2010 KENTUCKY DERBY LATEST ANTE POST TIPS

we are starting to get down to one of the best points in the American racing season- when the Derby preps are starting to pile up. It's been a wild and wooly ride so far in the ante post markets as my previous tip Vale of York suffered a poor season debut on the Tapeta in Dubai. You're seeing new contenders emerging out of obscurity to stake their claim for a Derby spot and a few new runners have entered the equation. 
As it currently stands, Eskendereya (Giant's Causeway) continues to cling to his position as 2010 Kentucky Derby favourite. He's listed at 9.0 with Ladbrokes and trades at a slim 7.0 on the Betfair exchange. Todd Pletcher's charge looks ripe for a stretch out in distance after showing plenty of class by beating a cadre of other Derby Contenders in the Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream. Despite the controversy surrounding Zayat Stables, I expect his price to stay consistent if he remains injury-free between now and May 1st. 
An interesting addition to the list of Derby contenders that has seemingly re-emerged in the past few weeks has been the talented Richard Dutrow runner D'Funnybone (D'Wildcat). He started the season off with a bang on the undercard to the Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream on February 20th. Coming out of the 7 stall for the Grade 2 Hutcheson Stakes, D'Funnybone stalked nicely and made a quality move to build pace while taking the leaders three-wide on the way home. The chestnut was under a hand-ride coming into the stretch and still managed to hold off a number of late closers. The only question I have about D'Funnybone is whether he can stretch out enough in distance to have any shot at a Kentucky Derby win. I will say this now though- if D'Funnybone does wind up in the Derby and its a wet day like last year, he will absolutely thrive in the slop if he shows his customary strong late kick. You'll find him well-priced at 34.0 with Ladbrokes and a 36.0 asking price at Betfair. 
Todd Pletcher brings another solid contender into the mix with Connemara (Giant's Causeway) building up confidence at Golden Gate Fields. He is currently 21 for the season and the lightly-raced three year-old produced a heroic performance in the El Camino Real Derby on February 20th. He got bounced hard coming out of the gate and had to track the entire field for the first 2 or 3 furlongs. He showed Triple Crown class in that 1m1f dash and will be looking to 
build on that. You'll find the chestnut colt listed at 21.0 at Ladbrokes and hovering around 25.0 with Betfair. 
D Wayne Lukas has a new contender emerging in the progressive runner Dublin (Afleet Alex). This classy selection looks to be building up the stamina to run the Derby distance and put in a very solid place to Conveyance (Indian Charlie) in the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn. He's seen his price drop recently and could be worth a go as improvement has been the name of the game this season. He looks better and seems to be able to navigate crowds better than his 2 year-old season. I like him at 21.0 with Ladbrokes and 20.0 on Betfair. 
Speaking of Conveyance, you'll find him at a competitive price as well. The winner of two graded stakes this season with the aforementioned Southwest Stakes and the Grade 3 San Rafael on the Pro-Ride at Santa Anita. Bob Baffert's grey/roan colt brings plenty of quality to the table and has shown acumen on synthetic and dirt- and you need to respect that type of depth. Most importantly, he knows how to win races and I think he's one to keep a close eye on. You can lock in a price of 26.0 with Ladbrokes and 20.0 with Betfair. 
We will be profiling more Derby contenders in the upcoming days, so be sure to stay tuned!