Kentucky Derby 2018 Daily: The Triple Crown noms takeaways

Welcome to Horse Racing Nation’s Kentucky Derby Daily — proudly sponsored by NYRA Bets — which will each day leading up to the May 5 race at Churchill Downs detail all the news and notes related to contenders in one convenient space.

With the release Thursday of this year’s Triple Crown nominations, there was news to be found in which horses didn’t appear on the list, too.

An updated look at 2018 Kentucky Derby points leaders shows Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes winner The Tabulator as well as All Out Blitz, who ran second to McKinzie on Jan. 6 in the Grade 3 Sham Stakes, were among the nine horses with Derby points not nominated to the Triple Crown series.

Also, Chad Brown-trained Engage, the impressive winner of Belmont’s Futurity, wasn’t on the list. Engage cruised to a 3 1/2-length score around one turn but hasn’t worked since the Oct. 14 race.

On the Japan path to the Derby, Le Vent Se Leve, who shot up 3-year-old lists after his victory in the Dec. 13 Zen-Nippon Yushin, wasn’t nominated. There are murmurs that he’s healing from a leg injury and will miss the next overseas prep.

And from Europe, none of the 14 horses so far with points, including Saxon Warrior, the most-recent stakes winner on that road to the Derby, were nominated. The first four races on Europe’s road ran on turf, while the final three will go on synthetic.

Of course, all those horses can also be later supplemented for $200,000 to run in the Derby. But that connections weren’t willing to pay $600 at this point more than likely counts them out for a run on the first Saturday in May.

Nominations by the numbers

For the horses that were nominated early to the Triple Crown series, check out free past performances now available. Consider these stats:

• 360 horses were nominated, down from 419 at this point last year.

• Horses trained by Todd Pletcher (37), Bob Baffert (32), Steve Asmussen (17) make up nearly 24 percent of the nominations.

• Zayat Stables’ 12 horses led all owners; Charles Fipke’s 11 led all breeders; and Tapit’s 22 led all sires.

• 288 (80 percent) of nominees were bred in Kentucky. The next-closest state was Florida with 14 (3.8 percent).

Odds and analysis

So, that covers the bigger picture. But we can’t forget what’s ahead Saturday, marking the biggest weekend so far on the Derby trail. Get full-field analysis and an early look at odds for a trio of points-paying preps:

• Grade 3, $250,000 Withers Stakes (4:35 p.m. ET)

• Grade 3, $150,000 Robert B. Lewis Stakes (5:30 p.m. ET)

• Grade 2, $350,000 Holy Bull Stakes (5:49 p.m. ET)

A race on our radar

Triple Crown nominee Title Ready dueled most of the way outside of favored Transgress in Thursday’s Oaklawn Park feature, a 1 1/16-mile allowance worth $76,000. The wider trip proved a winning one, with Title Ready perhaps deeming himself worthy of a start next out on Oaklawn’s road to the Derby.

Under jockey Luis Contreras, the Steve Asmussen trainee kicked clear in the stretch and registered a final time of 1:44.30, that despite battling through an opening half mile in 47.40 seconds. The son of More Than Ready is owned and was bred by Charles Fipke.

Transgress faded to fourth. The other Triple Crown nominee in the field, Dream Baby Dream, struggled up the back stretch but ran on for third with a strong closing kick. He too could be a candidate to appear in the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes (Feb. 19) or Grade 2 Rebel Stakes (March 17) at Oaklawn.

Title Ready's winning margin was 3 1/2 lengths. Notably, his dam, Title Seeker, is a daughter of Personal Ensign.

Robert B. Lewis history

Saturday’s West Coast Derby prep has been knocked for its lack of previous stakes winners — there are none — and that multiple runners have never beaten winners at any level. That doesn’t mean we should dismiss the contenders moving forward.

Last year’s winner, Royal Mo, won his first stakes in the Robert B. Lewis, as did Candy Boy (2014), Flashback (2013) and I’ll Have Another (2012). We know how it worked out for the last one on that list.

Click the graphic below for a more detailed history of the Santa Anita Park race.

The works

Gleason — This impressive Todd Pletcher-trained debut winner posted his first move since then, clocking 1:01.41 for five furlongs Thursday at the Palm Beach Downs training center in south Florida. No word on his next start, but the son of Algorithms is certainly one to watch.

Instilled Regard — Ticketed for the Grade 2 Risen Star at Fair Grounds, site of last month’s Grade 3 Lecomte win, this colt is back on the West Coast now with two works in him. Thursday’s 5/8 went in 1:01.80 (17/25).

Magnum Moon — Another that won at first asking for the Pletcher barn, he also went five furlongs in 1:01.41, suggesting he’s working in company with Gleason.

Mourinho — The Smarty Jones Stakes winner turned in six furlongs Thursday in a bullet 1:12.60 at Santa Anita Park, though only four worked that distance. In the week prior to winning last out, he also breezed 6/8. The target is the Grade 3 Southwest, also at Oaklawn Park.

Peace — A top Robert B. Lewis contender, he blew out three furlongs in 38.60 seconds (17/18) this morning at Santa Anita. A work two days before a race is new for this one.

In case you missed it…

Wednesday’s Derby Daily report previewed the weekend’s three preps, with quotes from connections to horses running in each — and mention of one horse that culd be sitting on a big effort in the Lewis.

• Catch up with all the latest Derby news by reading past editions of HRN’s Derby Daily report.