After two more prep races, what does the projected 2025 Kentucky Derby field look like?

LEXINGTON, Ky. — The expected field for the 2025 Kentucky Derby continues to come into focus.

Less than 35 days remain until the 151st edition of the Run for the Roses, which will take place beneath the Twin Spires at Churchill Downs in Louisville on May 3.

The Kentucky Derby Championship Series — a group of 16 races that includes the top Derby points qualifiers — is well underway, and the expected 20-horse field for the Kentucky Derby continues to sort itself out.

Saturday was another milestone moment in this regard, as the Grade 1 Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park and the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park were both run. Both races are 100-point qualifiers for the Derby, which means they awarded qualifying points to potential Derby horses on a 100-50-25-15-10 scale to the top-five finishers in each race.

Which horses effectively punched their tickets to the Derby on Saturday?

Tappan Street takes Florida Derby to secure Kentucky Derby berth

Tappan Street — ridden by Luis Saez and trained by Brad Cox — captured the 74th running of the Florida Derby on Saturday evening to book his place in the Kentucky Derby.

Tappan Street won the $1 million race by a clear length at 2-1 post time odds after covering a 1 1/8-mile fast dirt track at Gulfstream Park in 1:49.27.

Sovereignty, the 8-5 favorite, ran second and will also have enough points to be in the Run for the Roses in May in Louisville. That horse was ridden by Junior Alvarado and is trained by veteran horseman Bill Mott.

Tappan Street has two wins and one second-place effort in three career starts. The 100 Derby qualifying points that Tappan Street earned on Saturday come in addition to 10 points he previously earned after running second in the Grade 3 Holy Bull, which was also held at Gulfstream Park in February.

Sovereignty now has two wins and two second-place efforts in five career starts. Previously on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, Sovereignty won the Grade 3 Street Sense at Churchill Downs in October and the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream Park in early March.

Sovereignty has 110 Derby qualifying points, the same total as Tappan Street.

Third-place runner Neoequos — ridden by Edgard Zayas and trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. — is likely to be right on the edge of having a spot in the Derby starting gate. Neoequos is up to 40 qualifying points.

Madaket Road — a Bob Baffert trainee who was ridden by Tyler Gaffalione — finished fourth. But Madaket Road’s 46 Derby qualifying points have that horse in slightly better shape to make the Derby field. Previously, Madaket Road ran second in the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park in February.

Seven Kentucky Derby winners have come from the Florida Derby field since 2000, with the most recent one being Mage in 2023. Mage ran second in the Florida Derby before winning the Kentucky Derby that year.

Sandman wins Arkansas Derby to book spot in Kentucky Derby

Sandman — ridden by Jose Ortiz and trained by Mark Casse — outlasted the field in a wild 89th running of the Arkansas Derby, traversing the 1 1/8-mile dirt track at Oaklawn Park in a winning time of 1:50.08.

Sandman went off at 7-2 odds and now has three wins in eight career starts. A son of Tapit, Sandman previously ran second in the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes and third in the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park. Sandman now has 129 qualifying points for the Derby, which puts him atop the leaderboard.

Publisher — which went off at 7-1 odds and was ridden by Flavien Prat and trained by Steve Asmussen — finished second to secure his own spot in the Kentucky Derby field. Publisher is still winless in seven career starts, but the son of American Pharoah showed significant improvement Saturday after adding blinkers.

Feel-good story Coal Battle finished third at 3-1 odds for 72-year-old trainer Lonnie Briley. Coal Battle now has 95 Derby qualifying points and would easily qualify for the starting gate in the Derby.

Speed King and Cornucopian combined to set a blistering fast pace in this year’s running of the Arkansas Derby. The two horses surged to the front and covered the opening half-mile in 45.21 seconds. Both faded before the stretch run.

Qualifying leaderboard for 2025 Kentucky Derby horses

With four qualifying points races still to be run as part of the American Road to the Kentucky Derby, here’s what the top 20 of the qualifying leaderboard looks like, with horse names, qualifying points, jockeys and trainers listed.

The 18 horses with the most points will get a spot in the Derby starting gate on May 3.

The final four qualifying races on the American Road to the Derby will be the Grade 1 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (April 5 at Keeneland), the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby (April 5 at Santa Anita Park), the Grade 2 Wood Memorial (April 5 at Aqueduct) and the Grade 3 Lexington Stakes (April 12 at Keeneland).

— 1: Sandman: 129 points, ridden by Jose Ortiz and trained by Mark Casse.

— 2: Tiztastic: 119 points, ridden by Joel Rosario and trained by Steve Asmussen.

— 3: Sovereignty: 110 points, ridden by Junior Alvarado and trained by Bill Mott.

— 4: Tappan Street: 110 points, ridden by Luis Saez and trained by Brad Cox.

— 5: Final Gambit: 100 points, ridden by Luan Machado and trained by Brad Cox.

— 6: Coal Battle: 95 points, ridden by Juan Vargas and trained by Lonnie Briley.

— 7: Chunk of Gold:75 points, ridden by Jareth Loveberry and trained by Ethan West.

— 8: Owen Almighty: 65 points, ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr. and trained by Brian Lynch.

— 9: Citizen Bull: 60 points, ridden by Martin Garcia and trained by Bob Baffert.

— 10: Publisher:60 points, ridden by Flavien Prat and trained by Steve Asmussen.

— 11: American Promise: 55 points, ridden by Nik Juarez and trained by D. Wayne Lukas.

— 12: Flood Zone: 50 points, ridden by Reylu Gutierrez and trained by Brad Cox.

— 13: Flying Mohawk: 50 points, ridden by Joseph D. Ramos and trained by D. Whitworth Beckman.

— 14: Journalism: 47.5 points, ridden by Umberto Rispoli and trained by Michael McCarthy.

— 15: Getaway Car: 46 points, ridden by Irad Ortiz Jr. and trained by Bob Baffert.

— 16: Madaket Road: 46 points, ridden by Tyler Gaffalione and trained by Bob Baffert.

— 17: Built: 45 points, ridden by Jose Ortiz and trained by Wayne Catalano.

— 18: Neoequos: 40 points, ridden by Edgard Zayas and trained by Saffie Joseph Jr.

— 19: Chancer McPatrick: 35 points, ridden by Flavien Prat and trained by Chad Brown.

— 20: John Hancock: 35 points, ridden by Flavien Prat and trained by Brad Cox.

Additionally, the Grade 2 UAE Derby on April 5 is a 100-point Kentucky Derby qualifier that is part of the Euro/Mideast Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Over the weekend, Kentucky-bred Luxor Cafe — a son of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah — secured an invitation to the 2025 Kentucky Derby as part of the Japan Road to the Derby qualifying pathway.

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