Game Winner Tops KY Derby Future Wager Pool 3

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert's grade I-winning duo of Game Winner and Improbable, expected to face one another in the San Felipe Stakes (G2) March 9; along with last weekend's Xpressbet Fountain of Youth (G2) winner Code of Honor are the top individual morning-line choices in Pool 3 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, but "All Other 3-Year-Olds" is expected to be the overall preference when betting concludes Sunday.

Veteran oddsmaker Mike Battaglia has installed "All Other 3-Year-Olds" as the 4-1 early choice in the field of 24 betting interests for the three-day pool, which opens at noon (ET) Friday, March 8 (all times EDT) and concludes at 6 p.m. Sunday, March 10. The advance betting will be staged concurrently with the year's only Kentucky Oaks Future Wager. In addition to win and exacta betting, an Oaks/Derby Future Double is part of the Future Wager betting menu. The Kentucky Oaks Future Wager, which includes the Oaks/Derby Future Double, will close at 6:30 p.m. a half-hour later than the KDFW pool.

Unbeaten 2-year-old champion and Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) winner Game Winner is expected to garner the most support among the 23 individual betting interests, with morning line odds of 5-1. Los Alamitos Futurity (G1) hero Improbable was projected as the 8-1 co-third choice along with the Shug McGaughey-trained Code of Honor. 

Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 3

No.        Horse    (trainer, ML odds)

 #1 Anothertwistafate (Blaine Wright, 50-1)

#2 Bourbon War (Mark Hennig, 12-1)

#3 Code of Honor (Shug McGaughey, 8-1)

#4 Country House (50-1, Bill Mott)

#5 Dream Maker (Mark Casse, 50-1)

#6 Galilean (Jerry Hollendorfer, 50-1)

#7 Game Winner (Baffert, 5-1)

#8 Gunmetal Gray (Hollendorfer, 30-1)

#9 Harvey Wallbanger (Kenny McPeek, 30-1)

#10 Hidden Scroll (Mott, 12-1)

#11 Improbable (Baffert, 8-1)

#12 Instagrand (Hollendorfer, 10-1)

#13 Intrepid Heart (Todd Pletcher, 50-1)

#14 Mind Control (Gregg Sacco, 30-1)

#15 Mucho Gusto (Baffert, 20-1)

#16 Roadster (Baffert, 15-1)

#17 Signalman (McPeek, 30-1)

#18 Spinoff (Pletcher, 50-1)

#19 Tax (Danny Gargan, 30-1)

#20 Vekoma (George Weaver, 20-1)

#21 War of Will (Casse, 10-1)

#22 Well Defined (Kathy O'Connell, 50-1)

#23 Win Win Win (Mike Trombetta, 50-1)

#24 "All Other 3-Year-Olds" (4-1)

 

Kentucky Oaks Future Wager

No.        Horse    (trainer, ML odds)

#1 Bellafina (Simon Callaghan, 5-1)

#2 Brill (Hollendorfer, 30-1)

#3 Champagne Anyone (Ian Wilkes, 20-1)

#4 Chasing Yesterday (Baffert, 8-1)

#5 Dunbar Road (Chad Brown, 20-1)

#6 Enaya Alrabb (Doug O'Neill, 15-1)

#7 Eres Tu (Steve Asmussen, 30-1)

#8 Feedback (Brown, 20-1)

#9 Graceful Princess (Ralph Nicks, 50-1)

#10 Jaywalk (John Servis, 8-1)

#11 Jeltrin (Alexis Delgado, 15-1)

#12 Liora (Wayne Catalano, 15-1)

#13 Marathon Queen (Asmussen, 50-1)

#14 Mother Mother (Baffert, 10-1)

#15 Motion Emotion (Tom Van Berg, 50-1)

#16 Orra Moor (Pletcher, 50-1)

#17 Point of Honor (Weaver, 30-1)

#18 Power Gal (Casse, 50-1)

#19 Queen of Beas (Jorge Abreu, 50-1)

#20 Restless Rider (McPeek, 8-1)

#21 Serengeti Empress (Tom Amoss, 10-1)

#22 Tasting the Stars (Mike Stidham, 50-1)

#23 Violencia (Rodolphe Brisset, 50-1)

#24 "All Other 3-Year-Old Fillies" (8-1)

The Kentucky Derby Future Wagers, which feature $2 win and exacta wagering, provide fans of Thoroughbred racing with opportunities to place bets on possible entrants in the $3 million Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) at odds that could be far greater than those available on the day of the race. The 145th running of the Kentucky Derby, America's greatest race and the first leg of the Triple Crown, is set for Saturday, May 4 at Churchill Downs. The $1.25 million Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) will be run the day before, Friday, May 3. 

Bets can be placed at Churchill Downs Racetrack, TwinSpires.com, and other online wagering outlets and satellite wagering centers across North America. There are no refunds in the future wagers. Should Churchill Downs officials determine during the duration of the three-day pool that one of the wagering interests has experienced an injury, illness or other circumstance that would prevent the horse from participating in the Kentucky Derby or Kentucky Oaks, betting on the individual horse will be suspended immediately.

Total handle for Pool 1 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager Nov. 22-25 was $258,389. "All Other 3-Year-Old Colts and Geldings" closed as the 6-5 favorite with Game Winner at 5-1. The Pool 2 betting Feb. 8-10 reached $533,977. Again, "All Other 3-Year-Olds" was the 5-2 favorite with Game Winner at 5-1.

"All Other 3-Year-Olds" has closed as the Pool 3 favorite in 13 of the past 16 years. The lone exceptions were Pyro (4-1 in 2008), Uncle Mo  (3-1 in 2011) and Mohaymen  (7-2 in 2016). Justify  was the 6-1 individual favorite in Pool 3 last year and paid $14.40 to win compared with the $7.80 bettors were paid on Derby Day. Last year's Pool 3 exacta of Justify and Good Magic  returned $245.80 as opposed to $69.60 on the day of the race. The inaugural Oaks/Derby Future Double, which included Monomoy Girl, came back $71 versus $33.20 on May 4-5.

This is the 21st consecutive year that future wagering has been offered at Churchill Downs. Additional information and real-time odds are available online at https://www.kentuckyderby.com/wager/future-wager. 

After this weekend, the fourth and final Kentucky Derby future wager pool will be April 5-7 (Pool 4).