The 2023 Kentucky Derby, the first jewel of the Triple Crown Series, is set to host the adrenaline-pumping horse racing competition participated by the toughest and fastest two-year-old thoroughbreds across the US and parts of the globe.
The winner of the Kentucky Derby will claim its first ticket to the Triple Crown title. For that, the race has the most significant volume of spectators compared to the Belmont Stakes and Preakness Stakes.
This 2023, let’s find out which horses will conquer the Run for the Roses and which riders are atop the early favorites of the race.
Forte and Irad Ortiz Jr.
Forte is a heavy favorite in the upcoming Kentucky Derby this May 6 at Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky. The thoroughbreds Violence and Queen Caroline sired the dark bay colt. It was also South Gate Farm that bred the champion American thoroughbred racehorse. Now, he competes for his owners, Repole Stable & St. Elias Stable.
Forte was awarded the American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse in 2022. The award was conferred based on his impressive wins in the 2022 Breeders’ Futurity, 2022 Hopeful Stakes, and 2022 Breeders’ Cup Juveline. In the current year, Forte has clinched the Fountain of Youth Stakes, Breeders’ Cup, and Florida Derby. Forte is yet to reach the peak of his racing career, and winning the 2023 Kentucky Derby could be it.
With such an illustrious racing record, besting all three races in the Triple Crown Series is also possible!
Irad Ortiz Jr will mount Forte in the 2023 Kentucky Derby. In his career, the 30-year-old Puerto Rican rider has won over 30 major stakes, not to mention 14 Breeders’ Cup titles and two Belmont Stakes wins. He was awarded the 4x Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022. Ortiz also received the Shoemaker Award in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021.
Practical Move and Ramon A. Vazquez
Bred by Chad Brown & Head of Plains Partners, Practical Move has secured second rank in the 2023 Kentucky Derby contenders leaderboard. Tim Yakteen trained the three-year-old bay colt. Practical Move’s stakes wins include the 2022 Los Alamitos Futurity, 2023 San Felipe Stakes, and the recent RUNHAPPY Santa Anita Derby last April 8, 2023. His parents are Practical Joke and Ack Naughty, who was an offspring of Afleet Alex, a multi-placed stakes winner and a premium sire of exceptional runners like Afleet Again and Texas Red.
Ramon A. Vazquez will ride Practical Move in the Run for the Roses. He is a Puerto Rican rider like Irad Ortiz Jr. The 37-year-old rider mounted Practical Move in the 2023 Santa Anita Derby. His ultimate career goal is to win the Kentucky Derby, and this might be the season for him and the bay colt Practical Move.
Angel of Empire and Flavien Prat
Trained by industry leader Brad H. Cox, the bay colt is set to top the 2023 Kentucky Derby, as he has managed to collect 154 points for the American Classic. Angel of Empire is owned by Albaugh Family Stables LLC. Forgotten Land Investment Inc & Black Diamond Equine Corp in Pennsylvania bred him. Angel of Empire placed second in the 2023 Smarty Jones Stakes at Oaklawn Park. He then finished first in his next two races, namely the 2023 Risen Star S. at FairGrounds and the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park.
His rider is Flavien Prat, a 30-year-old charismatic rider from France. Currently, Prat has a total of 1249 career wins in his belt. He was known for winning the 2019 Kentucky Derby and 2021 Preakness Stakes and four Breeders’ Cup races. He received the French Champion Apprentice Jockey in 2009. He ranked fifth in the National Earnings List for Jockeys 2021.
Tapit Trice and Luis Saez
Tapit Trice secured 150 qualifying points for the 2023 Kentucky Derby. He won the 2023 Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby at Tampa Bay Downs and the 2023 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland. The famous Todd A. Pletcher trains this gray colt. He is owned by Whisper Hill Farm, LLC and Gainesway Stable and bred by Gainesway Thoroughbreds Ltd.
Luis Saez, another 30-year-old rider on our list, will be riding Tapit Trice in the Kentucky Derby. Saez already conquered the Kentucky Derby in 2019 atop Maximum Security. However, the pair got disqualified due to a drug violation. Nonetheless, they won the $20,000,000 Saudi Cup in 2020, the richest race in the whole world. Moreover, Saez won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile in 2020, Dubai World Cup in 2021, and the Belmont Stakes in 2021.
Conclusion
The horses we mentioned here, along with their jockeys, dominate the current race leaderboards. Still, it’s not the final list. And them being at the top doesn’t make them the sure winner. However, these predictions could all be hit-and-miss, so do your due diligence and research all of the qualifying contenders entering the field of the 2023 Kentucky Derby.
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