Oaks – Derby Double * What a Concept!
May 1st, 2008By Jude T. Feld
Kentucky Oaks (G1) – Churchill Downs 10th Race, Friday May 2, 2008
Diminutive Golden Doc A has a great chance to upset in the Kentucky Oaks (G1)
Benoit Photo
PURE CLAN will be making her third start of 2008 in the Kentucky Oaks (G1). The daughter of Vinery stallion Pure Prize enjoyed an undefeated two-year-old season capping it off with victories in the Pocahontas (G3) and Goldenrod (G2), both run under the Twin Spires. She posted her lifetime best speed figure in the Fantasy (G2) at Oaklawn Park, her second start of the year. She has been working nicely at Churchill Downs since that effort and will be ridden in the Oaks by new Hall of Fame jockey Edgar Prado.
PROUD SPELL always gives her best. She may have bounced a little at Keeneland, after running a monster race to upset champion filly Indian Blessing in the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2). Her :58 2/5 breeze on April 27 indicates she is back in top form for sharp trainer Larry (Hard Spun) Jones. Never out of the money in seven career outings, the daughter of Proud Citizen, bred and owned by former Kentucky Governor Brereton C. Jones, is a formidable foe and a must-use in all exotic wagers.
GOLDEN DOC A has been racing in great form. Her second-place finish to nemesis Ariege in the Beaumont (G2) at Keeneland should have her primed for a top effort. She worked a “best of the morning†:59 over the Churchill Downs strip on April 23 for trainer Barry Abrams, who will give a leg-up to Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux for the Oaks. At 12-1 on the morning line, she is worth using in all wagers including a few tickets in the Oaks-Derby Double.
Kentucky Derby (G1) – Churchill Downs’ 10th Race, Saturday, May 3, 2008
Hall of Fame trainer Nick Zito is no bobblehead. Anak Nakal has a shot!
BIG BROWN – I have been impressed with him since watching his amazing maiden-breaker at Saratoga last summer and his two scintillating performances since then, including a Florida Derby (G1) victory, have not dispelled me from thinking he is a top-class three-year-old on any surface. Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux has high praise for his talent too, saying he is the best horse he has ever ridden. That is not faint praise coming from a guy who has won a plethora of Grade 1 races around the globe.
COURT VISION –Hall of Fame trainer Billy Mott loves this colt’s chances in the Derby and his recent :46 1/5 half-mile workout at Churchill Downs indicates he’s sharpening up. Lots of “sharpies,†including Daily Racing Form’s Marty McGee, think the son of Gulch has the inside track for the garland of roses off his improving form pattern and the way he has been training in Louisville with “blinkers on”.
TALE OF EKATI – The Derby will be his third race off a layoff and if he continues to move forward for trainer Barclay Tagg, the grandson of Derby winner Sunday Silence could have a major say in the outcome. Hall of Fame jockey Edgar Prado jumping ship to ride Adriano is a concern and his replacement by Cornelio Velasquez doesn’t instill a ton of confidence, but the horses do the running and he has talent and the Kentucky Derby-winning stable of Barclay Tagg taking care of him.
ANAK NAKAL – Has the pedigree to run all day and multiple Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Nick Zito calling the shots. He’ll be a huge longshot too. He is a must-use in trifecta, superfecta and Super High Five plays as he is the most likely to be outrunning tired foes at the end of the Derby and he could take it all if the pace gets a little hot up front with Eight Belles, Cowboy Cal and Big Brown ding-donging it out early. Another plus is the fact that he is already a stakes winner at Churchill Downs.
