Kentucky Derby 2026: See the leaderboard after 8 races
Eight races have been completed on the road to Kentucky Derby 2026, and naturally Ted Noffey leads the standings. His win in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile alone gave him 30 points, more than any other prep so far. He also picked up 10 in the Grade 1 Breeders' Futurity, but his Grade 1 Hopeful win came with no points.
Kentucky Derby 2026 futures: Paladin surges to 2nd choice
Mr. A.P.'s runner-up effort in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile gave him 15 points, good for second place as no other prep has offered more than 10 points to the winner. And that accounts for there being nine horses in double figures.
Paladin joined the list this week at no. 8 after his win in the Remsen (G2).
Three more points preps are on the December calendar: the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2), the Gun Runner at Fair Grounds and the Remington Springboard Mile. Each offers 10-5-3-2-1 points to the top five finishers.
Jan. 3 brings two more races that offer 10 points to the winner, the Jerome at Aqueduct and the Smarty Jones at Oaklawn. The next eight races on the trail offer 20 points to the winner, starting with the Lecomte (G3) at Fair Grounds on Jan. 17.
| Horse | Points | Trainer | Sire | Earnings* |
| 1. Ted Noffey | 40 | Todd Pletcher | Into Mischief | $1,602,963 |
| 2. Mr. A. P. | 15 | Vladimir Cerin | American Pharoah | $340,000 |
| 3. Intrepido | 13 | Jeff Mullins | Maximus Mischief | $240,000 |
| 4. Universe | 13 | Kenny McPeek | Global Campaign | $178,400 |
| 5. Spice Runner | 11 | Steve Asmussen | Gun Runner | $247,426 |
| 6. Napoleon Solo | 10 | Chad Summers | Liam's Map | $275,000 |
| 7. Further Ado | 10 | Brad Cox | Gun Runner | $242,470 |
| 8. Paladin | 10 | Chad Brown | Gun Runner | $137,500 |
| 9. Incredibolt | 10 | Riley Mott | Bolt d'Oro | $122,070 |
| 10. Brant | 9 | Bob Baffert | Gun Runner | $360,000 |
| 11. Litmus Test | 9 | Bob Baffert | Nyquist | $182,188 |
| 12. Comport | 5 | Eddie Kenneally | Collected | $264,050 |
| 13. Desert Gate | 5 | Bob Baffert | Omaha Beach | $210,000 |
| 14. Blackout Time | 5 | Kenny McPeek | Not This Time | $128,375 |
| 15. Talkin | 5 | Danny Gargan | Good Magic | $101,250 |
| 16. Renegade | 5 | Todd Pletcher | Into Mischief | $50,000 |
| 17. Very Connected | 5 | Kenny McPeek | Connect | $19,850 |
| 18. Balboa | 4 | Brittany Russell | Not This Time | $102,000 |
| 19. Plutarch | 3 | Bob Baffert | Into Mischief | $80,000 |
| 20. Soldier N Diplomat | 3 | Steve Asmussen | Army Mule | $57,350 |
| 21. Vost | 3 | Will Walden | Instagrand | $28,875 |
| 22. Diciassette | 2 | Patrick Biancone | Mitole | $68,337 |
| 23. Civil Liberty | 2 | Doug O’Neill | Independence Hall | $54,000 |
| 24. It’s Our Time | 2 | Tom Amoss | Not This Time | $30,000 |
| 25. Courting | 2 | Todd Pletcher | Curlin | $15,000 |
| 26. Nothing Personal | 2 | Greg Compton | Violence | $14,438 |
| 27. I Did I Did | 2 | Mike Maker | Curlin | $11,175 |
| 28. Maximus Prime | 1 | Anthony Mitchell | Maximus Mischief | $58,262 |
| 29. Stradale | 1 | Steve Asmussen | Yaupon | $42,500 |
| 30. Cherokee Nation | 1 | Bob Baffert | Not This Time | $11,805 |
| 31. Grittiness | 1 | Todd Pletcher | Curlin | $10,000 |
| 32. Ganaas | 1 | Andrew McKeever | War Front | $5,955 |
|
* Non-restricted stakes
|