2010 Arkansas Derby Offers Big Bucks for 9 Runners

By GREG MELIKOV

Noble’s Promise is the only horse in the 74th Arkansas Derby guaranteed a spot in the Kentucky Derby entries list no matter where he finishes on Saturday.

The son of Cuvee is No. 2 in graded stakes earnings behind the horse beat him three times no more than three-quarters of a length any race. Noble’s Promise, with $708,000 in the bank, last lost to Lookin at Lucky by a head in the Rebel at Oaklawn Park on March 13.

Since that debut on dirt, the colt has been training well. On March 26 at Oaklawn, he breezed five furlongs in 1:02 4/5. On April 3, he covered the same distance in 1:00 4/5, the fastest of 23 workouts.

Noble’s Promise has never been out of the money in seven career starts. He’s 2-1-1 in four stakes races on synthetic surfaces, including a victory last year in the $500,000 Breeders’ Cup Futurity at Keeneland.

Kenny McPeek decided to take the Arkansas Derby road to Louisville because the race is on dirt. “I thought that running over this track would be comparable to Churchill (Downs),” the trainer said. “He’s run on synthetics repeatedly, and we needed to see how good he was on dirt.”

Surprisingly he is not the morning line favorite in the $1 million Grade 1, but second choice at 2-1.

Super Saver, 25th with graded earnings of $163,832, is 9-5. But he needs to hit the board to make to the Kentucky Derby field.

Third in the Tampa Bay Derby last month, the son of Maria’s Mon last visited the winner’s circle at Churchill Downs in the fall when he captured the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes.

The only other horse among the top 20 graded stakes earners is Dublin, 14th with $273,208, the early third choice at 7-2 off running third in the Rebel. Finishing at least third probably would send him to Louisville since the runner-up gets $200,000 while third money is worth $100,000.

Place money also would be enough for Uh Oh Bango, 21st with $187,952, fourth in the Rebel following his second to Rule in the $750,000 Delta Jackpot at Delta Downs in December. The son of Top Hit is 15-1.

Others in the nine-horse Arkansas Derby field need to bank the $600,000 winner’s share to ensure a trip to Kentucky.

Northern Giant, 32nd with $127,000, is the newest player coming off a second-place finish in last month’s Lane’s End at Turfway. The son of Giant’s Causeway, who broke his maiden by 11 lengths at Oaklawn in February, is 8-1.

Pulsion, 37th with $80,000, ran sixth in troublesome trips in both the Fountain of Youth and Florida Derby. The son of Include, who broke his maiden last fall at Del Mar, is 15-1.

New Madrid, 20-1, won a 1 1/16-mile maiden race at Oaklawn in March, one start after finishing second to Sunland Park Derby winner Endorsement in a maiden route at Hot Springs in February.

Line of David, 15-1, broke his maiden and won an allowance contest last fall at Santa Anita, but both victories were on grass.

The last Arkansas Derby champ to capture the Kentucky Derby was Smarty Jones in ’04. Grindstone, runner-up at Oaklawn in ’96, also smelled the roses.

About The Author

Greg Melikov: Horse Racing Handicapper/Turf Writer Greg Melikov has been handicapping and writing about horses for decades. His articles and columns appear in print and on the Internet around the world. Greg is a retired newspaperman who became a horse racing fan at 13 when he saw 1948 Triple Crown winner Citation, his favorite horse, whip 20 older horses at old Arlington Park.

"2010 Arkansas Derby Offers Big Bucks for 9 Runners" was posted on 8 April 2010 10:26 AM under Horse Racing News, Horses, Kentucky Derby, Race Tracks, Racing Picks & Betting Tips, Stakes Races, Triple Crown

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