Road to Kentucky Derby 2023: Standings after 11 points preps
Four new horses have joined the road to the Kentucky Derby leaderboard after Sunday's Smarty Jones, the first points prep of the Oaklawn meet.
Victory Formation, a son of Tapwrit who made his stakes debut in the Smarty Jones, extended his career record to 3-for-3 with a decisive front-running score. The 10 points he earned put him into the top 10 of the standings, and the rich Oaklawn purse was enough to put him ahead of Dubyuhnell and Practical Move, who also have 10 points but slightly lower non-restricted stakes earnings. Victory Formation finished three lengths clear of Angel of Empire, his stablemate in the Brad Cox barn, who earned four points and joined the leaderboard tied for 15th.
Denington, the only horse in the Smarty Jones field who already had Derby points, nipped Western Ghent for show. He earned three more points for that effort, moving him up from 28th in the standings last week to 17th. Western Ghent joins the leaderboard in 23rd place with two points, and How Did He Do That debuts at 29th after earning one point for his fifth-place finish.
The top five remain unchanged, with Forte keeping the top spot. He has earned 40 points after wins in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile and the Breeders' Futurity (G1). Forty points historically has been enough to get into the Kentucky Derby field, though things might change in 2023. For the first time this year, races offer points to the top five finishers instead of the top four. Forte is expected to return to the track March 4 at Gulfstream for the Fountain of Youth (G2).
This week features two Kentucky Derby points preps, both offering 10-4-3-2-1 points to the top five finishers. The Jerome will happen Saturday at Aqueduct, while the Sham (G3) runs Sunday at Santa Anita.
| Horse | Points | Trainer | Earnings * |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Forte | 40 | Todd Pletcher | $1,545,650 |
| 2. Curly Jack | 17 | Tom Amoss | $348,120 |
| 3. Blazing Sevens | 16 | Chad Brown | $411,000 |
| 4. Jace's Road | 13 | Brad Cox | $89,100 |
| 5. Instant Coffee | 12 | Brad Cox | $265,065 |
| 6. Victory Formation | 10 | Brad Cox | $152,750 |
| 7. Dubyuhnell | 10 | Danny Gargan | $137,500 |
| 8. Practical Move | 10 | Tim Yakteen | $132,000 |
| 9. Hayes Strike | 7 | Kenny McPeek | $95,750 |
| 10. Red Route One | 5 | Steve Asmussen | $78,375 |
| 11. Loggins | 4 | Brad Cox | $106,500 |
| 12. Verifying | 4 | Brad Cox | $140,000 |
| 13. Honed | 4 | Kenny McPeek | $65,700 |
| 14. Arctic Arrogance | 4 | Linda Rice | $50,000 |
| 15. Angel of Empire | 4 | Brad Cox | $47,000 |
| 16. Raise Cain | 4 | Ben Colebrook | $39,750 |
| 17. Denington | 4 | Kenny McPeek | $35,110 |
| 18. Gulfport | 3 | Steve Asmussen | $267,070 |
| 19. Tuskegee Airmen | 3 | John Servis | $90,000 |
| 20. Echo Again | 3 | Steve Asmussen | $46,625 |
| 21. Determinedly | 3 | Mark Casse | $20,500 |
| 22. Andiamo a Firenze | 2 | Kelly Breen | $51,000 |
| 23. Western Ghent | 2 | D. Wayne Lukas | $35,110 |
| 24. Gunflash | 2 | Karl Broberg | $24,000 |
| 25. Quick to Accuse | 2 | Horacio De Paz | $15,000 |
| 26. Tall Boy | 2 | Leandro Mora | $12,000 |
| 27. Andthewinnneris | 1 | Wayne Catalano | $248,363 |
| 28. Campfire Creed | 1 | Danny Pish | $77,000 |
| 29. How Did He Do That | 1 | Steve Asmussen | $50,400 |
| 30. Midnight Trouble | 1 | Peter Walder | $35,000 |
| 31. Man Child | 1 | Ryan Hanson | $30,000 |
| 32. Champions Dream | 1 | Danny Gargan | $20,000 |
| 33. Confidence Game | 1 | Keith Desormeaux | $8,730 |
| * Non-restricted stakes |