Red Route One is part of full fields for W.V. Derby, Governor’s

Red Route One is among the 3-year-olds who won or placed in graded stakes on this year’s Triple Crown trail who are in overflow field entered for the Grade 3, $500,000 West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer on Sunday.

The 1 1/8-mile Derby drew a full field of 12 plus two horses on the also-eligible list. The $200,000 West Virginia Governor’s Stakes (G3) for 3-year-olds and up at 1 1/16 miles also attracted 12 entrants with one on the also-eligible list.

Click here for Mountaineer entries and results.

This year’s Derby program moves from Saturday to Sunday with a first post time of 5 p.m. EDT. The Governor’s Stakes at 7:30 p.m. and Derby at 7:55 p.m. are races 7 and 8, respectively, on a nine-race card.

Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen, who has won five editions of the West Virginia Derby, has entered Red Route One, who most recently finished fourth in the Preakness and eighth in the Belmont Stakes. The Winchell Thoroughbreds homebred colt by Gun Runner finished second in two graded Kentucky Derby preps at Oaklawn. Red Route One, who usually comes from far back early, drew post position 4 with Cristián Torres named to ride.

Although Indiana Derby (G3) winner Verifying was not entered, Raise Cain, who rallied strongly to finish a nose behind him in the 1 1/16-mile stakes, has been training forwardly in Kentucky for the Mountaineer fixture. Trained by Ben Colebrook for Andrew Warren and Rania Warren, the Violence colt won the Gotham (G3) in New York in March at 23-1 and finished eighth in the Kentucky Derby after a troubled trip. Raise Cain drew post 11 with Luan Machado named to ride.

One in Vermillion, a winner of 5 of 10 starts with four of them stakes in Arizona, New Mexico and California, has been based at Canterbury Park in Minnesota this summer with Esteban Martinez training for owner Jonathan Kalman. After a second-place finish in the Canterbury Derby, the Army Mule colt crossed the wire first in the Iowa Derby at Prairie Meadows only to be disqualified and placed second for interference in the stretch. One in Vermillion, who set the pace in the Santa Anita Derby (G1) in April and finished a respectable fifth, likes to be forwardly placed. He drew post 8 with Harry Hernández, the leading jockey at Canterbury, listed to ride.

Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr., who won the 2022 West Virginia Derby with Skippylongstocking, entered Lord Miles, who won the Wood Memorial (G2) at Aqueduct in New York at 59-1 in April. The Curlin colt owned by Vegso Racing Stable returned to action in late June and finished fourth in the Ohio Derby (G3) at Thistledown. Lord Miles drew post 2 with Arnaldo Bocachica, the leading jockey at Charles Town, named to ride.

Gary and Mary West’s Best Actor, winner of last year’s Smarty Jones (G3) at  Parx Racing in Pennsylvania, drew post 12 in the West Virginia Governor’s Stakes with Kendrick Carmouche listed to ride. The 4-year-old Flatter colt raced once this year. He finished second in a June 30 allowance race at Ellis Park in Kentucky for trainer Brad Cox, who has won the Governor’s Stakes three times.