Nashville Derby

The Gredley Family's Wimbledon Hawkeye (GB) (Kameko) made what appeared to be a winning, sweeping move past the quarter pole of Saturday's GIII Nashville Derby at Kentucky Downs, but he was seriously tested in the final furlong by Triple Crown alum Burnham Square (Liam's Map) and dug deep in the final stages to hold that stiff challenge by a head. Though he would be eligible to contest a second-level allowance in this county, Wimbledon Hawkeye's form at two and three reads very strong. Winner of last year's G2 Royal Lodge...

The GIII Nashville Derby leads the lucrative 2025 Kentucky Downs meet which will feature 18 total stakes offering over $30.5 million in purses over seven racing days from August 28 through September 10. One of five stakes held Saturday, Aug. 30 on NBC, the 1 5/16-mile GIII Nashville Derby will again be America's richest race for 3-year-olds behind only the GI Kentucky Derby. The card also includes a 'Win and You're In' race--the GII Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint, whose winner earns a fees-paid berth in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf...

King Power Racing's Bellum Justum (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) was the recipient of a letter-perfect steer from Frankie Dettori, split horses with less than a quarter-mile to race and held off a rails rally from GI Saratoga Derby hero Carson's Run (Cupid) to take out the GIII DK Horse Nashville Derby Invitational at Kentucky Downs. Last to make the first corner with a truncated run from the start, Bellum Justum was no better than third-last turning down the backstretch as Navy Seal (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) showed the way, but...

It doesn't take long for the Kentucky Downs meeting to hit full gear, as Saturday's program features three graded contests, including the GIII DK Horse Nashville Derby Invitational Stakes, with prize money that could reach $3.1 million. The purse remains intact should one of the 10 Kentucky-breds--eight in the main body of the field and two also-eligibles--is home first over the mile and five-sixteenths journey along the Kentucky/Tennessee border. The four foreign raiders are ineligible for the KTDF money, but the base purse of $2.5 million already makes it one...

For the last several years, Kentucky Downs has been the track that had almost everything. Big fields, huge purses and a betting handle that increases exponentially every year. But one thing has largely been missing--European shippers. Despite an all-turf meet, the purses and the fact that Kentucky Downs is much like a European turf course, the meet hadn't really registered with European horsemen. That has changed. According to Martin Panza, the co-director of racing at Kentucky Downs, which kicks off its annual seven-day meet Thursday, as many as 16 European-based...