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WOOD MEM’L April 5, 2014
Derby qualifying points: 100-40-20-10 STAKES HISTORY Pletcher leans toward a 4th Wood win in the last 5 years.
KEY INGREDIENTS TO THE WOOD: It‘s impossible to look at the current Wood Memorial without acknowledging how much the repositioned dates of the Florida & Louisiana Derbies have impacted its quality. The days of Funny Cide-Empire Maker are a decade gone with NO Derby placings since. NYRA‘s key nine-furlong prep on the dirt is in danger of becoming 2nd-tier. MOST RECENT RENEWAL: Verrazano had to work harder than expected, but was a game winner over a fast-closing Normandy Invasion. The winner rewarded his odds-on backers, but distance limitations began to creep in. TRIPLE CROWN IMPACT: Since Florida Derby‘s ‘06 rise, consider this ledger:
Ky Derby: Verrazano (14th, ‘13), Normany Invasion (4th, ‘13), Vyjack (18th. ‘13), Gemologist (16th, ‘12), Alpha (12th, ‘12), Jackson Bend (12th, ‘10), Awesome Act (19th, ‘10), West Side Bernie (9th, ‘09), Atomic Rain (16th, ‘09), Tale of Ekati (4th, ‘08), Anak Nakal (7th, ‘08), Court Vision (13th, ‘08), Nobiz Like Shobiz (10th, ‘07)
HANDICAPPER’S AIDES: Last 10 Wood Memorial Winners
BRIS Fig
‘13 Verrazano Velazquez Pletcher ‘12 Gemologist Castellano Pletcher ‘11 Toby‘s Corner Castro Motion ‘10 Eskendereya Velazquez Pletcher ‘09 I Want Revenge Talamo Mullins ‘08 Tale Of Ekati Prado Tagg ‘07 Nobiz Like Shobiz C. Velasquez Tagg ‘06 Bob And John Gomez Baffert ‘05 Bellamy Road Castellano Zito ‘04 Tapit Dominguez Dickinson
100 104 97 102 109 100 102 103 115 98
Last 10 Wood Memorial Winners’ Preps ‘13 Verrazano 1st ‘12 Gemologist 1st ‘11 Toby‘s Corner 3rd ‘10 Eskendereya 1st ‘09 I Want Revenge 1st ‘08 Tale Of Ekati 6th ‘07 Nobiz Like Shobiz 3rd ‘06 Bob and John 3rd ‘05 Bellamy Road 1st ‘04 Tapit 6th
Tampa Bay Derby (Tam) Allowance (GP) Gotham (Aqu) Fountain of Youth (GP) Gotham (Aqu) Louisiana Derby (FG) Fountain of Youth (GP) San Felipe (SA) Allowance (GP) Florida Derby (GP)
Preakness: Teeth of the Dog (5th, ‘12), Tiger Walk (8th, ‘12), Isn‘t He Perfect (9th, ‘11), Norman Asbjornson (11th, ‘11), Jackson Bend (3rd, ‘10), Schoolyard Dreams (‗9th, ‘10), Giant Moon (8th, ‘08)
Inside the Wood Memorial Favorites have won four of the last five, though the last 10 winners have come from several different circuits and preps. Entering off a win isn‘t a must either, as half of the last 10 winners lost their prior starts. Todd Pletcher‘s deep bench has won three of the last four Wood Memorial offerings via Florida.
Belmont: Vyjack (8th, ‘13), Freedom Child (13th, ‘13), Street Life (4th, ‘12), My Adonis (8th, ‘12), Isn‘t He Perfect (12th, ‘11), Anak Nakal (3rd, ‘08), Tale of Ekati (6th, ‘08).
Countdown for the Wood Memorial 28 days until Derby 42 days until Preakness 63 days until Belmont