Pedigree of Kentucky Derby Favorites – Tapit Trice, Kingsbarns, Derma Sotogake & More
- The 149th Kentucky Derby takes place Saturday at Louisville’s Churchill Downs
- Taking a look at top favorites breeding can help indicate which horses will thrive
- Bloodlines and pedigree of Kentuxky Derby favorites a factor worth considering when making your Kentucky Derby bets
Saturday’s Kentucky Derby brings horses from prep races all around the world together. They’ve run different distances on multiple types of surfaces, in all sorts of weather. Now which one is going to win? Good bettors are thorough in their analysis and will analyze the pedigree of Kentucky Derby favorites.
How to bet on the Kentucky Derby is in the eye of the beholder, but for the purposes of this article, we’ll be considering how much Kentucky Derby odds are impacted by bloodlines for the Kentucky Derby favorites today.
Kentucky Derby Favorites By Pedigree
Forte
*Note. Forte was scratched on Saturday morning with a bruised right foot.
Forte’s father, Violence won three of four career races including the mile-and-a-sixteenth CashCall Futurity. His lone loss came in his final race, a runner up performance to eventual Kentucky Derby winner Orb in the Fountain of Youth Stakes.
On the side of the dam, Forte’s mom, Queen Caroline was first or second in 10 of 20 starts. A Virginia bred, she won several ungraded stakes races. Grandfather Blame won nine of 13 career starts for earnings of more than $4.3 million. In his final race he won the Breeders Cup Classic, beating Zenyatta.
Tapit Trice
Since he cost $1.3 million, it is a pretty good bet that Tapit Trice is well bred Kentucky Derby favorite. His sire, Tapit, won the mile-and-an-eighth Wood Memorial before finishing ninth in the Kentucky Derby as the second choice at +640. Like Violence, he did not race past the age of three.
Similiar to Queen Caroline, Tapit Trice’s dam, Danzatrice won multiple black type stakes races and finished with seven victories in 15 tries. Her dad, Dunkirk, was the second choice in the 2009 Kentucky Derby, but had a rough trip and finished 11th. He was the runner up in the mile-and-a-half Belmont Stakes.
Derma Sotogake
Derma Sotogake was bred in Japan, but his sire Mind Your Biscuits was a successful New York bred who raced around the world when you look into his Kentucky Derby pedigree. He made nearly $4.3 million winning eight of 25 starts and he earned big cash with a pair of Dubai Golden Shaheen victories in the UAE. He won the mile-and-an-eighth Lukas Classic at Churchill Downs after sprinting for the first portion of his career.
Derma Sotogake’s mom, Amour Poesie, raced 17 times in Japan with three wins and earnings of more than $500,000. Each of her victories came at the age of three, including a minor stakes event. Her dad, Neo Universe, is one of the top sires in Japan. He won two thirds of the Japanese Triple Crown and has produced winners of the Dubai World Cup, Queen Elizabeth II Cup, and Champions Cup.
Angel Of Empire
Out of Arkansas Derby winner Empire Maker, Pennsylvania bred Angel of Empire’s dad came awfully close to a classic win. He was the third choice, got out poorly, and still finished fourth in the Kentucky Derby, and then was the runner up in the Preakness Stakes. As a two year old he won the Breeders Cup Juvenile.
Angel of Empire’s dam, Armony’s Angel, was winless in eight races. Her dad, To Honor and Serve, won eight times including six graded stakes for earnings of almost $1.8 million. He took the grade one mile-and-an-eighth Woodward Stakes. Twice he raced in the Breeders Cup Classic.
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Kingsbarns
From top sire Uncle Mo, a Kentucky Derby favorite Kingsbarns has more than 10 half siblings who have won grade one races if you look back at his Derby pedigree. Uncle Mo won five of eight starts including the Grade 2 Kelso Stakes. His longest and biggest victory was the mile-and-a-sixteenth Breeders Cup Juvenile.
Kingsbarns dam, Lady Tapit, won one time in 12 races but was stakes placed. Her dad, Tapit, as noted when discussing Tapit Trice, was a high end three year old who won three of six starts.
Verifying
It will be hard to live up to Verifying’s fathers legacy. His sire, Justify, won the Triple Crown and retired following the Belmont Stakes with a perfect six-for-six record.
Verifying’s dam, Stage Magic, won a couple of allowance races including one at Churchill Downs. She was stakes placed including a third place effort in the Grade 3 Gardenia Stakes. Grandsire Ghostzapper won nine of 11 races for $3.4 million. He took the 2004 Breeders Cup Classic.
Now that you’ve got some background on the top Kentucky Derby favorites by pedigree, be sure to log on to one of your favorite horse racing betting sites to get the best odds for your Kentucky erby best bets.
Looking for more Kentucky Derby picks and predictions? Get more Derby coverage from SBD below!
- Kentucky Derby Longshot Picks
- Kentucky Derby Expert Picks
- How to Bet the Kentucky Derby
- Kentucky Derby Jockeys and Trainers
- Recent Form of Kentucky Derby Contenders
- Kentucky Derby Undercard Picks
- Win, Place, Show Picks
- Exacta, Trifecta and Superfecta Exotic Bets
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Dave Friedman has covered professional and college sports for two decades. From ESPN to the Associated Press, Regional Sports Networks, Metro Networks, and many local outlets, he has written about and broadcast major and minor events throughout the country.
