Wesley Hitt, Getty Images (getty-14289602220120416130747/600 )
April 16, 2012|By Chris Korman
As one potential Kentucky Derby favorite dealt with the changing color of his tail, another breezed to probably the most impressive win of the prep season over the weekend.
Hansen, the white colt and 6-5 favorite at the Blue Grass Stakes, finished second after having dye applied to -- and then washed out of -- his tail. The bizarre mini-controversy overshadowed Dulluhan's stirring charge over the last three furlongs. Under Kent Desormeaux, the Dale Romans-trained colt went from 10th to first and set a new stakes record on Keeneland's Polytrack.
At the Arkansas Derby, late-comer Bodemeister overwhelmed the field, racing out from the No. 11 post and taking an early lead. He exploded down the stretch -- seriously, you really should watch -- to win by 9 1/2 lengths and secure enough graded-stakes money to be firmly entrenched in the Kentucky Derby field. Having only made four career starts, the Bob Baffert-trained horse is already in Louisville and will be watched closely in the coming weeks.
According to The Courier-Journal's Jennie Rees, there are now six horses who could be selected the morning-line favorite:
Unbeaten Wood Memorial winner Gemologist; Dullahan; impressive Arkansas Derby winner Bodemeister; beaten Florida Derby favorite Union Rags; and 1-2 Santa Anita Derby finishers, I’ll Have Another and Creative Cause.
