Meet The Field | A glance at the colts who have qualified for the Kentucky Derby

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- With the final Kentucky Derby prep race now in the books, the field for the 2022 edition of the Run For the Roses has finally taken shape, though it can always change with late defections.

Here's a quick look at the 20 colts who have qualified for the 148th running of the race, in order of points earned (which will not correspond to odds of victory):

1. EPICENTER — Steve Asmussen (trainer) and Joel Rosario (jockey) — Record: 6-4-1-0: 

Winner of the Louisiana Derby, Epicenter won three of the four Fair Grounds preps. He is the likely favorite for the Derby and to take his Hall of Fame trainer to the Winner's Circle for the first time. Won his early races with a front-running style but showed the ability to rate from just off the pace in his Louisiana Derby win. He was the favorite in the final Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool, at odds of 4.60-1. Rosario is 1-for-10 in the Derby, winning aboard Orb in 2013.

2. ZANDON — Chad Brown and Flavian Prat — Record: 5-4-0-1: 

An impressive 2 1/2-length win in the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland brings him into the Derby with some momentum. But he would be the first Blue Grass runner to win the Derby since Street Sense back in 2007. Brown is 0-for-6 in the Derby, but three of those were top-five finishes, including a runner-up finish with Good Magic in 2018. Prat won the Derby when Maximum Security was disqualified in 2019. Zandon is a closer and will be looking to come from well off the pace, which is always a challenge in the crowded Derby field.

3. WHITE ABARRIO — Saffie Joseph Jr., Tyler Gaffalione — Record: 5-4-0-1: 

He reigned at Gulfstream Park, where he won the Florida Derby and is 4-for-4 lifetime. His only loss, however, came at Churchill Downs in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes, where he finished third to Derby rival Smile Happy. He's a versatile runner, and should have the kind of early tactical speed to maneuver traffic, but won after improving from fifth in the Florida Derby. His trainer is 0-for-1 in the Derby but has made a name for himself in Florida, after growing up around the sport in Barbados.

4. MO DONEGAL — Todd Pletcher, Irad Ortiz Jr. — Record: 5-3-0-2:

He closed late to win the Wood Memorial, stamping his Derby ticket for owner Jerry Crawford and Donegal Racing. He's the son of Uncle Mo, the 2-year-old champion in 2010 and the early favorite to win the 2011 Kentucky Derby, but health problems sidelined him and he didn't make it to the starting gate. Mo Donegal has a late-closing style from well off the pace that will make managing traffic important. His jockey is 0-for-5 in the Derby with a best finish of fourth. He won the Wood Memorial with Joel Rosario aboard, but Rosario will ride Epicenter in the Derby.

5. TIZ THE BOMB — Kenny McPeek, Brian Hernandez Jr. — Record: 8-5-1-0:

He won the Grade 3 Jeff Ruby Steaks on April 2 at Turfway Park by 2 ¼ lengths over stablemate Tawny Port. He's had a bit of an unusual road to the Derby, was runner up in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf last fall but disappointed in his 3-year-old debut and was sent to Turfway, where he had success. He's won on turf (twice), dirt and a synthetic surface, and his running style isn't bad for the Derby. He likes to close from off the pace but not from deep in the field. His mid-pack running style could have him in decent position if he has the class to finish it off. McPeek, who grew up in Lexington and graduated from the University of Kentucky, is 0-for-6 in the Derby but he has a couple of live chances this year. His best finish was a second with Tejano Run in 1995.

6. CYBERKNIFE — Brad Cox, Florent Geroux — Record: 6-3-2-0:

The winner of the Arkansas Derby dumped Geroux before that race, which leads to some concerns over how he'll handle the massive Kentucky Derby crowd and that post parade. Still, he flashed talent once he left the gate at Oaklawn and is one of three colts in the race for Cox, who is seeking back-to-back Derby wins after Mandaloun was elevated for a disqualification to Medina Spirit in last year's Derby. Cyberknife likes to stalk the leaders from just off the pace, an advantageous running style for the Derby. His owner, Al Gold, missed the Arkansas Derby when his plane from Florida lost cabin pressure and had to land shortly after takeoff. Cyberknife will be the first Derby starter for the 66-year-old Gold, who is a retired construction manager from New Jersey. He named his colt for the non-invasive robotic treatment used to successfully treat his prostate cancer.

7. CROWN PRIDE — Koichi Shintani, Christophe Lemaire — Record: 4-3-0-0:

The Japanese-bred winner of the UAE Derby follows the same route Lani took to the Derby for an eighth-place finish in 2013. The Japanese and European imports haven't had much luck in the Derby. He would be just the second Japanese-bred to run in the Derby. He's been at Churchill since March 30. He gets a jockey change, with Lemaire, one of Japan's top riders, being called up after Damian Lane rode him to victory in Dubai. Lemaire has had some U.S. success, winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies’ Turf on Flotilla and the Secretariat Stakes on Bayrir, both in 2012. It will be the first Kentucky Derby for both jockey and trainer. He won both of his races at age 2 with a stalking style from just off the pace. He lost his first race at 3 before bouncing back.

8. TAIBA — Tim Yakteen (from Bob Baffert), Mike Smith — Record: 2-2-0-0:

He's looking to become the first colt to win the Derby off just two career starts since Leonatus in 1893. He is the most expensive horse in the race, going for $1.7 million to owner Amr Zedan (the owner of Medina Spirit) at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Florida Select 2-Year-old sale. Taiba stamped his ticket with an impressive stretch rally over stablemate Messier in the Santa Anita Derby. He's one of three colts in the race by leading freshman sire Gun Runner. Yakteen, a former Baffert assistant, is making his first Derby appearance after receiving colts from Baffert, who is banned from Churchill Downs and suspended from Kentucky racing. He has posted Beyer Speed Figures above 100 in both of his career races and has two of the four highest this year for this field. He'll be ridden by a seasoned Derby hand, two-time winner (and Triple Crown winner) Mike Smith.

9. SIMPLIFICATION — Antonio Sano, Jose Ortiz — Record: 7-3-1-2:

Winner of the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream, this colt has failed to finish in the money only once in seven starts and won a pair of Grade 2 stakes as a 2-year-old. He was third in the Florida Derby, his last time out. His Fountain of Youth win came after setting the pace, but he generally he comes from off the pace and would appear to have the ability to get the 1 1/4 miles of the Derby. He's the second Derby starter from Sano, who brought Gunnavera in 2017. Sano got plenty of media attention that year because of his tale of being kidnapped and held for ransom in his native Venezuela. Simplificaton's owner, Tami Bobo, owned Take Charge Indy but sold him just before a 19th-place finish in 2012. Ortiz is 0-for-6 in the Derby.

10. SMILE HAPPY — Kenny McPeek, Corey Lanerie — Record: 4-2-2-0:

Second in his last two races, the Grade 2 Risen Star and the Grade 2 Blue Grass, as the favorite. He won both of his races at 2, including the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs, but has been runner-up in a pair of starts this year. Comfortably in the Derby on points, McPeek has not asked a great deal of him at 3. He went into the Blue Grass off a seven-week layoff. Smile Happy is at his happiest running just off the pace. He was the third-choice of bettors in the final Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool, at 9-1 odds.

11. TAWNY PORT — Brad Cox, TBA — Record: 5-3-1-0:

This Brad Cox entry has been busy. He ran second in the Grade 3 Jeff Ruby Stakes on April 2, then punched his Derby ticket with a win in the last-chance Lexington Stakes at Keeneland two weeks later. The Pioneerof the Nile colt won his first two starts on the synthetic surface at Turfway in his last race at 2 and first at 3. He ran fifth to likely Derby favorite Epicenter in his return to dirt in the Risen Star, with three of those who finished in front of him making the Derby field. He ran second to Derby contender Tiz the Bomb in the Jeff Ruby. Generally likes to come from off the pace. Owner John Fort is seeking his first Derby win in his fourth trip. He was second with Invisible Ink in 2001.

12. BARBER ROAD — John Ortiz, Reylu Gutierrez — Record: 8-2-4-1:

His eight starts are the most in this field and he's racing with a first-time Derby owner, trainer and jockey. He ran second to Cyberknife in the Arkansas Derby his last time out. His owner, Bill Simon, is a former CEO of Walmart and bought Barber Road at the discount price of $15,000 at the 2019 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale. He named the colt after the street where his wife, Tammi, grew up. Her interest in the sport got him into it with one horse five years ago. They now own 25. Barber Road, a closer who comes from well off the pace, hasn't won since last November but has run second four times and third once in his last five starts. Ortiz, the son of jockey Carlos Ortiz, is coming off the best meet of his career at Oaklawn. He moved to the U.S. when his father moved to New York from Colombia and got his start in the business as a hotwalker for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.

13. UN OJO — Ricky Courville, Ramon Vazquez — Record: 7-2-2-0:

The only gelding in the field, Un Ojo is also distinguished by the feature his name gives away (in Spanish). He has only one eye, having lost the other in an accident as a yearling. The New York-bred punched his Kentucky Derby ticket with a long-shot run in the Rebel Stakes at 75-1. He ran back in the Arkansas Derby but had a miserable trip and cut himself when he hit the rail, requiring stitches, on his way to an eighth-place finish. His jockey is getting his second Derby mount, having 13th in his prior trip aboard Mr. Z in 2013. Courville is in his first Derby. Another late-runner, Un Ojo seeks to become the second New York-bred to win the Derby. The other was Funny Cide in 2013.

14. EARLY VOTING — Chad Brown, TBD — Record: 3-2-1-0:

Another son of Gun Runner, Early Voting ran second by a neck in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, where he has run all three of his career races. He's won twice, including in the Withers Stakes on Feb. 5. Brown hasn't fully-committed to bringing him to Louisville, saying he wanted to take some time to see how he came back from the Wood. He'll want to go to the lead if he does run, and with some of the pace having dropped off the Derby trail, could have the opportunity to do that, depending on his post.

15. MORELLO — Steve Asmussen, Jose Lezcano — Record: 4-3-0-0:

The Classic Empire colt ran a disappointing sixth in the Wood Memorial last time out, his only time out of the money in four career starts. Named after Tom Morello, a guitarist with the band Rage Against the Machine, he hit the inside of the gate to break last in the Wood and never threatened as the 9-5 favorite. Before that, he won the Grade 3 Gotham on March 5 by an impressive 4 1/2 lengths. When he gets the right start, Morello likes to get away quickly and race on or near the lead. His jockey, Jose Lezcano, is 0-for-6 in the Derby with a best finish of second in 2010, aboard Ice Box.

16. MESSIER — Tim Yakteen (from Bob Baffert), John Velazquez — Record: 6-3-3-0:

Don't be fooled by his 16th place standing in the points or his second-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby. Baffert has a history with winning the Kentucky Derby off a second at Santa Anita, and Messier was the No. 2 choice of bettors in the final Kentucky Derby Future Wager. The Ontario-bred with the appropriate hockey-themed name won the Grade 3 Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita by 15 lengths in his only previous race this year. The son of Empire Maker won the Grade 3 Bob Hope and the ran second in the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity at age 2. He's had trouble slamming the door when on the lead, and he likes to be up close to the lead. He'll get a ride from John Velazquez, who will be in his 15th Derby, having won aboard Animal Kingdom in 2011 and crossed the finish line first aboard Medina Spirit last year, only to lose via a DQ. He would like nothing better than to return to the Winner's Circle and has a legitimate opportunity.

17. ZOZOS — Brad Cox, TBA — Record: 3-1-1-0:

A three-time starter, the Munnings colt followed his maiden win against optional claiming allowance company at Oaklawn with an impressive second to likely Derby favorite Epicenter in the Santa Anita Derby. He did not race at age 2. He worked 5 furlongs at Churchill Downs in 1:00.60 on April 15 under Geroux. His owners and breeders, Barry and Joni Butzow of Eden Prairie, Minnesota, are one of two ownership connections from the state of Minnesota in this year's field (Jeff Drown of St. Cloud owns Zandon). They named the colt after a restaurant in the Virgin Islands. Zozos likes to run near the lead. He stalked the leader from second for three-quarters of a mile before winning in his second race. He led the Louisiana Derby into the stretch before giving way to Epicenter in the final furlong.

18. SUMMER IS TOMORROW — Bhupat Seemar, Mickael Barzalona — Record: 7-2-3-0:

Weather fans unite, this son of Summer Front will look to score as a longshot for his first-time Derby trainer. The UAE champion punched his ticket to the Derby with a second-place finish to Crown Pride in the UAE Derby. While Summer is Tomorrow traveled a long way to get to the Derby, he was bred in Kentucky by former Gov. Brereton Jones. Seemar, 45, took out a training license and took over Zabeel Stables in Dubai just under six months ago after his uncle and mentor, six-time champion Satish Seemar, was suspended temporarily by the Emirates Racing Authority. In the interim, the longtime assistant has won 47 races, including his first Grade 1. He's no stranger to Kentucky or the U.S., having spent time as an intern at Taylor Made Farm in Jessamine County and five years as an assistant to Baffert. Shipping from Dubai is grueling and doing it for the Kentucky Derby even more. But Seemar is looking forward to his first race as trainer of record on U.S. soil.

19. CHARGE IT — Todd Pletcher, Luis Saez — Record: 3-1-2-0:

The lightly raced Florida Derby runner-up is a son of Tapit and though he didn't win at Gulfstream made enough of a leap that trying the Kentucky Derby didn't seem like such a stretch for Pletcher and owner Whisper Hill Farm and Amanda Pope. He ran the Florida Derby like a rookie, which he is, having never raced at age 2. He hit the gate at the start, settled two-wide off the rail, angled out four-wide near the quarter pole, then lugged back in, twice, and twice got angled back out, switched leads and closed to finish second while starting to lug in again. If he gets some seasoning and a better trip, he could be dangerous, though the Kentucky Derby is a tough place to expect those things. He does like to stay up near the pace, which should help. He has a veteran in Luis Saez aboard. Saez, officially 0-for-8 in the Derby, crossed the finish line first aboard Maximum Security, only to be disqualified for a foul claim in 2019. He returned to the Derby last year and finished fourth (later elevated to third) aboard Essential Quality.

20. HAPPY JACK — Doug O'Neill, Abel Cedillo — Record: 4-1-0-2:

His trainer knows his way to the Winner's Circle, having won with I'll Have Another (2012) and Nyquist (2016). This son of Oxbow has a pair of third-place finishes at Santa Anita, in the San Felipe Stakes on March 5 and a distant third in the Santa Anita Derby, and a fifth, 27 lengths back, in his first race at 3, the Robert B. Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita, in February. Happy Jack, owned by Calumet Farm, got into the Derby when another O'Neill colt, Slow Down Andy, a son of Nyquist, had to be sidelined after spiking a fever. His jockey, Abel Cedillo, has been a rising jockey in California, with some success in Kentucky. He filled in on Maximum Security to win the San Diego Handicap in 2020, and will get his first start in the Kentucky Derby this year.

VIDEO | 2022 Kentucky Derby prep races

The road to the 148th Kentucky Derby takes many horses across the United States.

Copyright 2022 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.