2023 Kentucky Derby Post Positions,Entries Odds and Predictions: Reincarnate

The 149th Kentucky Derby (G1) presented by Woodford Reserve will be run on Saturday, May 6, at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The purse is $3 million, with $1.86 million going to the winner. US Racing is profiling each horse in the field. The post-position draw is Monday, May 1. Profiles will be updated with post positions and odds following the draw.

By US Racing Team

After Reincarnate held on gamely for a narrow victory over Newgate in January’s Sham Stakes (G3) at Santa Anita Park, then-trainer Bob Baffert said, “This is my Belmont horse.”

Kidding? Maybe. But now, the former Baffert trainee is headed to Louisville for the Kentucky Derby (G1) in the care of Tim Yakteen, to whom Baffert sent the Good Magic colt due to his continuing suspension from Churchill Downs, Inc. Racetracks.

In two starts for Yakteen, Reincarnate has finished third, firstly a rousing performance after a troubled trip in the Rebel (G3), and then a sort-of-head-scratching outing in the Arkansas Derby (G1), both at Oaklawn Park.

In the Rebel, Reincarnate – who’d been on or close to the pace in his first five starts – was shuffled back early, falling 11 lengths behind the pacesetting Powerful, and then rallied on the outside in the stretch, only to check at the furlong marker before continuing to finish 2 ½ lengths back.

Enthusiastically backed in the Arkansas Derby as the 3.3-1 second choice behind Rocket Can, Reincarnate was up close early in second, but couldn’t hold off the late run from 58-1 King Russell and wound up settling for third, beaten 4 ¾ lengths by Angel of Empire.

His final 3/8ths went in 37.78 seconds.

Having earned 15 points from the Rebel and 30 from the Arkansas Derby, he landed at No. 18 on the Derby leaderboard.

While it may have been weather-related interruptions in his training schedule in California accounting for those performances, SF Racing’s managing partner Tim Ryan said Reincarnate “showed enough class to put himself on the podium.

“He’s got his 45 points through the Yakteen system and has fairly and squarely put himself in the Derby. We’ll hopefully get a nice, direct run into the race.”

2023 Kentucky Derby Entries: Reincarnate

Post position: 7

Odds: 50-1

Trainer: Tim Yakeen

Jockey: John Velazquez

Owner: SF Racing LLC (Gavin Murphy), Starlight Racing (Jack Wolf), Madaket Stables LLC (Sol Kumin and Jason Monteleone), Robert Masterson, Stonestreet Stable LLC (Barbara Banke), Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital LLC (W. Gregg Slager), Catherine Donovan

Career earnings: $345,650

Career record:7-2-3-2

Derby qualifying points: 45 (18^th)

Best Equibase speed figure: 103

Pedigree: Good Magic-Allanah, by Scat Daddy

Color: Gray

Running style: Mid-pack

Notes: Reincarnate went 5 furlongs in 1:01 on April 22 on the main track at Santa Anita Park, after which Yakteen said everything is on schedule. “Fingers crossed,” he said, adding that both Reincarnate and Practical Move will work again in California before the trip to Louisville … Reincarnate’s name is mostly derived from his sire, Good Magic. His dam is Allanah, which means “little child,” from the Gaelic “a leabnh.”