Kentucky Derby leaderboard: Baffert has entered the chat

You knew it was only a matter of time before Bob Baffert had a trainee on the Kentucky Derby leaderboard.

The Hall of Fame conditioner saddled Desert Gate to an impressive victory in the Grade 3 Best Pal Stakes on Aug. 9 at Del Mar, good for sixth in the standings. A series of points races that begin in September is the primary decider for Derby entry, but the tiebreaker is earnings in non-restricted stakes races.

Landing on top of the standings is Comport after his authoritative victory in the Ellis Park Juvenile Stakes. The Horse Racing Nation judgment quotient gives a slight edge to Desert Gate with a 107 rating in the Best Pal to Compton's 105.

The top figure earned by juveniles to date is by the filly Mythical, who won the Tremont Stakes against males before annexing the Adirondack Stakes (G3), which does not count toward Derby earnings because it is restricted to females.

Desert Gate and Comport also rocketed up HRN's Kentucky Derby 2026 contender page, ranking third and fourth, respectively, behind Saratoga Special (G2) winner Ewing and runner-up Obliteration.