Kentucky Derby 152 · Churchill Downs
Your morning briefing on the road to the Kentucky Derby
Edition No. 23 · Saturday, May 2, 2026 · The Final Edition
It's Finally Here. 🌹
Twenty-three editions. Three original features. Twenty Monster Pods. Four ATR previews. Six Derby Drams. One Bet Share hit on Oaks Day. And one very long road from Edition 1 to right now: Derby Day.
Kentucky Derby 152. Churchill Downs. Post time 6:57 PM ET. NBC and Peacock.
Thank you for reading. Let's go to the races.
🚨 THE PUMA SCRATCHED — FIELD IS 19
The Puma (7-1) scratched Derby morning — skin infection, leg swelling. "It's incredibly disappointing but the swelling should go down within a day or two." Preakness candidate.
Right to Party also scratched. Robusta draws in. JK keeps his hair.
Field is 19. Four scratches total. Commandment and Further Ado — the horses who beat The Puma — are the primary beneficiaries.
👉 Ocelli & Robusta Monster Pod
📊 LIVE MARKET — DERBY MORNING
Three-Way Tie at the Top
Renegade 5-1 · Commandment 5-1 · So Happy 5-1
Further Ado 6-1 · Chief Wallabee 7-1 · Emerging Market 9-1
Danon Bourbon 14-1 · Potente 21-1 · Wonder Dean 22-1 · Golden Tempo 25-1
So Happy: 15-1 morning line to 5-1 co-favorite. The biggest market move of the entire D2D series. Win pool already at $8.1 million.
👉 Ocelli & Robusta Monster Pod
🎰 BET SHARE HITS ON OAKS DAY
A Reverse Bad Beat Story
The late Pick 5 paid $2,351.11 for fifty cents, and the ITM Inner Circle bet share hit it twice. The full story of how Jackson's R11 structural call and Mikee P's Oaks promotion turned a dead package into a double hit is in today's edition on the site. The short version: the key move was demoting the winner of the La Troienne from A to B — which is exactly what enabled us to cash when she won.
Next time we open the bet share, we'd love to have you along. Join ITM Plus →
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SUBSCRIBE FREE →📄 EVERYTHING YOU NEED FOR DERBY DAY
👉 Horse-by-Horse Guide: Kentucky Derby (ATR)
👉 2026 Kentucky Derby Preview (ATR)
👉 Can You Win the Derby From the Rail?
👉 Why You Can't Bet the Derby on Kalshi
👉 All 19 Free Contender Profiles
👉 Derby Best Bets with Bailey & Moss (30K+)
👉 Sean Boarman's Derby Breakdown
👉 Monster Pod Full Compilation
🥃 DERBY DRAM No. 6 — OAKS DAY
Maker's Mark Cellar Aged
MSRP $175 · 112.9 proof / 56.45% ABV · Loretto, KY
Maker's Mark spent decades never releasing anything aged more than a decade. The Cellar Aged changes that — 11, 13 and 14 year old whisky matured partly in Maker's limestone cellar at a steady 47°F. At 112.9 proof it's Maker's on steroids — vanilla and dark cherry on the nose, chocolate and toasted hazelnut on the palate, with a medicinal cherry cough syrup quality that's powerful but not unpleasant. Worth the $175. Don't pay secondary.
🥃 DERBY DRAM No. 7 — DERBY DAY 🌹
Pappy Van Winkle 15 Year Family Reserve
MSRP $120 · 53.5% ABV / 107 proof · Frankfort, KY
All week we've been building to this. The white whale of American bourbon — same wheated mashbill as the Weller 107, aged fifteen years with considerably more scrutiny. Dried apricot, vanilla, and that distinctive furniture polish quality on the nose. Silky smooth palate with fullness only time produces. Long finish with a subtle kiss of mint. This is what fifteen years of patience tastes like. MSRP $120. Secondary $2,000+. If you find it at MSRP, buy it. Happy Derby Day. 🌹
🎵 MUSICAL INTERLUDE
There's only one song for Derby Day.
▶ Dead Flowers — The Rolling Stones →
🌹 Post time 6:57 PM ET. NBC and Peacock.
Nineteen horses. One and a quarter miles.
The most exciting two minutes in sports.
Let's ride. 🌹
Thank you for reading Daily to Derby. 🌹
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