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By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Let's say you're a handicapper, and you're unaware that Saturday's $400,000 Risen Star S. (G2) at Fair Grounds is the most lucrative Road to the Kentucky Derby prep race so far this year, awarding five times as many qualification points (50-20-10-5 to the top four finishers) as ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman The Road to the Kentucky Derby continues on Saturday with a pair of competitive qualifiers on opposite coasts of the country. The Sam F. Davis S. (G3) at Tampa Bay Downs and the El Camino Real Derby at Golden Gate Fields have both drawn large fields. Let's dig in and handicap each ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Welcome to February, everyone! The first weekend of the month is an exciting one with 14 graded stakes slated to take place across the United States. Let's highlight three of the most interesting races on the agenda, including a pair of Road to the Kentucky Derby qualifiers. Holy ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman An exciting Saturday of racing awaits at Gulfstream Park. An action-packed card featuring seven stakes is highlighted by the Pegasus World Cup (G1) and Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1). This is a day of racing you don't want to miss, so let's examine the feature events and plan out ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Following a three-week break, the Road to the Kentucky Derby resumes on Saturday with the $200,000 Lecomte S. (G3) at Fair Grounds. The Lecomte is the finale of an action-packed, 14-race card also containing the Silverbulletday S., a qualifier on the Road to the Kentucky ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman On a quiet weekend of mid-January racing, one of the best races on the agenda is the $200,000 California Cup Derby for California-bred three-year-olds racing 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita. Six horses are entered to race, including a pair of proven stakes winners. Let's take a ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman On a quiet weekend of racing in the U.S., the most important event is Saturday's $200,000 Santa Ynez S. (G2) at Santa Anita, an early steppingstone on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks. Half a dozen sophomore fillies are slated to contest the seven-furlong dirt sprint, so let's ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Happy New Year, everyone! I can't think of a better way to kick off the 2022 racing year than by handicapping a trio of Road to the Kentucky Derby prep races on New Year's Day. The $150,000 Jerome S. at Aqueduct, the $100,000 Sham S. (G3) at Santa Anita, and the $250,000 ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Merry Christmas, racing fans! To celebrate the holiday, we have a special handicapping treat. This week, we're examining not one... not two... not three... but four of the exciting stakes slated for Dec. 26. Without further ado, let's dig in and examine a pair of races at Fair ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Through the years, trainer Kenny McPeek has saddled a bevy of Grade 1 winners. He's won the Preakness S. (G1) with champion filly Swiss Skydiver. He's upset the Belmont S. (G1) with unheralded 70-1 longshot Sarava. But one race McPeek has yet to win is the Kentucky Derby (G1). ...