Four Questions We Expect To Answer Following Today's Kentucky Derby Championship Series Races

Bettors have questions; horses have answers is the conventional wisdom around the racetrack. We won’t get the final answer until the Kentucky Derby on May 7 at Churchill Downs, which means we’ll have more questions than answers following the conclusion of the Kentucky Derby Championship Series today at Keeneland and Oaklawn, but we expect to have firm answers to the following questions following today’s Lexington Stakes and Arkansas Derby, respectively.

1.       How the Kentucky Derby will be bet

a. We know Nyquist will be the favorite, but who will be second choice? It can be Cupid with a big win the Arkansas Derby, but otherwise it’s probably Santa Anita Derby winner Exaggerator

2.       Who’s on the Kentucky Derby bubble points wise

a. There has not been a lot of attrition among Kentucky Derby contenders, but enough of it is coming that any horse in the top 30 after today still has a good shot of making the Kentucky Derby starting gate.

3.       Which region has the best Kentucky Derby contenders?

a. If Bob Baffert sweeps both races today with Cupid in the Arkansas Derby and Collected in the Lexington, then California’s claim on having the best three-year-olds would get even stronger, and even without wins from those two that claim has plenty of foundation, but the circuits with most upside are either Fair Grounds or Oaklawn itself. Dazzling Gem could boost the TwinSpires.com Louisiana Derby’s standing

4.       Who’s going to get an all-expenses paid VIP trip to Churchill Downs to bet $25,000 to win on the Kentucky Derby?

a. The Kentucky Derby Dream Bet promotion concludes today, and the leaderboard is tight up top. Good luck to those playing for a chance at the big prize!