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Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Five Kentucky Derby preps steal the weekend sports spotlight a week before the Super Bowl, with a big dash of intrigue building thanks to a standoff between Churchill Downs and trainer Bob Baffert. The features at Santa Anita, Oaklawn Park, Aqueduct and Gulfstream Park all are supported by interesting undercard races. Tampa Bay Downs and Turfway Park also are in on the action.
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Internationally, the three-race Hong Kong Derby series kicks off Sunday at Sha Tin Racecourse and the Dubai World Cup Carnival rolls on at Meydan Racecourse.
Rollin', rollin', rollin' toward the Ohio River ...
The Road to the Roses
There are five potential Kentucky Derby prep races on the Saturday schedule, all but one of them offering points on Churchill Downs system used to determine the makeup of the Derby field.
The $250,000 Grade III Holy Bull at Gulfstream Park tops the list if only because it marks the 3-year-old debut of Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Fierceness.
The Todd Pletcher trainee was an upset winner in the big race at Santa Anita and we'd like to see him do it again before locking him in as the Derby favorite.
The eight-horse field also has the winner and third from the local Mucho Macho Man Stakes, Otello and Sea Streak.
The $200,000 Grade III Robert B. Lewis at Santa Anita is a problem for Derby handicappers. Three of the nine entries -- Wine Me Up, Nysos and Coach Prime, all with different owners -- are from trainer Baffert, who is banned from participation in the Run for the Roses.
The owners had the option to move their horses to another trainer to make them eligible, but elected to stick with the six-time Derby winner, basically thumbing their noses at the Louisville track management.
It's significant as all three colts -- and a few others in the Baffert barn -- rank well up in the division, and Nysos, especially, would be among the Kentucky Derby favorites if eligible. He's 2-for-2 by margins of 10 1/2 and 8 3/4 lengths.
The $800,000 Grade III Southwest at Oaklawn Park was pushed back a week by the weather and now has a field of 12. Maycocks Bay, a Godolphin homebred colt by Speightstown, trained by Michael Stidham, is the 3-1 morning-line favorite.
Baffert ships in Wynstock, a New York-bred colt by Solomini, last seen winning the Grade II Los Alamitos Futurity. He's 4-1 on the morning line, another potential nightmare for Churchill Downs Inc.
The $250,000 Grade III Withers at Aqueduct is the first 1 1/8-mile test for the young 3-year-olds. All in the field of nine have stamina and more to prove. The morning-line favorite, Lightline, has only a win and two seconds from three starts and makes his first stakes start.
Trainer Todd Pletcher has two entries -- Speed Runner and Khanate -- who could step up.
The $125,000 Swale at Gulfstream is run at 7 furlongs, but that doesn't mean a Derby contender couldn't lurk among the nine entries. Legalize might be one such.
The Path to the Oaks
Denim and Pearls, winner of two of her three starts, is the favorite in Saturday's $250,000 Martha Washington at Oaklawn Park. The Brad Cox trainee was second in the Year's End Stakes on New Year's Eve behind Ice Cold, who does not have a posted workout since that start.
Saturday's $150,000 Grade III Sweetest Chant at Gulfstream Park has a wide-open field of eight -- a good one to watch for improvement going forward as most tackle 1 1/16 miles for the first time. On the same program, the $125,000 Grade III Forward Gal is 7 furlongs
Sunday's $100,000 Grade III Las Virgines at Santa Anita has a field of six, two trained by the aforementioned Baffert and presenting the same issue for Churchill Downs. One of them, Nothing Like You, won the Grade II Starlet at Los Alamitos in her last start. Kopion, winner of the Grade III Santa Ynez in her last start, looks like the main competition.
Elsewhere:
Oaklawn Park
Friday's $250,000 Grade III Bayakoa has a top-quality field of nine fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles.
Saturday is sprinters' day. The $150,000 King Cotton and the $150,000 American Beauty for fillies and mares are both run at 6 furlongs. Skelly seeks his seventh straight win in the King Cotton. Alva Star is the overwhelming favorite in the American Beauty.
Aqueduct
Kinetic Sky and Super Chow headline a field of seven for Saturday's $175,000 Grade III Toboggan at 7 furlongs.
Santa Anita
Three graded stakes support Saturday's 3-year-old centerpiece. The $200,000 Grade II Santa Monica is 7 furlongs on the dirt for fillies and mares. The Grade III Thunder Road and distaffers-only Grade III Megahertz each offer $100,000 for 1 mile on the turf.
Seven are set for Sunday's $150,000 Grade III San Marcos at 1 1/4 miles on the turf.
Gulfstream Park
Saturday's $150,000 Grade III Kitten's Joy is for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles on the grass.
Tampa Bay Downs
Saturday's program has two $175,000 Grade III events at 1 1/16 miles on the grass -- the Tampa Bay Stakes and, for fillies and mares, the Endeavour Stakes.
Turfway Park
Saturday's $125,000 Forego Stakes is 6 1/2 furlongs on the all-weather track.
Delta Downs
Saturday's Louisiana-bred Premier program is, as the name indicates, for state-bred horses at the usual variety of distances.
Around the world, around the clock
Dubai
The Dubai Racing Club has released the list of nominations to the March 30 World Cup program. There are 1,423 total nominations involving 868 individual horses from 19 countries (many horses are nominated to more than one race).
Hong Kong
The 4-year-old Classic Series, a three-race progression that culminates in the BMW Hong Kong Dergy, kicks off Sunday at Sha Tin Racecourse with the Hong Kong Classic Mile.
Leading rider Zac Purton takes the reins aboard Helene Feeling, a two-time Class 2 winner with as good a shot as anyone.
