(Emerging Market at Churchill Downs on Tuesday / Photos by Coady Media)

From the Churchill Downs Media Team / Darren Rogers:

EMERGING MARKET MAKES INITIAL ON-TRACK APPEARANCE FOR DERBY 152; THE PUMA ARRIVES FROM FLORIDA

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Tuesday, April 21, 2026) – Klaravich Stables’ undefeated TwinSpires.com Louisiana Derby (GII) winner Emerging Market made his first on-track appearance for Kentucky Derby 152 on a brisk Tuesday morning galloping a mile and a half under exercise rider Luis Ortiz Trinidad for trainer Chad Brown.

Emerging Market had arrived at Churchill Downs early Monday morning after vanning from Payson Park Training Center in South Florida.

There was another South Florida arrival at Churchill Downs more than 24 hours later when OGMA Investments, JR Ranch & High Step Racing’s The Puma got settled into Barn 42 for trainer Gustavo Delgado shortly after 9 o’clock.

Winner of the Tampa Bay Derby (GIII) and runner-up in the Florida Derby (GI), The Puma will be seeking to give Delgado a second Kentucky Derby winner to go with Mage in 2023. The Puma took up residence in Stall 10, the same stall Mage occupied three years ago.

One other Kentucky Derby hopeful, Pin Oak Stud’s Incredibolt, returned to the Churchill Downs track for the first time since last fall when he galloped a mile and a half under Charlotte O’Connell for trainer Riley Mott.

Incredibolt, winner of the Virginia Derby in his most recent start and the Street Sense (GIII) here last fall, arrived at Churchill Downs on Monday morning from Palm Meadows Training Center in South Florida.

Two candidates for the $1.5 million Longines Kentucky Oaks (GI), Godolphin’s Bella Ballerina and Douglas Scharbauer and Three Chimneys Farm’s Always a Runner made their initial on-track appearances with the former galloping a mile and a quarter and the latter a mile and a half.

ALBUS/INCREDIBOLT – Trainer Riley Mott’s two Kentucky Derby hopeful for Pin Oak Stud, Albus and Incredibolt, both galloped a mile and a half during the special reserved Derby and Kentucky Oaks training period from 7:15-7:30 a.m. (all time Eastern).

Incredibolt won the Street Sense (GIII) here last October and this morning’s exercise under exercise rider Charlotte O’Connellenabled him to get reacquainted with the surface.

“He looked super out there; he’s a good training horse,” Mott said.

Mott said schooling sessions at the paddock and the gate for the two runners were in the cards leading up to the Derby with final works scheduled for the weekend.

Antonio Garcia was aboard Albus this morning and handled the :49 half-mile breeze last Saturday here. Mott said that jockey Jaime Torres, who has the mount on Incredibolt for the Derby, would probably be aboard for the colt’s final pre-Derby work.

CHIEF WALLABEE – Mike and K.K. Ball’s Chief Wallabee walked the shedrow at trainer Bill Mott’s barn the morning after working five furlongs in 1:00.

CHIP HONCHO – Trainer Steve Asmussen’s Kentucky Derby hopeful, Leland Ackerley Racing, James Sherwood, Jode Shupe and John Cilia’s Chip Honcho galloped at 7:15 a.m. under Roberto Howell.

COMMANDMENT/FULLEFFORT/FURTHER ADO – Trainer Brad Cox’s Derby trio of Wathnan Racing’s Commandment, St. Elias Stable and Starlight Racing’s Fulleffort and Spendthrift Farm’s Further Ado all galloped Tuesday morning at Churchill Downs.

Commandment and Fulleffort were out in the first training set at 5:15 a.m., with Katie Tolbert aboard Commandment and Edvin Vargas aboard Fulleffort. Further Ado galloped in the second set with exercise rider Jonathan Santiago aboard.

“All three are doing well after their works from last week,” Cox said. “We’ll gallop them a couple more days and have one more work.”

Cox is monitoring the forecast as he decides between Friday and Saturday for their final major breeze.

DANON BOURBON – Danox Co. Ltd.’s Danon Bourbon left Japan and will arrive Tuesday evening in Chicago. He’ll undergo 42 hours of mandatory USDA quarantine prior to vanning to Churchill Downs.

EMERGING MARKET – Klaravich Stables’ undefeated TwinSpires.com Louisiana Derby (GII) winner Emerging Market made his first on-track appearance for Kentucky Derby 152 by galloping a mile and a half under exercise rider Luis Ortiz Trinidad for trainer Chad Brown.

Emerging Market had arrived at Churchill Downs early Monday morning after vanning from Payson Park Training Center in South Florida.

“I liked what I saw,” Brown said. “They (along with Oaks candidate Always a Runner) both floated over the track.”

Brown is keeping an eye on the weather regarding a final work for Emerging Market.

“It looks like there is some rain moving in Friday night, so I could push things back to Friday morning,” Brown said.

PAVLOVIAN – Reddam Racing’s Pavlovian, runner-up to Emerging Market in the Louisiana Derby (GII) for trainer Doug O’Neill, was en route to Churchill Downs from his Southern California base with a mid-afternoon arrival time expected.

RIGHT TO PARTY – Chester Broman Sr.’s Right to Party galloped Tuesday morning at 7:15 a.m. with exercise rider Robby Albaradoaboard for trainer Kenny McPeek.

SILENT TACTIC – John Oxley’s Silent Tactic, with Dass Garcia aboard, jogged a half-mile in the mile chute and then galloped a mile and a quarter after coming on the track at 5:50.

Trainer Mark Casse is scheduled to arrive in Louisville Tuesday and be trackside Wednesday morning.

SO HAPPY – Norman Stables and Saints or Sinners’ So Happy, winner of the Santa Anita Derby (GI) for trainer Mark Glatt, was en route to Churchill Downs from his Southern California base with a mid-afternoon arrival time expected.

STARK CONTRAST – Amerman Racing’s Stark Contrast galloped a mile and a quarter under Christian Garcia at 5:30 Tuesday morning for trainer Michael McCarthy.

THE PUMA – OGMA Investments, JR Ranch and High Step Racing’s The Puma arrived at Churchill Downs shortly after 9 o’clock for trainer Gustavo Delgado.

Winner of the Tampa Bay Derby (GIII) and runner-up in the Florida Derby (GI), The Puma will be seeking to give Delgado a second Kentucky Derby winner to go with Mage in 2023. The Puma took up residence in Barn 42, Stall 10, the same spot Mage occupied three years ago.

WONDER DEAN (JPN) – Yoshinari Yamamoto’s Wonder Dean (JPN) warmed up in the chute for about 25 minutes before galloping Tuesday morning under Takuya Nakano.

SHAPING UP: THE $5 MILLION KENTUCY DERBY PRESENTED BY WOODFORD RESERVE (GI) – Here is the top 20 preference list for the $5 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (GI) in alphabetical order (with jockey and trainer): Albus(Manny Franco, Riley Mott); Chief Wallabee (Junior Alvarado, Bill Mott); Chip Honcho (TBD, Steve Asmussen); Commandment (Luis Saez, Brad Cox); Danon Bourbon (Atsuya Nishimura, Manabu Ikezoe); Emerging Market (Flavien Prat, Chad Brown); Further Ado (John Velazquez, Brad Cox); Fulleffort (Tyler Gaffalione, Brad Cox); Golden Tempo (Jose Ortiz, Cherie DeVaux); Incredibolt (Jaime Torres, Riley Mott); Pavlovian (Edwin Maldonado, Doug O’Neill); Potente (Juan Hernandez, Bob Baffert); Renegade (Irad Ortiz Jr., Todd Pletcher); Right to Party (Chris Elliott, Kenny McPeek); Silent Tactic (Cristian Torres, Mark Casse); Six Speed (TBD, Bhupat Seemar); So Happy (Mike Smith, Mark Glatt); Stark Contrast (TBD, Michael McCarthy); The Puma (Javier Castellano, Gustavo Delgado); WonderDean (JPN) (Ryusei Sakai, Daisuke Takayanagi). Also Eligibles: Intrepido (Hector Berrios, Jeff Mullins); Litmus Test (TBD, Bob Baffert);Great White (TBD, John Ennis); Ocelli (TBD, Whit Beckman).

LONGINES KENTUCKY OAKS UPDATE –

ALWAYS A RUNNER – Douglas Scharbauer and Three Chimneys Farm’s undefeated Gazelle (GIII) winner Always a Runner made her first on-track appearance by galloping a mile and a half under Oscar Becerra Laynen.

“I liked what I saw,” trainer Chad Brown said. “They (along with Derby candidate Emerging Market) both floated over the track.”

Brown is keeping an eye on the weather regarding a final work for Always a Runner.

“It looks like there is some rain moving in Friday night, so I could push things back to Friday morning,” Brown said.

BELLA BALLERINA – Godolphin’s Bella Ballerina made her first appearance at Churchill Downs since November. The Golden Rod (GII) and Fasig-Tipton Rachel Alexandra (GII) winner galloped about 1 ¼ miles at 7:15 a.m. for trainer Brendan Walsh.

          Jockey Tyler Gaffalione has the mount in the Oaks.

COUNTING STARS/SEARCH PARTY – Trainer Mark Casse’s two Kentucky Oaks candidates, West Point Thoroughbreds’Counting Stars and Tracy Farmer’s Search Results, were on the track at 5:50 for their morning activity.

Froylan Garcia was on Counting Stars and Elver Vargas was on Search Party as both jogged a half-mile in the mile chute and then galloped a mile and a half.

PROM QUEEN – Gary and Mary West’s Prom Queen galloped at 9:40 a.m. with exercise rider/assistant trainer Katie Tolbert.

KENTUCKY DERBY, OAKS MORNING WORKOUTS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC THURSDAY, APRIL 23 THROUGH WEDNESDAY, APRIL 29 – Starting Thursday and continuing through Wednesday, April 29, Churchill Downs will be open free-of-charge daily from 6:45-10 a.m. so guests can watch the nation’s top 3-year-old Thoroughbreds train toward their engagements in this year’s Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks during Dawn at the Downs.

     Horses train on Churchill Downs’ main track daily from 5:15-10 a.m. There is an exclusive training window only for Derby and Oaks participants from 7:15-7:30 a.m. following the 6:45-7:15 a.m. renovation break. Those horses will be identified by special saddle towels that include their names: yellow saddle towels for Derby horses and pink saddle towels for Oaks contenders.

     Guests can park for free in the Yellow Lot off Longfield Ave. (all vehicles must be removed by 10:30 a.m.) and enter Churchill Downs through the Clubhouse Gate. Guests will be directed to Sections 115-117 to watch the morning workouts.

     On Monday, fans can enjoy a premium breakfast in Millionaires Row or the Stakes Room for Dawn at the Downs Dining. Tickets and more information can be found at www.kentuckyderby.com/visit/derby-week-events/dawn-at-the-downs/

     The 152nd runnings of the $1.5 Longines Kentucky Oaks (Grade I) and $5 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (GI) will be held Friday, May 1 and Saturday, May 2, respectively. Opening Day of Derby Week and the 44-day Spring Meet is Saturday at 12:45 p.m.

KENTUCKY DERBY MORNING WORKS SHOW CONTINUES THROUGH THURSDAY, APRIL 30 – The Kentucky Derby Morning Works Show presented by TwinSpires.com continues through Thursday, April 30, offering fans an exclusive look at the final preparations of Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks contenders.

Airing daily from 6:45-7:45 a.m. (all times Eastern), the one-hour program will be streamed live on the Kentucky Derby Facebook Page, YouTube and X accounts. The show will highlight the 15-minute exclusive training window from 7:15-7:30 a.m. for horses preparing for the $5 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (Grade I) and the $1.5 million Longines Kentucky Oaks (GI).

Hosted by Churchill Downs’ expert handicappers Joe Kristufek, Kaitlin Benson, Tony Calo and Kevin Kilroy, the show will include insight, commentary and exclusive interviews from notable figures such as the voice of the Kentucky Derby Travis Stone, former leading rider Rosie Napravnik, TwinSpires.com handicapper James Scully, Churchill Downs morning line oddsmaker Nick Tammaro and racing analyst Ren Carrothers.

All Kentucky Derby and Oaks contenders are required to be on-site by Saturday, April 25. The show will continue through Thursday, May 1, showcasing every contender’s final training sessions leading into Kentucky Derby and Longines Kentucky Oaks.

For more information, visit www.kentuckyderby.com.