The countdown to the 2020 Kentucky Derby is now firmly on, with many of the leading contenders set to ramp up their preparations over the next few weeks.
The revised schedule means the Derby will be the second leg of this season’s Triple Crown, throwing up the possibility that an unheralded prospect could emerge as a strong contender.
Belmont Stakes sinner Tiz the Law is the current 6/4 favourite in the Kentucky Derby odds to win the race and may well be shorter by the time September 5 comes around.
Read on as we assess his hopes of winning the race and look at two other horses that we believe pose the biggest threat to his chances.
Tiz Hoping to Lay Down the Law
Tiz the Law was an impressive winner of the Belmont Stakes and it will take a good horse to lower his colours at Churchill Downs.
Barclay Tagg’s stable star will warm-up for the big event with a run in the Travers Stakes at Saratoga on August 8, and the 10-furlong trip should be right up his street.
Tiz the Law was unbeaten as a juvenile and he had little trouble maintaining that record with two stylish victories at Gulfstream Park earlier in the season.
He won the Belmont with consummate ease during June and the prep race at Saratoga should put him spot on for his bid to win the Derby.
Confidence Growing Behind Honor A.P.
Honor A. P. jumped towards the head of the betting for the race after producing a stylish display to win the Santa Anita Derby during early June.
He comfortably brushed aside Authentic in that race, gaining his revenge for a defeat by the same horse in the San Felipe Stakes earlier in the season.
However, Honor A. P. had suffered a minor setback prior to that run and clearly wasn’t fully wound up for his first clash with Authentic.
The California-based horse is scheduled to run in the Shared Belief at Del Mar on August 1 and a victory there would cement his status as Tiz the Law’s main challenger.
Cezanne on Track to Upset the Odds
Cezanne is the latest ‘talking horse’ to come out of Bob Baffert’s stable and he could turn out to be something special.
Purchased as a two-year-old for $3.65 million by the Coolmore team of John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith, the son of Curlin has won first two races in impressive fashion.
With Charlatan and Nadal both ruled out of the race and Authentic being beaten by Honor A.P., Baffert’s best hope of victory could well be Cezanne.
He is likely to have at least one more run before the Derby and looks good value at odds of around 12/1 to give Baffert his sixth win in the event.
Feature image for illustration only.
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Suzanne Ashton, Founder of Everything Horse (Est, 2012), has a BA Hons in Marketing Management and a Diploma in Equine Science. Suzanne has ridden and owned horses all her life and has twelve years of experience in marketing, writing, design, SEO, and website creation.