LITTLE MOVEMENT IN NTRA POLLS AHEAD OF ARKANSAS DERBY WEEKEND

Alicia Hughes, NTRA Communications —-

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Sackatoga Stable’s Tiz the Law continues to hold a clear advantage in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Top 3-Year-Old Poll but shake-ups could be on the horizon as the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby headlines this weekend’s stakes action at Oaklawn Park.

Tiz the Law, who most recently triumphed in the Grade 1 Florida Derby, earned 33 first-place votes and 379 points to maintain his standing as the divisional leader. The Barclay Tagg-trained colt took the Grade 1 Champagne Stakes in his second career start last year and has scored emphatic victories in both of his 2020 outings, the first being a three-length victory in the Grade 3 Holy Bull Stakes.

Sitting in the second spot is unbeaten Authentic (3 first-place votes, 329 points), winner of the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes on March 7. Authentic will not be in action this weekend but his stablemates Nadal and Charlatan – third and fourth, respectively, in the poll – are each slated to start in the Arkansas Derby, which has been split into two divisions.

Nadal (1 first-place vote, 308 points) already flaunted form over the Oaklawn track when he captured the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes on March 14. Charlatan (2 first-place votes, 230 points) is stepping up to stakes company for the first time after a pair of eye-catching triumphs in his first two starts.

Wells Bayou, winner of the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby, ranks fifth with 179 points as he prepares to face Nadal, among others, in the second division of the Arkansas Derby. Honor A. P. sits sixth with 167 points followed by Ete Indien (123 points), Sole Volante (109), King Guillermo (81), and Maxfield (69). King Guillermo is also set to start in the second division of the Arkansas Derby.

There were no changes to the top ten in the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll, which is still led by champion distaffer Midnight Bisou (29 first-place votes, 378 points). Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational winner Mucho Gusto (307 points) is second with fellow Grade 1-winner Zulu Alpha (1 first-place vote, 194 points) in third.

Multiple Grade 1-winner Ce Ce (178 points) holds in fourth following her victory in the Grade 1 Apple Blossom Handicap on April 18 with Mr Freeze, who is entered in Saturday’s Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap, fifth with 161 points. Champion Maximum Security (7 first-place votes, 128 points) is sixth followed by Tom’s d’Etat (110 points) and By My Standards (106). Grade 1-winner Combatant, who is also among the entrants for the Oaklawn Handicap, is ninth with 95 points while veteran Whitmore (94 points) rounds out the top ten.

Tiz the Law (34 points) received two first-place votes in the Top Thoroughbred Poll.

The NTRA Top Thoroughbred polls are the sport’s most comprehensive surveys of experts. Every week eligible journalists and broadcasters cast votes for their top 10 horses, with points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. All horses that have raced in the U.S., are in training in the U.S., or are known to be pointing to a major event in the U.S. are eligible for the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll. Voting in both the Top 3-Year-Old Poll and the Top Thoroughbred Poll is scheduled to be conducted through the conclusion of the Breeders’ Cup in November.

The full results for the NTRA Thoroughbred Poll can be found on the NTRA website at:

https://www.ntra.com/ntra-top-thoroughbred-poll-april-27-2020