Mulligan Time

With word that Tapizar is off the Derby trail I would like to take my one mulligan and replace him with another horse on my 5 To Watch For The Derby list.

Machen - This son of Distorted Humor has a lot to do and not much time to get it done but in just 2 races at 3 he has already proven himself as a horse with as much raw talent as any in this year's Derby crop. Trainer Neil Howard does have his work cut out for him with this colt. First off, he has no graded stakes earnings (a problem he can remedy this weekend in the $300,000 Risen Star-G2). Secondly, and most concerning, is that the horse does have a propensity to be rank in the early stages of his race. He's got some big hurdles he needs to get over quickly but I just have a feeling that if Theriot can get him to relax just a little in the Risen Star he can overwhelm the other horse with his natural ability. If he does that this weekend he will be right in the thick of things.