Trainer Bob Baffert told the Churchill Downs communications team Tuesday
afternoon that Super Ninety Nine and Den’s Legacy were no longer under
consideration for the $2 million Kentucky Derby.
“After speaking with my owners, we’ve decided not to run Super Ninety Nine
and Den’s Legacy in the Kentucky Derby,” Baffert said via telephone from
California. “Based on their recent form, we just didn’t feel they’d be
competitive enough to win. They’re both good horses, but we’ll look for
something else down the road. We realize there are some other horses on the
‘bubble’ with the hope of running and we wanted to get this information out as
soon as possible to make sure they’d have every opportunity to run and prepare
for a start in the Derby.”
Super Ninety Nine, owned by Susan Chu’s Tanma Corporation, was ranked No. 18
with 30 points on the “Road to the Kentucky Derby Presented by TwinSpires.com”
Leaderboard that determines which 20 horses would have preference for America’s
greatest race. After winning Oaklawn Park’s Southwest by 11 1/4 lengths in
February, Super Ninety Nine returned to finish fifth in the Rebel and a distant
third in the Santa Anita Derby.
Den’s Legacy, a runner-up in the Sham and Robert Lewis and third in the
CashCall Futurity and Rebel, finished sixth in the Arkansas Derby for Scott and
Joe Ford’s Westrock Stable. He had 20 points, which ranked 20th.
Baffert, a three-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer, still has runaway
Sunland Derby winner Govenor Charlie (No. 11) on target for the Derby and
possibly Code West (No. 21) and Power Broker (No. 24).
“As for Code West and Power Broker, we haven’t made any decisions yet about
their Derby status,” Baffert said. “I’ll be in (Louisville) Saturday and I want
to watch them train over the track and see what happens. They’ll work again
Sunday or Monday, but I won’t make final decisions about those two until I have
to.”
Baffert also reported that Fiftyshadesofhay won’t run in the $1 million
Kentucky Oaks on May 3.
“But she could go in the Eight Belles or Black-Eyed Susan,” Baffert said.
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