s a son of Accelerate out of a\nstakes winning Tiznow x A.P. Indy mare. He\u2019s her second foal and\nfirst stakes winner. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n #14 Eye In The\nStorm\t\t\t14\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n Eye In The Storm has\nwon three of his six starts with three third place finishes. He\u2019s\na son of Midnight Storm out of a graded placed \/ stakes winning\nGiant\u2019s Causeway x Seeking the Gold mare. He\u2019s actually her\nfirst foal but he has a full brother who is already a stakes winner\nthis year at two years old. Their dam won two starts at a mile and\nthree sixteenths and was third in her only try going further at a\nmile and a quarter. She was grade one placed going a mile and an\neighth so she should impart plenty of stamina. Eye In The Storm won\nhis first three starts before jumping up to stakes races where he\u2019s\ngot his three third place finishes. His closest loss came back in\nJanuary when he lost by just three quarters of a length when going a\nmile and three sixteenths with a 93 speed. More recently he ran in a\nmile and an eighth race where he earned a 96 speed. He tends to sit\njust off the pace before making his move. He\u2019ll have to improve\ntoday but there\u2019s no doubt that if he wins here he\u2019s got the\nstamina to do well in the Bluegrass Derby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Good luck to all!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With three Bluegrass Derby Lock Preps on the card for this Saturday it might be easy to say that the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":401,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/401"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54625"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54625\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54626,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54625\/revisions\/54626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=54625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=54625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}