[Dunbar]

Originally Posted by RolloTomasi

You can argue for either horse really, but at the end of the day both horses are being bumrushed into the race.

Last year, McPeek foolishly wheeled King Fury back off 12 days rest in the BC Juvenile after a decent score in a listed stakes (which was on the heels of a disastrous performance in the Breeder's Futurity). Then he ran back in the race he should have pointed toward all along and got his head ripped off there, too, in what proved to be a thoroughly weak race. Now after a layoff and decent score in a minor event he wants to waltz right into the Derby. He just throws stuff against the wall and once in a while it sticks...

As for Miller, he claims he's vaccinated against Derby fever and yet he had the horse on a ridiculously intense work pattern to make the Rebel Stakes (never mind the cross-country shipping involved). Got roughed up there, but didn't leave him at Oaklawn (even though he has a barn there), shipped back for the Arkansas Derby and got roughed up again, and now he'll have criss-crossed back and forth between CA-AR-KY 5 times in the past 6 weeks or so.

Both horses should await the Peter Pan if they want to progress and see out the year.

Well said. Still, there are just two potential Derby horses that have shown they can run well in slop: King Fury and Essential Quality. If the track came up wet on May 1, I'd have to give King Fury a lot of consideration.