May 7 The Kentucky Derby is over. With the enjoyment of the Derby comes the sadness of its conclusion. Here are the race essentials, with payouts available on the hope page. Fusaichi Pegasus became the first favorite to win the Kentucky Derby since Spectacular Bid in 1979. What a dominating performance he put in. We've actually seen various times accredited to the colt in regards to his Derby peformance; we are going with 2:01.12, which puts him at the seventh-fastest time ever. Most impressive. His stretch run was reminiscent of his performance in the Wood Memorial, stalking the leaders in perfect position, then showing a brilliant run in the home stretch. The last two Derbies, which saw long shots Charismatic and Real Quiet surprise Derby handicappers, left some Derby fans with foul tastes in their mouths, somewhat uneasy that the best horse didn't win. (Granted, those two colts proved their mettle throughout the rest of the Triple Crown.) This year, however, there is no doubt that Fusaichi Pegasus is on another planet. Practically everyone thinks he can take the Triple Crown, which is a huge difference over the past two years. Fusaichi Pegasus has won each of his last five starts, including some major stakes races. There is no doubt he is something special. Aptitude and Impeachment were billed as the two closers in a race full of speed horses. They more than lived up to their billing. Aptitude even competed with Fusaichi Pegasus for a large part of the race. Who knows? Maybe if Aptitude found the rail a bit earlier, he could have wound up in better position to compete during the home stretch. He's headed to the Belmont, and we think he will give Fusaichi Pegasus a real run for his money at the Belmont. Impeachment is much of the same. Although he only showed by a nose, he was driving hard at the end and really making up some ground. One could argue that the Belmont distance is best suited for Impeachment, but he will have to be able to stay a tad closer to Fusaichi Pegasus if he hopes to pull off a mammoth surprise. But a rematch of these three at the Belmont ought to be very compelling. Now for some pleasant surprises and some disappointments. More Than Ready really hung tough on Derby Day. This colt has been blessed with lots of potential, but just hasn't been able to put together his best race and to get a big victory against the big boys. But as usual he battled gamely, and gave trainer Todd Pletcher two horses in the first four finishers. As the son of 1990 Derby winner Unbridled, Wheelaway should not have been such a surprise, but the fact is, as a mutuel field horse, he put a big scare into a lot of people. This horse was in contention at the head of the stretch, and practically no one predicted that to happen. Finishing next were the Arabian horses, China Visit in sixth and Curule in seventh. What a way to match Worldly Manner's showing last Derby; Saeed bin Suroor matched last year and even found a way to improve. Bottom line with this pair: they beat most of the other Derby contenders. Godolphin Stable is more than on its way in becoming a major force in the Kentucky Derby. We honestly weren't sure what we'd get with Captain Steve. Bob Baffert held his own this year, doing admirably with what he had. The distance seemed to catch up to Captain Steve, but he fought gamely. War Chant was even more tired after running with the winner for awhile. At seven furlongs he hit a major wall, jeopardizing his participation in any more Triple Crown races. Major disappointments in the Derby were the The Deputy, who absolutely never fired in the race and was never in contention. Trainer Jenine Sahadi will take the colt back to California, and probably race him next on turf--it was a bad day for The Deputy. HighYield couldn't make it happen, either, and he was pushed outside of the rail and even still tired in the stretch. His streak of being competitive in major races is over, and it looks like this one may have peaked. Anees also couldn't put it together, and yet again a Breeders' Cup Juvenile champ fails to win the Derby. It will be interesting to see what happens with that streak.  Apr. 30 Weekly reports? Who needs weekly reports at this time of year? Derby week is here! Can you believe it? The best week of the year is here, and the best day of the year is less than a week away. Hold on to your Derby hats, folks. It's gonna be a thriller. There's nothing to report here that doesn't belong in the tip sheet, so head there to get a horse-by-horse breakdown of what looks to be a capacity Derby field of twenty horses.  Apr. 23 The Coolmore Lexington Stakes looked to be the last major Derby prep race, and it took on extra importance as Charismatic, last year's Derby winner, won the Coolmore last year. But the winner was longshot Unshaded, who has not even been nominated for the Triple Crown. Globalize came in second, and is questionable for the Derby, while Commendable, trained by D. Wayne Lukas, will probably go on ahead to the Derby despite his fourth-place finisher. He will be the third colt in Lukas's stable, along with High Yield and Exchange Rate. The biggest news of the week, however, was not who is going to be in the Derby but who won't be in the Derby. Two leading contenders were announced to be officially out of contention for Derby 126. First, Red Bullet was taken out of the race, as trainer Joe Orseno felt his colt wasn't ready and will be better suited to take a break and will be pointed towards the Preakness. Red Bullet has had at least several weeks off before each race, and the Derby, according to Orseno, was just too soon for the horse. A bold move, and one that is rarely seen in this day and of age. Watch out for Red Bullet in the Preakness, as he will be prepared. On Saturday, it was announced that Mighty developed carpal tunnel syndrome in his knees, and will be taking at least two weeks and probably a month of training, thereby eliminating his participation in the Triple Crown season. His owner, Dr. Frank Brothers, said that the slight injury may have come from running on a deep track at Keeneland in the Blue Grass Stakes, and that the injury is not severe. Mighty will race again, it's just that the timing is very unfortunate. This development leaves Shane Sellers without a definite mount for the Derby, but contenders Graeme Hall, Impeachment and Trippi are all looking for riders, so he shouldn't have a problem getting a ticket to ride. More and more of the horses will be arriving at Churchill Downs, including the horses from the Godolphin Stable of Saudi Arabia. Remember, Chief Seattle is probably going to be running in the Derby, and he remains one of the biggest question marks heading into the race. Definitely one to keep your eye on. More on this colt and others at the Derby Post tip sheet.  Apr. 16 It was the most significant weekend of the Derby prep race season, and we now have a definite favorite for Derby 126 as well as a handful of considerable contenders. The big three races answered a lot of questions about the Derby 126 crop, while, as usual, a few new questions were raised as well. The feature attraction of the weekend was the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct. In it, fans were waiting to see if Fusaichi Pegasus was really as strong as commentators think he is. The answer is a most resounding yes. He looked like a professional among aspirants in dismissing a superbly qualified field of 11 other horses in the $750,000, 1 1/8 miles Wood Memorial. Although Fusaichi Pegasus seemed distracted both before and after the race--stopping his parade to the post and to the winner's circle by staring off into the distance--he grabbed the lead in the middle of the homestretch, and pulled away with a full tank of gas to win by 4 1/4 lengths. Red Bullet, who suffered the first loss of his career, was just off the pace the entire race and finished in second, while the fast-closing Aptitude came in third; all three top finishers will head to the Derby. Jockey Kent Desormeaux held Fusaichi Pegasus in along the backstretch, then placed his colt on the outside during the turn. Once the 4-5 favorite switched leads at the top of the turn, he was off and not even close to being caught. The horse comes from Mr. Prospector, who has sired more stakes winners than any other stud in history. Without doubt, this horse is the real deal. He has finised no worse than second in all five of his career starts, and will be as clear-cut a Derby favorite as the finest race in the world has seen in years. Fusaichi Pegasus will have competition, however. In the $750,000, 1 1/8 miles Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland, the D. Wayne Lukas-trained and Pat Day-ridden High Yield showed his determination and grit in holding off More Than Ready down the stretch. In his last race, in the Florida Derby, High Yield lost by only a neck to Hal's Hope. This time High Yield held the upper hand. (Pat Day won his fourth career Blue Grass Stakes and is now tied in all-time victories at Keeneland.) Hal's Hope, More Than Ready and, surprisingly, High Yield, all made a move for the lead at the first turn. Midway through the second turn, More Than Ready, ridden by John Velazquez and trained by Todd Pletcher, was right on the heels of High Yield while Hal's Hope, with Shane Sellers aboard, was running in third. Hal's Hope disappeared, but More Than Ready gave High Yield all he could handle in the stretch. More Than Ready hung on for second, while Wheelaway came in third. One of the biggest surprises of the race was the performance of Mighty, who had the far outside post position, never contended, and finished in last. It was a strange turn of events for the Louisiana Derby winner. Maybe the track bias affected the outcome, but High Yield definitely showed his mettle. Going into the race, both Hal's Hope and Mighty were definite favorites for the Derby; now, their participation in the race is in question. It doesn't seem like a speed horse like Hal's Hope could win the Derby, but Mighty is a real question mark. It's very difficult to tell what is going on with this horse. The third big race of the day was the one exception in that it didn't hold to form. Longshot Graeme Hall upset favorite Snuck In to win the $500,000 1 1/8 miles Arkansas Derby. It capped off a busy day for trainer Todd Pletcher, a former D. Wayne Lukas assistant. Pletcher just missed by a head with More Than Ready in the Blue Grass Stakes, and now along with More Than Ready and Graeme Hall, could also send Arkansas Derby third place finisher Impeachment as well as Flamingo winner Trippi to the Kentucky Derby. Graeme Hall took the lead on the first turn, and held it the rest of the way. Robbie Albarado rode Graeme Hall to the comfortable victory, but now has a tough choice to make: he has also ridden Captain Steve in three of that colt's last four races. Snuck In fell to sixth midway during the race, and it was all he could do just to finish second in only his second start of the year. Snuck In trainer Steve Asmussen said that Snuck In will head to the Illinois Derby rather than the Kentucky Derby. Second-favorite Elite Mercedes finished a few lengths behind Impeachment to come in fourth. While there are still a few races next weekend, that pretty much wraps up the Derby prep race season. Weekly reports will continue, but keep your eye on the tipsheet for updated info on the individual horses.  Apr. 9 First off, Call to the Derby Post must apologize for the absence of weekly reports over the last few weeks. The editors of DerbyPost.com moved their offices to a new city, and it has taken some time to get things back up to speed. But we are up and running again, and just in time to catch you up on the two big races of this past weekend, and in plenty of time for the huge weekend facing us in the week ahead. Thanks for your patience and understanding as we switched barns; now let's get ready for the home stretch to the Derby. It was an exciting weekend for Derby conteders. First, let's start in Florida at Gulfstream, where the Flamingo Stakes was held. There was really only one major Derby contender in this race, and the question was whether or not Trippi, who went off as an even-money favorite, could handle the 1 1/8 miles distance of the $250,000 race. Indeed he did, as he won the race convincingly by leading wire to wire. The speedy but inexperienced colt dueled with Kombat Kat the entire way, but held on to win by one length, while Skip a Grade was a distant 8 1/2 lengths back in third. Ridden by Eibar Coa, Trippi took the lead early by taking advantage of the number one post. Trippi had a comfortable lead until Kombat Kat made his move at the quarter pole, but Trippi had plenty of gas left in the tank to hold on for the victory. Trainer Todd Pletcher said after the race that he would have to confer with Dogwood Stable president Cot Cambell (Trippi is owned by Dogwood Stable), but that the Kentucky Derby would likely be the horse's next race. Coupled with his win in the Swale Stakes, it seems Trippi definitely deserves a shot at the roses, though it will be a jump up in class for him. Still, this horse has proven too much this spring to keep him away from Louisville. Although Trippi's pedigree suggests he is more of a speed horse, he handled the distance well. Trippi's normal rider is Jerry Bailey, but Bailey chose to ride War Chant in the Santa Anita Derby instead. He will have a tough choice in the next few weeks. Trippi is named after Hall of Fame football player Charlie Trippi; he was unraced as a two-year old (a major strike against him) but has improved consistently this spring. The feature race of the day, however, took place on the other coast at the Santa Anita Derby. Despite the small six-horse field, the race offered an important look at several major Derby contenders. The Deputy, coming off a second-place finish to Fusaichi Pegasus in the San Felipe Stakes, won the $1 million race and is trained by Jenine Sahadi, who became the first woman trainer of a Santa Anita Derby winner and will now make an attempt to do the same in the Kentucky Derby. The Deputy, ridden by Chris McCarron, finished one length ahead of the previously undefeated War Chant, who in turn was two lengths ahead of Captain Steve. The rest of the field included Anees, the filly Surfside and Cocky. Bob Baffert, who was aiming for his third straight Santa Anita Derby win and his fourth in five years, saw his streak come to an end when Captain Steve finished third. The Deputy, an Irish-bred horse, has won three of his four starts in America this year. The Deputy and War Chant were running even as they turned for home, but The Deputy turned it on at the quarter pole for the victory. Trainer Sahadi said that The Deputy will be shipped to Kentucky in the middle of next week. The Deputy is owned by Gary Barber, who produced the movie The Sixth Sense, and Team Valor, an ownership syndicate that is headed by Barry Irwin and that sent Captain Bodgit to a second-place finish in the 1998 Derby. The filly Surfside took the lead as the gates opened, and held the lead through the backstretch. War Chant made a move on the far turn, but was then caught and eventually passed by The Deputy. Cocky was never a factor, Surfside faded and should probably head for the Oaks but may still get a shot in the Derby, Anees failed to spark in the homestretch and Captain Steve also failed to spark down the wire. There will be even more action next weekend, as ABC will be showing the Blue Grass Stakes, the Arkansas Derby and the Wood Memorial. Check back throughout the week for reports on these races, and also check the tipsheet (which will be updated in a day or two at the latest) for coverage of the Derby contenders.  Mar. 19 Two Derby contenders who had been patiently waiting in the shadows burst back onto the Derby scene over the weekend. The highly-touted and as yet mostly unseen Fusaichi Pegasus, running the 1 1/16 mile, $250,000 San Felipe Stakes, held off The Deputy and Chris McCarron to take the race. Kent Desormeaux rode Fusaichi Pegasus, while Anees and Jerry Bailey finished third. Anees, who hadn't raced since winning the Breeders' Cup Juvenile on November 6, was a "little rusty mentally," according to jockey Bailey. Fusaichi Pegasus is the $4 million-bred son of Mr. Prospector, and was purchased by a Japanese entrepreneur in July 1998. Fusaichi Pegasus was off the pace going into the stretch, but dueled Irish-bred The Deputy down the stretch. The Deputy showed an impressive surge after falling to seven lengths behind the leader, while Anees raced wide into the stretch for third. All three horses are being geared for the April 8 Santa Anita Derby. On the other side of the country at Aqueduct, Red Bullet won his first stakes race in only his third career start. The chestnut-colt, who was fifth for most of the race, took the lead inside the eighth pole and held off a charge by Aptitude to win by a half-length. Red Bullet will next run in the Wood Memorial, then the Derby if all goes well for him there. All of his starts have been as three-year old; the last Derby champ to go unraced as a two-year old was Apollo in 1883. Alex Solis was aboard Red Bullet since regular rider Jerry Bailey took the ride on Anees in the San Felipe while Joe Orseno is the trainer. Aptitude, ridden by Brice Blanc and trained by Bobby Frankel, will also point towards the Wood Memorial. Performing Magic had Garret Gomez aboard and finished third. Without question, these two winners have been thrust right into the middle of the Derby picture.  Mar. 12 It was a terribly exciting weekend, with four legitimate Derby prep races. The racing was excellent, and the pulse was beating. We are now thick in Derby fever, as some horses are really making names for themselves. First off, let's look at the action at Gulfstream Park. In the $750,000, 1 1/8 mile Florida Derby, Hal's Hope continued his impressive 2000 season with a victory over favorite High Yield. That order was reversed in the Fountain of Youth stakes, but Hal's Hope trainer, 88-year old Harold Rose, said that his colt bled in that race and was placed on Lasix. It seemed to do the trick. Hal's Hope broke to the lead early in the Florida Derby, relinquishing it only briefly to High Yield at the eighth pole. The two horses were pretty even in the stretch, when High Yield, ridden by Pat Day and trained by D. Wayne Lukas, made a move to the rail as the track has been favoring speed horses. But Hal's Hope and jockey Roger Velez were hard to catch, and now that horse is well on his way to the Derby. His next race will either by the Blue Grass Stakes or Wood Memorial. High Yield will be pointed towards the Blue Grass Stakes; Takhoda Hills finished third, about ten lengths behind the leader. Other action at Gulfstream on Saturday included the $100,000 Swale Stakes. Trippi, the 4-5 favorite ridden by Jerry Bailey, came from behind to remain on the Derby trail as he has now won all three of his career starts. He will be pointed to either the Spiral Stakes or Flamingo Stakes, moving up gradually to Derby contender-ship. Ultimate Warrior finished second in the race while Harlan Traveler was third. The other action on Saturday took place across the country at Bay Meadows in Northern California in the $200,000, 1 1/16 mile El Camino Real Derby. Last year's Derby winner Charismatic finished second in the El Camino Real. This year it was longshot Remember Sheikh who won the race by 1 1/2 lenghs by coming from behind to overtake True Confidence, leaving trainer D. Wayne Lukas with his second consecutive second in the El Camino Real. Remember Sheikh, ridden by Frank Alvarado, has not yet been nominated for the Triple Crown, but might be nominated by the April 1 deadline so he could be eligible for the Preakness. And in the other major race of the weekend, the 1 1/16 mile, $750,000 Louisiana Derby, Mighty, ridden by Shane Sellers and trained by Frank Brothers, was just that. Once last in the field, he overtook More Than Ready deep in the home stretch to win a Derby prep race which many considered to contain the strongest crop of Derby hopefuls. More Than Ready had led the entire way, but once Mighty made his move past 2-1 favorite Captain Steve, he had More Than Ready in his sights and won going away. Captain Steve, trained by Bob Baffert, held on for third, while D. Wayne Lukas-trained Exchange Rate finished fourth. By coming off the pace and by handling his first two-turn race so well, trainer Todd Pletcher thinks he's got a serios contender in Mighty. Captain Steve will next run in the Blue Grass Stakes along with Hal's Hope and High Yield. One sad piece of info to come out of last week was the injury to Greenwood Lake, which will most likely end his racing career. The top colt in Nick Zito's barn is now Bare Outline, who finished with the pack in the Florida Derby. And we almost forgot the lady. Suppose it should have been Ladies' first, but better late than never. In the $300,000, 1 1/16 miles Santa Anita Oaks, Surfside, trained by D. Wayne Lukas and ridden by Pat Day, won the race by 3/4 of a length over Kumari Continent. Surfside has now won four straight, and seven of nine lifetime starts. Bred out of Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew, she has already won over $1 million. Her next race will be telling, as it will come against the boys in the Santa Anita Derby on April 8.  Mar. 5 There were two Derby prep races over the weekend, highlighted by the San Rafael Stakes at Santa Anita. The six-horse race was won by War Chant, who won the mile-long, $200,000 stakes by a half-length over Archer City Slew. War Chant, who was ridden by Kent Desormeaux, is now 3-3 as a three-year old, although it should be noted that no winner of the San Rafael Stakes has ever gone on to win the Kentucky Derby. Archer City Slew, with Chris Antley aboard, stormed out of the gate and battled War Chant for the lead for most of the race. War Chant took a slight lead on the backstretch while being pressed by Archer City Slew, the pair ran together through the top of the stretch, but then War Chant made his move in the stretch to take the lead for good. Archer City Slew made his first race with two turns, and finished ahead of third-place finisher Cocky, with Corey Nakatani aboard, by 3/4 of a length. There was no word on what is next for Archer City Slew, but both War Chant and Cocky will be pointed towards the April 8 Santa Anita Derby. In other Triple Crown related news this week, city officials in Baltimore cited Pimlico Park, home of the Preakness Stakes, for safety and fire hazards and required the track to make adjustments before this year's running of the Preakness. Pimlico was already set for some renovation, but those plans were geared towards luxury boxes and air conditioning, and not the grandstand area which was cited as a hazard by a local commission. The other Derby prep race over the weekend was the John Battaglia Memorial at Turfway Park. The race was won by Nature, Valiant Style came in second and Soldiers Fortune came in third. More details about this race will be published once they become available.  Feb. 27 Not much news to report this week, as there were no Derby prep races over the weekend. There are a few notes to report that have not yet been covered by Call to the Derby Post. First, Summer Note, who was 3-3 and finished in a dead-heat with More Than Ready in the Hutcheson Stakes, injured his leg and will miss the Kentucky Derby. Injuries such as these happen every year; let's just hope the number of horses knocked out of contention stays low. Another topic not yet covered here is the status of Chuchill Downs' future wagering. Their are three different pools, with 23 entries plus one as "other" that includes all other 3-year old horses. "Other" isn't such a bad bet as it did produce Charismatic last year. At any rate, the 23 leading contenders right now include War Chant and the filly Surfside. The first pool is now closed, but the dates for the next two pools are March 9-12 and April 13-16. Also, although the contest has already begun, the official site of Churchill Downs is sponsoring its Road to the Roses challenge, which lets you pick your own stable in hopes of winning tickets to Derby 127. For more info, check out the Call to the Derby Post tip sheet for a look at this year's contenders.  Feb. 20 First, Call to the Derby Post must apologize for not publishing a weekly report last week. The editors were out of town on vacation, which wasn't such a big deal because there wasn't so much action last week anyway. This past week, however, especially today and yesterday, saw plenty of Derby action, most notably the Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream and the Risen Star at the Fair Grounds. Let's get right to it, starting with the Fountain of Youth. The Fountain of Youth Stakes was the first major prep race of the 2000 season, and all of the heavy hitters were on board. The race saw three horses make a name for themselves, while one other left with some question marks. Favorite High Yield led wire-to-wire to win the $200,000, 1 1/16 mile Fountain of Youth Stakes by 3 1/4 lengths. Trainer D. Wayne Lukas shipped in his colt from the West Coast, and he did not disappoint. Also making another strong effort was upset Holy Bull Stakes winner Hal's Hope, who finished second while chasing High Yield the entire race. And keeping the mold of start to finish in order, Elite Mercedes was also third the whole way, finishing 2 1/2 lengths behind Hal's Hope. In his most recent performance, High Yield finished second to The Deputy at the Santa Catalina Stakes on Jan. 30. High Yield, who is owned by both Bob and Beverly Lewis and Michael Tabor, will remain in Florida and will be pointed to the March 11 Florida Derby. High Yield, with Pat Day aboard, led the whole way, but Hal's Hope, who had Roger Velez aboard, caught up to him at the three-eighths pole. High Yield, who was the 2-1 favorite, opened things up in the stretch and won comfortably, giving Lukas his third Fountain of Youth. Hal's Hope now looks like a real contender and will also start training for the Florida Derby. Greenwood Lake disappointed coming in fourth but finished the race impressively enough to stay in Derby contention. In other Derby prep race news, and continuing the successful weekend of D. Wayne Lukas, Exchange Rate came out on top in the Risen Star Stakes at the Fair Grounds in Louisiana. Exchange Rate, ridden by Corey Nakatani, won his first stakes race in the 1 1/16 mile, $125,000 Risen Star by holding off second-place finisher Mighty by 1 1/4 lengths. Ifitstobeitsuptome finished a nose behind Mighty to finish third in the eight-horse field. Exchange Rate was the slight favorite over Mighty, and pulled ahead of longshot Peninsula in midstretch. Mighty, who was fifth at the turn, gained ground in the stretch. Jockey Shane Sellers tried to pull Mighty between Exchange Rate and Ifitstobeitsuptome, but Exchange Rate pulled away for the victory. This was the first two-turn race for Exchange Rate, who was coming off a victory in a Santa Anita turf sprint. The colt, out of Danzig, will now start preparing for the Louisiana Derby on March 12. Combined with the success of High Yield, the California horses have already started to make some big noise.  Feb. 6 Since it's only the first week in February, the Derby picture is supposed to be unclear and up in the air. But results at Santa Anita the last two weeks have added an even greater sense of complication. One week after Captain Steve and High Yield were upset in the Santa Catalina Stakes, Archer City Slew pulled off an upset in the San Vicente Stakes. Archer City Slew won the $150,000 stakes race by beating stakes-winners Joopy Doopy, who placed, and Gibson County, who showed. Million-dollar yearling Malabar Gold disappointed by coming in fourth 6 1/2 lengths behind the leader. The victory was the first for the Slew City Colt under new trainer Vladimir Cerin, and will propel him to the mile-long San Rafael Stakes on March 4. Archer City Slew, ridden by Kent Desormeaux, was second early, just behind pace-setter Gibson County. He raced along the rail along the backstretch, then switched to the outside during the turn and caught and passed Gibson County and Joopy Doopy in the final 20 yards of the race. Malabar Gold was the 6-5 favorite, making his first start since finishing last in the Hollywood Futurity on Dec. 18. In other news, More Than Ready trainer Todd Pletcher said that his colt's victory in the Hutcheson Stakes took too much out of the horse and that he will proably miss the Fountain of Youth. In other action on Saturday, at Phoenix's Turf Paradise Derby, Gilty Moment came up with a surprise victory, finishing ahead of Seventeen Candles and favorite Hoover Tower. Also, the official list of Derby 2000 nominations has now been released. The 387-horse list can be accessed through the Daily Racing Form here. Good luck picking a winner. And speaking of picking a winner, it was announced last week that some casinos in Las Vegas will start offering a future-bet pool on the Derby similar to the one Churchill Downs initiated a year ago. It gives a shot of legitimacy to this bet, and will hopefully raise interest in the Derby among the betting public. Churchill Downs begins its first future betting pool on Monday Feb. 18. As of this Monday the 7th, the Churchill Downs Web site will begin offering registration for its Fantasy Challenge. Pick from a pool of horses, jockeys and trainers in an attempt to win Derby tickets for 2001.   Jan. 30 This weekend saw three Derby prep races, including a much anticipated battle between Bob Baffert's Captain Steve and D. Wayne Lukas's High Yield in the Santa Catalina. At that race in Santa Anita, it was a surprise victor in The Deputy who stole the show. The Deputy, an Irish import making his first start on dirt, defeated High Yield by one length in the $107,300 Santa Catalina Stakes. The Deupty finished a solid five lenghts in front of 1-2 favorite Captain Steve, who settled for third. The Deputy broke for the front, and stayed just ahead of the 3-1 shot High Yield. High Yield pulled nearly even at the one-eighth pole, but The Deupty moved ahead down the stretch to claim the win. The Deputy was ridden by Chris McCarron, High Yield by Corey Nakatani and Captain Steve by Jerry Bailey. The Deputy, who is now 3-1-1 in seven starts, also won his own U.S debut on Jan. 2 in the Hill Rise Handicap; he is trained by Jenine Sahadi. Captain Steve disappointed in this one by never contending for the lead in the 1 1/16 mile race. In other action over the weekend, there was a deja vu performance in the $150,000 Hutcheson Stakes at Gulfstream. Last year's wire-to-wire battle between Texas Glitter and and Bet Me Best was matched this year by an equally close race between More Than Ready and Summer Note--so close in fact, that the race ended in a dead heat between the two. Trainer Todd Pletcher felt the heartbreak with Texas Glitter last year when he came up short, so he was more than happy to at least get a share of the victory of the 2000 version of the Hutcheson. Both winning trainers were pleased with their horse's performances. Pletcher was glad to see More Than Ready cover the seven furlongs in such a quick time (1:21.76), especially after More Than Ready's four-month layoff due to illness. Randy Morse, the trainer of Summer Note, was glad to see his colt do so well in stepping up to steeper competition. Summer Note's last two races were victories in allowance races at Hawthorne Park. The horses pulled together toward the front end, with More Than Ready holding a slight edge for most of the race. The pair finished 8 1/4 lengths in front of third-runner American Bullet. More Than Ready was the 4-5 favorite, while Summer Note was the second choice. Neither trainer would commit his horse to the Fountain of Youth Stakes on Feb. 19. More Than Ready had John Velasquez aboard while Summer Note was ridden by Shane Sellers. Also, in the Lecomte at the Fair Grounds, Noble Ruler won over Derby contender Mighty while Peninsula finished third. More details on this race wil be added if and when they become available.   Jan. 23 The Jockey Club Experimental Handicap of juveniles was released this past week, and the leader is Breeders' Cup Juvenile Champion Anees. The Experimental has been published annually since 1933 and attempts to rate this year's 3-year olds on a theoretical 1 1/16 mile race. Only horses who finished in the top four in an unrestricted stakes race worth at least $50,000 were eligible. The significance of the Experimental on the Kentucky Derby is that it provides half of the handicapping theory known as "dual qualifiers." As Jennie Rees of the Louisville Courier-Journal explains, the theory states that "the horses with the best chance to win the Derby are those weighted within 10 pounds of the Experimental high weight and who have a dosage index of 4.00 or less. Dosage is a numerical system of rating horses based on breeding." The following horses are listed as dual qualifiers: Anees, Captain Steve, Chief Seattle, Dixe Union, Exchange Rate, Greenwood Lake, High Yield, More Than Ready, Mull of Kintyre, Scottish Halo and Twilight Time.   Jan. 16 Wow! It feel great to be writing again as Call to the Derby Post gets ready for its second season of Kentucky Derby coverage. There have been a lot of changes to DerbyPost.com and even more are on their way, but one thing remains the same: an excitement and enthusiasm for the Kentucky Derby and the prep race season that leads up to it. It seems like just yesterday when Charismatic was surprising everyone and winning Derby 125 as a 31-1 shot. Just last week Charismatic was named Horse of the Year. So with this champion now ordained as much as he can be, it's time to look forward to Derby 126 which is now just a few months away. The Derby prep race season got under way yesterday with two races on opposite sides of the country. At Gulfstream Park in Miami, Hal's Hope continued the tradition of Charismatic and started things off with a huge bang. The 40-1 shot held off Personal First by 5 1/2 lengths in the $100,000 Holy Bull Stakes. Hal's Hope, who paid $82.40, $29.00 and $17.20, was ridden by Roger Velez. Megacles came in third in this Grade III race for 3-year olds. With his victory, Hal's Hope becomes eligible for the Florida Derby which is stil several weeks away; his owner said that the Fountain of Youth on Feb. 19 is next. Hal's Hope is the son of Josie's Halo and is trained by Harold Rose. Out in Northern California, New Advantage won the Golden Gate Derby as an approximate 5-1 shot. The race did not garner much attention in the national media, so Call to the Derby Post can provide few details about this race. More will be added if more can be found.