Pool #3 of the Kentucky Derby Future Pool closed February 26th. There is one more chance to wager the action, weeks in advance of the May 6th Derby. Pool #4 is scheduled for March 31-April 2. Here is recap of Pool #3 from bloodhorse.com.
After more than two days of wagering the always-popular “All Others” wagering interest was the narrow 5-1 favorite in the third of four pools of Churchill Downs‘ Kentucky Derby Future Wager, edging a tightly bunched group of individual contenders headed by unbeaten McCraken ( 5-1).
Odds climbed as high as 10-1 on the Mutuel Field, or “All Others,” midway through the Feb. 24-26 pool, but strong bettor support during Pool 3’s final six-hour session Sunday fueled a steady decline in those odds through the final position of 5-1 when wagering closed at 6 p.m. ET.
Along with the natural attraction of the mutuel field—which includes all 3-year-old Thoroughbreds other than the 23 individual horses in any respective KDFW Pool—support for that wagering interest likely received a boost from Saturday’s results in the Risen Star Stakes (G2) at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots. The top two finishers in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) prep at the New Orleans track—Brad Grady’s victorious Girvin and Michael Langford’s runner-up Untrapped—were both members in the “All Others” interest.
Whitham Thoroughbreds’ McCraken, trainer Ian Wilkes’ winner of the Kentucky Jockey Club (G2) at Churchill and Tampa Bay Downs‘ Sam F. Davis Stakes (G3), was the overall Pool 3 favorite throughout the first two days of betting and held on to close as the favored individual horse.
Close behind was a group that included Isabella De Tomaso’s unbeaten Irish War Cry, winner of the Holy Bull (G2) at Gulfstream Park, Cheyenne Stables’ unbeaten Mastery (8-1), winner of the Los Alamitos Futurity (G1); John Oxley’s 2-year-old champion and Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (GI) winner Classic Empire (11-1); and WinStar Farm, China Horse Club, and SF Racing’s One Liner (12-1), the unbeaten winner of Oaklawn Park‘s Southwest Stakes (G3).
The overall betting in KDFW Pool 3 totaled $373,354—an increase of 13.8% over the $328,109 wagered in 2016. The 2017 total included $250,280 in $2 win wagering and $123,075 in $2 exacta betting. The total wagering for the first three pools of the 2017 KDFW is $925,197, and the bet’s fourth and final three-day pool is scheduled for March 31-April 2.
