2022 Kentucky Derby: Start Time and Horses to Watch


LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Bob Baffert is absent from Churchill Downs, and Barn 33, once the epicenter of the back during Derby week, is oddly quiet, but as the Kentucky Derby’s 148th run approaches, the two-time Triple Crown-winning coach is hardly forgotten.

His colts, Messier and Taiba, bred by the end of March, will likely be at the forefront of the herd among casual fans and horsemen on Saturday, and after the doors of America’s most famous race open.

baffert then serving a 90-day suspension issued by Kentucky regulators Spirit of MedinaThe obvious winner of last year’s Derby failed a drug test and was disqualified.

The ongoing horse opera now has a new lead actor: Tim Yakteen. He is a former assistant and longtime friend of Baffert’s and is well acquainted with the Hall of Famer system.

“A lottery ticket fell in my lap,” said the 57-year-old Yakteen, “and I’m just trying to cash it out.”

This is his first Derby as head coach, a milestone he admits can be as exciting as it is frustrating. Messier and Taiba will be ridden by competitors and Hall of Fame jockeys with similar front running styles – John Velazquez on Messier and Mike Smith on Taiba.

“I was hoping to stay in a low profile,” said Yakteen, who was born in Germany and moved to the United States at age 18 while his father was serving in the military. “This may not be as easily accomplished as I hope.”

Messier (8-1 on the morning line) is the more experienced of the pair, winning bets twice and never finishing worse than second. The undefeated Taiba (12-1), however, is the most interesting colt in the field with 20 horses.

After just two starts, he tries to win the Derby, a feat achieved only once before by a horse named Leonatus in 1883. Taiba won his first race in more than seven lengths in March, then beat Messier to win the race. Santa Anita Derby in April by two and a half lengths.

Despite their tremendous success in the sport, veteran coaches Steve Asmussen and Chad Brown still want to add Derby victories to their extensive résumé.

The 56-year-old Asmussen is 9,446 in 2021. race, becoming a career leader among trainers in North America, winning eight Breeders’ Cup races, two Preakness Stakes and one Belmont Stakes. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016.

In 2020, he surpassed Dale Romans for the most career victories among trainers at Churchill Downs. Yet somehow he never won a Derby in 23 tries. Nehro finished second in 2011 and Lookin at Lee did the same in 2017. In 2007, Curlin, horse of the year, was third that year. Another horse of the year, Gun Runner, which proved to be a stallion by surpassing this year’s competitors Taiba and Cyberknife, finished 2016 in third place.

This year, Asmussen will have another stellar shot with a 7-2 score in the morning line with Louisiana Derby winner Epicenter and may be the post-time favourite.

Asked if he was nervous this time, Asmussen laughed. “Well, I’m not running,” he said.

Brown, 43, also knows about Derby troubles. Despite winning 15 Breeders’ Cup races and winning the Eclipse Award for outstanding trainer four years in a row, he finished 0 of 7 in the Run for the Roses in 2018, with Good Magic coming in second.

Brown has perhaps his strongest opponent in Zandon, winner of last month’s Blue Grass Stakes and 3-1 morning favourite.

For Brown, a Derby win would pay homage to his Hall of Fame trainer mentor Bobby Frankel. who died in 2009 without securing the sport’s most prized prize.

“It was the only race that survived it,” Brown said. “It was on his mind too late in his career. It would be an honor and a testament for him to win the race because he taught me everything.”

Churchill Downs regularly hosts over 150,000 events on Derby day, but the pandemic has put a damper on the party in the past two years.

The Belmont Stakes, normally the last leg of the Triple Crown in 2020, were held in June, the Derby in September, and Preakness, which is usually the second of three races, finished last with a new date in October. No fans allowed.

All returned to their regular places on the calendar in 2021, but fewer users were allowed. The crowd announced for the derby was 51,838.

This year, there is no participation limit and no mask requirement.

“We have always said we will stick with whatever state Kentucky operates in, and there are currently no capacity restrictions, no masks or no vaccinations required at restaurants, sports facilities,” said Tonya Abeln. Spokesperson for Churchill Downs.

A popular change from last year has returned, and even expanded, despite a significant increase in ticket prices: Unlimited food and drink at all seats, and a move to reduce queues and money exchanges. (Although the paddock redesign, which is expected to be completed for the 150th Derby, should bring back the standing ticket-only option, home fans will still be limited there and have to pay $12 for a mint.)

Last year, vendors roamed the aisles freely, distributing drinks, and there weren’t even any queues for the bathrooms. “Isn’t that great?” It was a common phrase heard around.

“We had a huge response from our guests that they preferred the ease and convenience of the all-inclusive experience, so we decided to expand this to our full-scale event this year,” Abeln said.

With lightning-fast training and an unconventional warm-up routine that makes him look more like a dressage competitor than a racehorse, Crown Pride has been gaining attention in the mornings ever since he came home from Dubai with a win in the UAE Derby.

Last year, Japanese horses made several strong appearances on the international stage and in the United States, achieving their first Breeders’ Cup victories in November when Loves Only You won the Filly & Mare Turf and the Marche Lorraine Distaff. .

Crown Pride is perhaps Japan’s best hope yet for Derby victory. Three other Japanese horses have been running in the race since 1995 and are ranked sixth, ninth and 14th.

Want more root?

Names are popular. Happy Jack is named after a song by The Who. Trying to become the third Canadian horse to win the Derby, Messier is named after hockey great Mark Messier. Cyberknife is named after the treatment that put owner Al Gold’s cancer in remission. Gold invites cancer patients to the stables to meet his horse.

Personal achievements are also always special. Smith in Taiba will attempt to become the oldest jockey to win the Derby at age 56. Alongside Yakteen, five other coaches will saddle the first Derby horses: Bhupat Seemar (Summer is Tomorrow), Koichi Shintani (Crown Pride), John Ortiz (Barber Road), Brian Lynch (Classic Causeway) and Eric Reed (Rich Strike).

Reed didn’t know this until Friday morning when he drew Ethereal Road, 86-year-old D. Wayne Lukas’ 50th Derby horse. “They’re doing CPR on me right now,” Reed joked with reporters.



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