With Country House winning the Kentucky Derby after the disqualification of Maximum Security and neither horse running in the Preakness Stakes, a lot of people will be ignoring the race this Saturday.
But that’s the wrong way to view this year’s second jewel of the Triple Crown. Instead, it should be seen as a wide-open, 13-horse field with no superhorse to beat.
There’s still a $990,000 first-place prize up for grabs from the $1.65 million purse, plus a replica of the Woodlawn Vase and future breeding fees for winning a Classic.
The best value on the board is No. 13 Win Win Win (15-1 on the morning line). You can throw out his 10th-place finish in the Derby (placed ninth after Maximum Security’s DQ) as he started slowly and didn’t have a chance to run his race. He has been a closer lately, but he has tactical speed and should be able to be mid-pack early despite drawing the outside post and be one of the strongest runners late down the stretch.
The play: You could play it conservatively and go win-place-show, but the better bet is Win Win Win.


