BloodHorse.com

 A fun day full of excitement and a whole lot of turf races. I love a good turf race and like to see ''turf'' sires run well on dirt. Specifically Giant Gizmo. I called that horse with a gut feeling, and yep, he sure showed his skills. Of course he is a Giant's Causeway, as faithful readers know Giant's Causeway is a favorite of mine. So hats ...

By Tom Pedulla, USA TODAY LOUISVILLE — ''We're live, babe!'' That's horse trainer Richard Dutrow Jr.'s stable-speak, his way of telling friends he expects his colt Big Brown to win the 134th Kentucky Derby on Saturday. For Big Brown, undefeated but having raced only three times, the Derby (4 p.m. ET, NBC; post time 6:04) is a chance to validate ...

By Patrick Patten, NYTimes.comThere were 38,191 North American foals born in 2005 (hat tip to the Jockey Club), and only 20 will be allowed in the gate in a little over a week. That is, one-twentieth of one percent get into the gate, and yet I am about to tell you that Recapturetheglory, winner of the grade II Illinois Derby is a complete toss. ...

By Leslie Huddleston The 2008 edition of C-J Derby DataTrack has now been updated for the last time and contains the Derby Rating, a total based upon a mathematical formula that assigns a value to each of the nearly 60 factors included in the data base. Derby Ratings can only be generated back to Sea Hero’s win in 1993 because BRIS and Beyer ...

  Well, we are finally here. Time to make Derby selections. Considering the inconsistency of many of the top 3-year-olds, inexperience of some of the contenders (mainly Big Brown), and trying to decipher how these synthetic track horses will run on the Churchill dirt, this year's handicapping challenge has been daunting. But after being ...

By Patrick Patten First, a blog is always about helping people and a “n00b” is slang for newbie, or rookie. You’re welcome. So, you’re also new to the Kentucky Derby, and you’re looking to make your first pick and not look too foolish. Have no fear; I’m here to help you. Don’t pick the favorite; it’s a total rookie mistake. The favorite has ...

Courtesy of The New York Times Dean Keppler, author of Betting the Kentucky Derby: How to Wager and Win on America’s Biggest Horse Race from DRF Press, discussed his approach to betting the Derby earlier this week. Now with the post positions set, he gives us his picks:1) PYRO2) ADRIANO3) Z FORTUNEFor his reasoning and more on how to bet ...

A few minutes ago, I posted some notes about Saturday's Kentucky Derby and name my favorites.  I'd like to know who you think should win it, based solely on pedigree.  Check out this week's poll.

I made the trip to Louisville safely and awoke at 4:30am to prep my self for the track with my partners in media crime. The track was very busy, dare I say swamped today. Everyone seemed to be in high hopes and in good terms. Trainers, horses, grounds personnel, and even the track shuttle driver told some dry jokes at 6:00am, too early to really ...

This poll has ended.  The question was:  Derby 134 Pedigree Picks: Whose pedigree do you like best?