Notable Nine for Kentucky Derby 149

 Happy Derby week!

Today we take our annual look at the notable nine Kentucky Derby 149 contenders. Not necessarily in our selection order, they are the top horses with the ability to at least hit the board and a strong possibility to hit the board.

#15 Forte (I. Ortiz / Pletcher) holds a triple digit Beyer number of 100. He won the Florida Derby making his fifth win in a row. Millionaire tracker/closer. Son of Violence. 85% win record from seven starts.

#10 Practical Move (R. Vazquez / Yakteen) also holds a triple digit Beyer, doubling 100 in his last two races. He won the Santa Anita Derby making his third win in a row. Son of Practical Joke shows improving speed figs with an 100% in the money record from seven starts.

#3 Two Phil's (Loveberry / Rivelli) holds the highest Beyer number of 101, albeit over a synthetic surface. This guy has a win over the Churchill track. He won the Jack Ruby Steaks at Turfway Park. A son of Hard Spun, he is 75% in the money from eight career starts.

#5 Tapit Trice (L. Saez / Pletcher) holds a high Beyer figure of 99. Coming into the race with four wins in a row. He is the Bluegrass winner at Keeneland. Son of Tapit, is 100% in the money from five starts.

#17 Derma Sotogake (Lemaire / Hidetaka) holds a TimeForm speed rating of 109. He is the winner of the UAE Derby at Meydan Racecourse. Shipped directly from Dubai to the US to acclimate well in advance of the Derby. Son of Mind Your Biscuits, is 75% in the money from eight starts.

#14 Angel of Empire (Prat / B. Cox) holds a high Beyer speed number of 94 as well as improving speed figures over his last three races. Winner of the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park. Millionaire son of Classic Empire, is 83% in the money from six starts.

#11 Disarm (Rosario / Asmussen) holds a high Beyer mark of 90 which he doubled up over his last two races. Has raced at Churchill. He was third last out in the Lexington at Keeneland to earn enough points to join the gate. A son of Gun Runner, he is 100% in the money from five career starts.

#9 Skinner (JJ Hernandez / Shirreffs) holds a high Beyer speed fig of 99 which he earned finishing 3rd in the Santa Anita Derby, last out. Old-school trainer, John Shirreffs has shown great patience in the development of his charge. Son of Curlin, is 66% in the money from six starts.

#4 Confidence Game (Graham / Desormeaux) holds a high Beyer figure of 94 earned winning the Rebel last out at Oaklawn Park. He is the most experienced Churchill Downs runner with a 75% itm from four starts over the track. A son of Candy Ride [ARG], he is 85% in the money from seven career starts.

It should be an excellent running of the 149th Kentucky Derby. We project the favortie to go off at approximately 4-1 which should make for some nice exotic payouts.

KD 149 is expected to go off at 3:57 pm Pacific Time.