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Fierceness – Sierra Leone – Forever Young – Catching Freedom – Just a Touch – Resilience – Stronghold – Just Steel – West Saratoga – Dornoch – T O Password – Grand Mo the First – Domestic Product – Honor Marie – Track Phantom – Catalytic – Endlessly – Mystik Dan – Society Man
By Michael Domabyl
HOW HE GOT HERE
Epic Ride got a little outside help to make it in the Derby starting gate when it was announced on Tuesday that Encino would not participate in Saturday’s contest due to a slight setback. However, you only have to rewind two years to when Rich Strike drew into the field wearing saddlecloth #21 and took down the Kentucky Derby in a shocking 80-1 upset. Epic Ride earned his way into the picture through a solid third-place finish in the G1-Blue Grass Stakes, checking in behind Sierra Leone and Just a Touch. Those two are likely to be among the top five choices in the race whereas Epic Ride is sure to be one of the longer shots on the board. Prior to his run in the Blue Grass, Epic Ride competed exclusively over Turfway Park’s synthetic track with two wins and two seconds from four starts.
HOW HE FITS HERE
Like many of the fringe players in this year’s Kentucky Derby, Epic Ride needs to take a step forward to compete with the horses at the top of the market. However, he’s been trending in the right direction as his last race (and dirt debut) represented his best career effort. In the Blue Grass he was right on top of an above average pace and did well to stick on in the lane. Though, it’s tough to see him reversing the decision against the top two from that spot who pulled 4 and 5 lengths clear of him late.
CONNECTIONS AND PEDIGREE
Epic Ride is trained by John Ennis who is a conditioner known most in my eyes for his prowess in getting horses to the races early in their juvenile season. In fact, over half his starters over the past five years have been two-year-olds. It would be surprising to see a conditioner’s first graded stakes victory come on racing’s biggest stage, but we’ve seen low profile connections win the Derby in the recent past.
Epic Ride will be ridden by Adam Beschizza who will be riding the Derby on the First Saturday in May for the first time. He rode in the race once before, a 7th place finish in the 2020 Kentucky Derby which was held in September and without fans due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While Beschizza’s top achievement as a jockey is a slew of Grade 3 stakes wins, he at least has familiarity with the Churchill Downs oval having spent plenty of meets on the Kentucky circuit.
He’ll be riding a colt sired by Blame, a multiple G1-winning dirt router whose claim to fame was a gritty win in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Classic over this exact course and distance. Blame has been a solid, versatile sire over the years with his progeny proficient on various surfaces and distances. His top progeny include G1-Ballerina winner Marley’s Freedom and Arkansas Derby winner Nadal. The female side of his pedigree is modest as he is by far his dam’s best foal to race. The dam herself was only given one opportunity on the racetrack, but she’s kin to turf route graded stakes winners Up the Ante and Miss Dracarys as well as dirt sprint stakes winner Aristocratic.
OVERALL CHANCE
In a Kentucky Derby where there are 5-8 entrants who look like no-hopers, Epic Ride at least possesses some characteristics that make him an interesting longshot. His tactical speed is a weapon that will need to be deftly utilized by his jock to get early position in the race. The most likely way he affects the outcome of the race is as a thorn in the side to morning line favorite Fierceness as he could cause that runner to go faster than he wants early. The pace of this year’s Derby will be key to how Epic Ride performs. If the early tempo is moderate, he has the talent to stick on for a large share, but a fast pace could send him toiling in the lane. While by no means a likely winner, you could do worse picking this longshot to fill out some of your wagers.
