Pants On Fire will be ridden by female jockey Rosie Napravnik, who would, should she win, become the first female jockey to ever win the Kentucky Derby. Pants On Fire won the Louisiana Derby, but was only entered to provide a rabbit at which his stablemate, Nacho Business, could run. His owners also owned the early standout Sweet Ducky before selling him to foreign interests. Another highly anticipated yet uneventful three-year-old owned by Pants On Fire's owners, George and Lori Hall, was Nacho Saint. Pants On Fire was the least regarded of the four, but the only one starting in the Kentucky Derby.
Lastly, if Archarcharch wins he will give his trainer William "Jinks" Fires and jockey Jon Court their first Derby win. This is the first Derby appearance for the two. Jinks Fires is Jon Court's father-in-law, so this win would bless the entire Fires-Court clan. Archarcharch won the Southwest Stakes and the Arkansas Derby and finished third in the Rebel Stakes. He also fired a bullet work last week and his gallop this week was so fast that the clockers thought it was a breeze and recorded it.
Whether you're betting Twice the Appeal because Calvin Borel has won three of the last four Kentucky Derbies or Stay Thirsty because your drink of choice is Dos Equis, claim your pick proudly because as long as you've got a horse in the race, you've got a shot!
Photo: Courtesy Kentucky Derby
