Todd Pletcher has six Eclipse Awards for outstanding trainer, but will come into this year’s Kentucky Derby with a 1 for 36 mark in America’s biggest race.
Kentucky Derby betting: Can Todd Pletcher get second win?
The Kentucky Derby has been a house of horrors for uber trainer Todd Pletcher. But he is back in 2014 with four horses trying to beat the odds again.
Jamie Squire
His lone win in the Run for the Roses came with Super Saver in 2010.
Last year Pletcher started five runners in the 20-horse field, with Revolutionary the top performer with a third place finish.
The trainer lost a major contender this week with the announcement that Florida Derby (G1) winner Constitution is off the Triple Crown trail with a cannon bone injury. The colt had been bet down to 8-1 in Derby future wagering, according to kentuckyderbyodds.ca.
However, the trainer will still be the busiest guy in the paddock on the first Saturday of May and those with a bet on the Kentucky Derby usually know he is a threat.
Pletcher has three contenders this year, and a fourth, Vinceremos who is sitting at 21st in the 2014 Kentucky Derby Points Standings and just needs one defection from the top 20 to stamp his ticket into the Run for the Roses.
Here is a look at Team Pletcher:
Intense Holiday (20-1): The colt was bumped around and could not catch a loose on the lead gate to wire winner in Vicar’s in Trouble last out in a runner up finish in the Louisiana Derby (G2). The colt won the Risen Star (G2) in his previous start for his first stakes win.
The colt has a solid foundation as a two-year-old and looks capable of moving forward off his last start with a better trip. The $390,000 Keeneland purchase has a solid pedigree and should be able to handle the added distance.
We Miss Artie (33-1): Owned by Ken and Sarah Ramsey, who also own Vicar’s in Trouble, this colt has done his best work over turf and polytrack and is 0 for 3 on conventional dirt. The colt won the Breeders’ Futurity (G1) last year at Keeneland on poly and comes into the Derby off a win on poly in the Spiral Stakes (G3) at Turfway Park.
The colt was badly outrun in the Florida Derby (G1) in his last start on dirt, beaten 17 ½ lengths in an eighth place finish. His price is going to be big on Derby Day.
Danza (8-1): This colt was not on anyone’s radar coming into the Arkansas Derby (G1) where the colt was sent off at 41-1. Under a deft ride by jockey Joe Bravo the colt came up the inside to pull off the huge upset. The colt has taken plenty of action in the early Derby betting, now down to 8-1 according to Oddsshark.
Was it a fluke at long odds or does Pletcher have this guy at the top of his game? The 8-1 future price seems low; he is likely going to be a bigger price on race day.
Vinceremos: The colt is not listed at Oddsshark, but with one more defection this colt will be heading to Louisville. The colt did not seem to care for the polytrack surface last out in the Toyota Blue Grass (G1) at Keeneland, never getting untracked in a 14th place finish.
Odds aggregated from the Kentucky Derby odds pages at Odds Shark
