McCarron, Sharp Cat, Lukas Will Miss the Race

The 123rd Kentucky Derby lost a horse Monday, gained one or two, lost a jockey and won’t have a filly running.

On a cold, windy morning at Churchill Downs, where horses worked over a drying track that was tattooed Sunday by day-long rain, there were these developments for Saturday’s Derby:

--Chris McCarron, who was scheduled to ride Hello, the third-place finisher in the Santa Anita Derby, will miss the race because of a sore shoulder. McCarron hasn’t ridden since he went down in a spill at Santa Anita on April 20.

--Pacificbounty, third-place finisher in the Arkansas Derby, won’t run because of a heel injury suffered in that race.

--Shammy Davis, who has yet to win a stake and was soundly beaten in the Lexington Stakes at Keeneland in his last start, will run, giving trainer Nick Zito a dual entry that also includes Jack Flash.

--The owner of Crimson Classic may decide to run his colt, who at 68-1 stumbled out of the gate, dumping his jockey, in the Lone Star Derby on April 20.

--Sharp Cat, a disappointing sixth in the Santa Anita Derby, will run in Friday’s Kentucky Oaks, for 3-year-old fillies, instead of the Derby.

If Crimson Classic runs, there will be a 12-horse field.

Also expected to run are Pulpit, Captain Bodgit, Silver Charm, Free House, Concerto, Crypto Star, Phantom On Tour and Celtic Warrior.

With two-time Derby winner McCarron remaining in California, trainer Ron McAnally named Mike Smith to ride Hello. Smith, 31, won the Eclipse Award for best jockey in 1993-94. Riding short-priced horses in the last four Derbies, his best finish was a second with Prairie Bayou in 1993.

Trainer Walter Greenman did the prudent thing with Pacificbounty, who tore off his right front heel leaving the gate in the Arkansas Derby. “He’s on the verge of having a quarter crack [in his hoof],” Greenman said. “If we ran him, a 30-day injury might turn into three months.”

Trainer Wayne Lukas, who has started at least one horse in every Derby since 1981 and has won the last two with Thunder Gulch and Grindstone, was lobbying strongly to run Sharp Cat in the Derby. Lukas said Monday, however, that she’s headed for the Oaks.

“Both [owner Ahmed bin Salman and his racing manager, Richard Mulhall] have said no,” Lukas said. “I asked them if they could sleep on that decision and they said they would, but there’s little chance [of running in the Derby]. It’s going to be the Oaks.”

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Race at a Glance

* What: 123rd Kentucky Derby

* Where: Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.

* When: Saturday at 2:30 PDT

* TV: Channel 7

DERBY PROBABLES

Oddsmaker Mike Battaglia of Churchill Downs made a preliminary morning line for horses that might run in the Derby. Post positions will be drawn for the official field Wednesday:

Horse: Odds

Pulpit: 5-2

Captain Bodgit: 3-1

Silver Charm: 5-1

Concerto: 6-1

Free House:6-1

Crypto Star: 8-1

Horse: Odds

Sharp Cat: 10-1

Hello: 12-1

Phantom On Tour: 12-1

Jack Flash: 20-1

Celtic Warrior:30-1

NOTE: Sharp Cat is expected to run in Friday’s Kentucky Oaks. Jack Flash is expected to run as part of an entry with another Nick Zito-trainee, Shammy Davis.