Less than 12 hours after the blanket of roses was removed from Kentucky Derby winner Orb, representatives from the Maryland Jockey Club (MJC) were busy at Churchill Downs recruiting Derby runners for the second leg of the Triple Crown.

One of the first to commit to running in the Preakness and shipped in to Old Hilltop was Goldencents, 17^th in the Derby. The 3-year-old son of Into Mischief, trained by Doug O’Neill is following the exact schedule as the 2012 Derby and Preakness winner, I’ll Have Another.

Goldencents arrived at Pimlico in the wee hours of Tuesday morning (1:30am) with assistant trainer Jack Sisterson and much of the same crew who handled I’ll Have Another while in Baltimore. The only diversion is the jockey. Last year Mario Gutierrez was the jockey, but this year Kevin Krigger got the call, as he is the only jockey who has ever ridden Goldencents in his seven career starts.

In an unusual move, Krigger came to Pimlico 10 days in advance of the Preakness to prepare, gallop and workout Goldencents. At the same time, Krigger is sacrificing mounts on the west coast in return for dedication to Team O’Neill. It’s a gamble the St. Croix native has no qualms taking.

As of this writing (Wednesday, May 8th) the list of Preakness contenders stand at 12, they are:

 Goldencents (Krigger/O’Neill; 17th in KY Derby) – confirmed; arrived on May 7th

 Orb (Rosario/McGaughey; 1st in KY Derby) – confirmed; will ship on May 14^th

 Departing (Hernandez/Stall; 1st in Illinois Derby) – confirmed; will ship on May 15th

 Oxbow (Stevens/Lukas; 6th in KY Derby) – confirmed

 Will Take Charge (M. Smith/Lukas; 8th in KY Derby) – confirmed

 Itsmyluckyday (J. Velazquez/Plesa; 15th KY Derby) – confirmed

 Titletown Five (Leparoux/Lukas; 4th in Derby Trial) – confirmed

 Vyjack (TBA/Rodriguez;18th in KY Derby) – probable

 Governor Charlie (TBA/Baffert; 1st in Sunland Derby) – possible; decision after workout on Sunday or Monday

 Normandy Invasion (TBA/Brown; 4th in KY Derby) – possible; decision over the weekend

 Mylute (Napravnik/Amoss; 5th in KY Derby) – possible; decision will be made Saturday

 Street Spice (Sanchez/Geier; 5th in Illinois Derby) – possible; decision after weekend workout

Recapping Pimlico Day 20 selections from “Chalky” Sunday 10-race card posted had 6 winners (4 Top Selections in BOLD type) having $2 WIN pay-offs of $4.40 (2nd race), $8.00 (3rd), $3.80 (4th), $10.20 (5th), $4.00 (8th) and $2.60 (9th).

The BEST BET (19 8-2-2) Sir Cotton (R3 #5 3-1 PT; 2-1 M/L) received no early action at the betting windows (6-1) which is never a good sign for a 2-1 M/L. Come Post Time the foolish public thought they were getting a deal with those odds, and bet him down to 3-1, but he ran like a 6-1 or worse, racing along the rail towards the back, outrun beating just 1 rival in a six horse field.

The LONGSHOT PICK (19 4-1-2) Star Maneuver (R5 #7 13-1 PT; 20-1 M/L) was forwardly positioned early, turned for home in the four path while in contention to hit the board, but weakened in the final 1/16^th to finish 4^th.

The JockeyWorld.org racing term of the day is #129…  “Getting In”

Selections for the Day 21 Pimlico Thursday, May 9th card will be on Page 2.

Kentucky Derby Future Wager – Pool 2 betting starts noon Friday through 6:00 p.m. EST Sunday, March 3^rd

Todd Pletcher and Bob Baffert have 11 of the 23 individual interests in Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.

It took less than 3 weeks to determine six (6) from Pool 1 were not worthy to be included in Pool 2. They are Capo Bastone, Frac Daddy, Mylute, He’s Had Enough, Violence and Will Take Charge…  replaced by Ive Struck a Nerve, Orb, Palace Malice, Shakin It Up, Titletown Five and Treasury Bill.

Program# – horse – (trainer) —- last race ——— odds — [*GQ DDDR]

1.  Code West (Baffert) 2nd G2 Risen Star by nose  20-1  [N/R]

2.  Delhomme (Pletcher) 3rd G2 Remsen by ¾ length  50-1 [N/R]

3.  Den’s Legacy (Baffert) 2nd G2 Bob Lewis by 6¼   50-1 [N/R]

4.  Dynamic Sky (Casse) 2nd G3 Sam Davis by neck  50-1 [9]

5.  Falling Sky (Terranova) 1st G3 Sam Davis by neck  50-1 [N/R]

6.  Flashback (Baffert) 1st G2 Bob Lewis by 6¼  12-1 [8]

7.  Goldencents (O’Neill) 1st G3 Sham by 1½  20-1 [N/R]

8.  Itsmyluckyday (Plesa) 1st G3 Holy Bull by 2  12-1 [14]

9.  Ive Struck a Nerve (Desormeaux) 1st G2 Risen Star by nose 30-1 [N/R]

10.  Normandy Invasion (Brown) 5th G2 Risen Star by 1½  15-1 [10]

11. Orb (McGaughey) 1st G2 Fountain of Youth by ½  12-1 [N/R]

12. Overanalyze (Pletcher) 1st G2 Remsen by nose  20-1 [N/R]

13.  Oxbow (Lukas) 4th G2 Risen Star by ½  30-1 [N/R]

14.  Palace Malice (Pletcher) 3rd G2 Risen Star by ½  30-1 [N/R]

15.  Revolutionary (Pletcher) 1st G3 Withers by neck 12-1 [2]

16.  Shakin It Up (Baffert) 1st G2 San Vicente by length 15-1 [3]

17.  Shanghai Bobby (Pletcher) 2nd G3 Holy Bull by 2  15-1 [N/R]

18.  Super Ninety Nine (Baffert) 1st G3 Southwest by 11¼  10-1 [N/R]

19.  Titletown Five (Lukas) 1st Oct. 28 CD maiden by 9  30-1 [N/R]

20.  Treasury Bill (Ellis) 2nd G2 San Vicente by length  30-1 [4]

21.  Uncaptured (Casse) 1st G2 Ky Jockey Club by neck  30-1 [N/R]

22.  Verrazano (Pletcher) 1st GP allowance by 16¼  10-1 [N/R]

23.  Vyjack (Rodriguez) 1st G2 Jerome by head  30-1 [N/R]

24.  All other 3-year-olds  3-1

BOLD Type = new wagering interest in Pool 2

*GQ DDDR = GQ’s Derby Double Dozen Ranking from Feb. 9th blog