Road to the Kentucky Derby 2022: Epicenter

Epicenter:

Epicenter, owned by Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC, is one of the most successful three-year-old horses of the year and is currently on top of the Kentucky Derby leaderboard with 164 points. 

Epicenter was sold to Winchell Thoroughbreds for $260,000 as a yearling and raced under their silks for his whole career. Surprisingly, his pedigree isn’t packed with many notable sires. His grandsire is Candy Ride, an Argentinian stallion, who’s sired some successful colts and fillies around the world, but otherwise, his lineage isn’t too impressive. He broke his maiden in November at Churchill Downs, racing for trainer, Steve M. Asmussen. His jockey for the race was Joel Rosario, who rode the colt to his win in the Louisiana Derby.

Epicenter has had six starts and won four, including; the Gun Runner Stakes, Risen Star Stakes (Grade 2), and Louisiana Derby (Grade 2). The colt ran most of his races at Fair Grounds, a racetrack in Louisiana, but his experience at Churchill Downs in his maiden races prepare him for the Kentucky Derby coming up in May.

This colt’s forward placed running style may come in handy for the Kentucky Derby. Most horses on the current leaderboard are mid-pack runners which leaves Epicenter room to control the pace from the lead.