The draw for Saturday's $1 million Santa Anita Derby underscores what most had projected _ this is the most wide-open field in memory.
The Santa Anita Derby has been a springboard to Triple Crown success the last few years. I'll Have Another (2012) and California Chrome (2014) won the race and went on to win the Kentucky Derby and Preakness. Last year, Exaggerator navigated a sloppy track and followed with a second in the Kentucky Derby and a win in the Preakness.
Iliad, the morning-line favorite at 7-2, will be breaking from the No. 9 post, which is a good spot with most of the early speed to his inside. Iliad is one of four horses for Doug O'Neill in the race. He also has Term of Art (post No. 1, 12-1 odds), So Conflated (No. 5, 15-1) and Milton Freewater (No. 10, 30-1).
"I loved it when I heard No. 9," assistant trainer Leandro Mora told online horse-racing network XBTV about Iliad. "I know we have one of the best riders in Southern California (Flavien Prat), so that's also good. We worked him the last time and I liked what I saw."
Iliad finished second in the San Felipe Stakes, a race convincingly won by Mastery. However, that colt suffered a non-life-threatening fracture of his left front leg seconds after the race.
Still, without his top 3-year-old, trainer Bob Baffert entered three in Saturday's race.
American Anthem, at 5-1 and breaking from the No. 6 post, seems to be Baffert's best remaining chance to make it to Louisville. He is coming off a disastrous 10th-place finish (in an 11-horse field) in the Rebel Stakes.
"He got behind horses and he'd never been there before. I've been really aggressive with him," Baffert said. "He's worked well. The Oaklawn race was a head-scratcher."
Martin Garcia will be the rider.
Baffert also has Reach the World (post No. 2, 5-1) and Irish Freedom (No. 11, 20-1) as his other horses.
The second favorite will be Gormley, who seems to alternate between very good and very pedestrian races. He is at 9-2 and will break from the No. 8 post. Gormley finished a beaten fourth in his last race, the San Felipe.
"I think he stumbled out of the gate," trainer John Shirreffs said. "He chased the speed and then when he got up there, he couldn't back out and Iliad came up and compromised him."
Shirreffs also has Royal Mo (13, 10-1), who finished ninth in the Rebel Stakes.
The Santa Anita Derby will be the eighth race on an 11-race card.
