Comma to the Top removed from Derby Future Wager

Last updated: 3/31/11 6:09 PM

Comma to the Top’s connections have, at present, opted to skip the Kentucky Derby
(Benoit Photos)

Grade 1 winner Comma to the Top has been removed from
the roster of wagering interests for this week’s third and final pool of
Churchill Downs’ Kentucky Derby Future Wager (KDFW) after trainer Peter
Miller confirmed to a track official that the horse will not be entered
in the Kentucky Derby (Grade 1) on May 7.

“Peter Miller has confirmed that he and the ownership group have no
plans to run Comma to the Top in the Kentucky Derby, although the horse
is doing well and is still being pointed toward a run in next week’s
Santa Anita Derby (Grade 1),” said John Asher, vice president, racing
communications at Churchill Downs. “Although Mr. Miller could not
absolutely rule out a change of heart should Comma to the Top run a
spectacular race at Santa Anita, a bid for the Kentucky Derby is clearly
not in his current plans for the horse.

“Since we did receive this word before the wagering on Kentucky Derby
Future Pool 3 opens on Friday, no win or exacta wagering will be
accepted on Comma to the Top in Pool 3. But, in this unusual situation,
Comma to the Top will go back into the Mutuel Field, or ‘All Others’, on
the remote chance that he could still compete in the Kentucky Derby.

“The Derby Future bet carries a higher risk than most pari-mutuel
wagers, so this decision to freeze wagering on Comma to the Top is an
effort to look out for the best interests of all patrons who support
this special wager.”

Comma to the Top, winner of the CashCall Futurity (Grade 1) at Hollywood Park in
mid-December, was one of the most accomplished two-year-olds of 2010 and has run
fourth in his two starts this year in the San Felipe (Grade 2) and El Camino Real
Derby (Grade 3). Miller said concerns about the gelding’s ability to handle the
Kentucky Derby’s 1 1/4-mile distance has prompted his connections to focus on
goals for Comma to the Top other than the big race at Churchill Downs on the
first Saturday in May.

The suspension of wagering on Comma to the Top in the April 1-3 KDFW leaves
Pool 3 with 22 individual horses and the Mutuel Field, which includes all
three-year-olds other than the individual wagering interests in the pool.

Wagering on KDFW Pool 3 opens at noon (EDT) on Friday at racetracks and
off-track betting centers, and through
TwinSpires.com and other
advance deposit wagering platforms. Betting on the pool is scheduled to close at
6 p.m. on Sunday.