About Yesterday - Tacitus and Roadster

[Silver Charm]

Tried to tell everyone it was a great day to block it all out and wager. 30,000+ at Keeneland. Big Crowd at SA. (fyi Gulfstream was packed last week) Exciting races and finishes. We can talk about that or we can talk about that one Dallas Stewart runner who broke down and close Keeneland for 21 days. Ahhhhhhh NO!!

Roadster dropped back far turn and then put in one helluva a run. So he has a line of 7-6-3-?. Tacitus good bounced around first turn, took a moment to get rolling far turn and quickly grabbed up Tax with a line of 8-8-3-?. So lets assume they ran about a 1-1.5. Both have developed 6 points. They are coming off another forward move. Which means they are stuck at 1? I don\'t think so. Wanna see Roadster do what he did into far turn Derby traffic. Big difference from yesterday. Tacitus has a TON left in the tank people. Not gonna say an Arrogate stride

[Silver Charm]

SPAM Editor got me for some reason but Tacitus might be my Derby horse. He got 4 light whacks of the stick on the right and then one two on the left to keep him from leaning in. This is an example where using the whip was for the safety of the horses. But that\'s another topic.    

Also does Game Winner need a jockey change? What was Rosario doing going up 4 wide on the far turn to tackle Instagrand and others? He was wide at Oaklawn. He was wide yesterday. He early moved yesterday. This horse might have run a 0 which makes him the fastest horse in the race. For the most part Trips have won all Spring. Game Winner will be a half a dozen lengths are or more back on Derby Day. Does he have the kind of Trip Jockey to use his talent to get the job done?

[ajkreider]

Agree that Tacitus looked great.  

My worry about him and lots of others is where is the pace going to come from?  The tracks were so dull yesterday that I can\'t get a read on what the horses will do on a glib strip, which is what Churchill is when dry. Can Tacitus or Roadster or WWW catch a Maximum jogging on the front end?

[Silver Charm]

That\'s a great point and since there is no way to enter cheap speed because of the Derby Points system its a problem

[philywheel]

My horse coming out of the Wood is Haikal,if you weren\'t in the top 3 at the top of the stretch yesterday at The Big A
  you had no chance, he really put into gear in the stretch,I bet him in the futures (30-1)maybe I should have waited, might get more that that at post time.
and got the bounce out of the way
philywheel

[TreadHead]

To keep him from leaning in?  He bore in 6 paths and pinned Tax down on the rail thru the stretch.  Watch the head-on.  As is often said, might be jock piloting, might be tiring when the bearing in/out is that bad.  I want nothing to do with him in the Derby.

[FrankD.]

I hate to burst everyone’s Derby bubble so early but this outcome seems pre determined to me.

Tread points out the severe BI of Tacitus, without an inquiry or jock claim seemed a surprise to me. No sour grapes only had a 1/2 box and the difference was $4 for a buck.

Haikal was in a different zip code and picked off some distanced garbage down the lane, he won the Gotham the same way flying home in 25. No one can like the way the Bluegrass Winner looked in the lane yesterday running against nothing.Per usual the Louisiana Preps were slow, Code of Honor, no thanks, Bourbon may not get in.  Most of the rest don’t even warrant discussion.

Baffert’s 2 yesterday and Imperative who easily gets in with a 3rd in Hot Springs next Saturday all look better here than anything mentioned above or in the points list below.

Imperative goes out with the Servis 16K claimer in 45 & 108, depending on the draw of the other 2, one will get instructions to block or take someone who may threaten out and the remaining BB swoops the group to win another Derby for Bobby.....



https://www.kentuckyderby.com/horses/leaderboard

[Tavasco]

Furthermore the fastest prep by the clock yesterday was in Keeneland and the pace setter won in a stroll.

I\'m not sure if the efforts to slow down Santa Anita present any problems for TGJB\'s figure making but they were successful and I\'m guessing the speed figures come back all over the place?

[ajkreider]

They were all slow at SA (and in NY). Bella in 1:45. The Cap in 2:03. Excelsior slower than the Wood.  World of Trouble 7F in 1:23?

Clearly the tracks, not strategery.

[Silver Charm]

All good Tread. My price will be juicy then. BTW what\'s Mandella gonna do with Omaha Beach? Start rating? Doubt it. He is also gonna need a Rider. Smith will stay with Roadster. He needs a good Send Jockey  Call 1-800-PACO

[BitPlayer]

Tacitus only bore in when he was being hit right-handed.  I am not a big fan of Tapit offspring at 10 furlongs, but Tacitus also had the excuse of being bounced around going into the first turn.

Jose Ortiz may have an interesting choice to make: Tacitus (and Mott and Juddmonte) or Improbable (and Baffert and Winstar).

[Flighted Iron]

Philly,

 Fwiw, check the archives. Horses tend to perform better in the derby off new tops and pairs. It\'s certainly not a hard and fast rule. Just sayin.

  Flighted

[Niall]

WWW checked pretty good and still kept coming. I thought he put in a pretty good run. Would def be inclined to use.

[ajkreider]

SIAP - Beyer from yesterday

Roadster - 98
Tacitus  - 97
Vekoma   - 94

Sounds about right.

[boardedup]

Of the weekend runners it seems like Roadster under the BB spring program is most likely to take another step forward.  But it’s a lot harder to make the run vs 19 than 5?

If Improbable wins next week is he the derbyfavorite?  No one stands out this year, the talking heads will influence the public more than normal with the absence of a “star.”  Agree this has the makings of a (much welcomed) return to a price(es) this year.