The Kentucky Derby is rapidly approaching, and the betting fever is taking over the equestrian community. The Derby fans are constantly squabbling over their favorites, debating over which horse is going to take home the fame and the glory from this historic race which is all set to take place in Churchill Downs.
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Forte has been declared the fan favorite for now, but there are some other beloved choices as well. Tapit Trice has recently entered the Kentucky Derby and has become an unlikely yet viable candidate. However, news has come of some horses who will not be participating in this year’s Derby.
Blazing Sevens bids goodbye to Kentucky Derby
Blazing Sevens is the 3-year-old Colt who currently sits at 17th place on the Kentucky Derby scoreboard. However, Blazing Sevens’ trainer, Chad Brown, has revealed that the horse is going to sit out the Kentucky Derby which is all set to take place on the 6th of May. Instead, Blazing Sevens will be competing in the Preakness Stakes which will be held on May 20.
Earlier this month, Blazing Sevens emerged victorious at the Toyota Blue Grass which was held at Keeneland. According to Paulick Report, Chad Brown gave a reason as to why he is not entering his horse in the Derby. He said, “I just feel this horse ran out of time really to develop to get to [the Derby] with a good chance to be competitive, meaning I’m looking to have a chance to win or be in the top 3. He’s a race behind where he needs to be.” The defection of Sevens has given a chance to another horse to enter the Derby.
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Jace’s Road, the Louisiana Derby’s third-place bearer, will be now entering the Kentucky Derby field. Sevens will be going to Preakness, where Brown has won before. Brown won the event with Early Voting last year. Before that, in 2017, he got the title while riding Cloud Computing. What’s interesting to note is the fact that even though both these horses had enough points to qualify for the Kentucky Derby, they bypassed it.
Equestrian trainer Brown’s another top contender to miss Oaks
Shidabhuti, another one of Chad Brown’s four-legged wonders, is going to sit out the Kentucky Oaks this year. The horse earned Brown third place in Grade 3 Gazelle. Not only this, but she got much closer to the qualifying benchmark for the Kentucky Derby when she tasted victory at the Busher Invitational victory on March 4. She got 50 qualifying points for the win.
Her third place at the Grade 3 Gazelle ensured that she got 30 additional points, which in total pushed her over the minimum points needed to qualify for the Derby. Hence, she had a place at the starting line ready for her. Apparently, Brown feels that both these horses are not yet ready for the Derby. Shidabhuti’s defection means that 2-year-old filly Wonder Wheel will now take her place.
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