On Saturday, Oaklawn Park hosts the $1.5 million Arkansas Derby, the track’s fourth and final qualifying points prep race for the May 2 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve. The 1 1/8-mile race offers a total of 200 points to the top five finishers toward reserving a spot in the Kentucky Derby starting gate, distributed on a 100-50-25-15-10 basis.

The Arkansas Derby has been an influential prep race this century. Eight horses coming out of the race have trained on to win the run for the roses, and five of them have occurred since 2004, most recently Mystik Dan, who finished third in the 2024 Arkansas Derby and then won the Kentucky Derby by a nose. Three Arkansas Derby winners have won the Kentucky Derby in the same year: Sunny’s Halo in 1983, Smarty Jones in 2004, and eventual Triple Crown winner American Pharoah in 2015.

The 90^th Arkansas Derby drew a competitive nine-horse field (reduced to eight after the reported scratch of Napoleon Solo). The group is led by Silent Tactic, who won the Southwest Stakes earlier during Oaklawn’s meet, and Renegade, who ships to Oaklawn off of a win in the Sam F. Davis Stakes in Florida. The race will be broadcast live on FS1 as part of the “America’s Day at the Races” show and also on FanDuel TV.

Read on for information about all of the Arkansas Derby contenders plus some gambling insights:

Ryan Thompson/Coglianese Photo

1. Redland Rebels (15-1 morning-line odds)

Jockey: Keith Asmussen

Trainer: Patrick Biancone

Owner: Calypso Racing Stables 2022

Career record: 4 starts – 1 win – 1 second – 0 thirds

Career earnings: $104,500

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 90

Kentucky Derby points: 10

Pedigree: Uncle Chuck – Kombat Cat, by D’wildcat

Color: Dark bay or brown

Running style: Pacesetter

Analysis: This Florida-bred gelding figures to be one of the pacesetters in the Arkansas Derby if he ends up shipping to Oaklawn. He is cross-entered in the Curlin Florida Derby Presented by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms at Xalapa Saturday at Gulfstream Park, another 200-point Kentucky Derby prep, but reportedly will be shipped from Patrick Biancone’s Florida home base to compete in Arkansas. After two good starts in turf route races, Redland Rebels switched to dirt for the ESMARK Tampa Bay Derby March 7, and set the early pace in that 1 1/16-mile race after breaking from the inside post position. He kept a short advantage turning for home and responded when challenged by three horses, including winner The Puma, but tired in the final strides to finish fourth. That result and his pedigree suggest that Redland Rebels might find the extra sixteenth of a mile in the Arkansas Derby too taxing (the Florida Derby is also held at 1 1/8 miles). He’ll be a post-time longshot who nevertheless should have an influence on the race if he makes the trip to Oaklawn as expected.

Coady Media

2. Silent Tactic (5-2)

Jockey: Cristian Torres

Trainer: Mark Casse

Owner: John Oxley

Career record: 5 starts – 2 wins – 3 seconds – 0 thirds

Career earnings: $774,422

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 103

Kentucky Derby points: 50

Pedigree: Tacitus – Magical Sign, by Gun Runner

Color: Bay

Running style: Closer

Analysis: Silent Tactic is already one of the top-tier contenders for Kentucky Derby 152, and a win in the Arkansas Derby would elevate his status even higher. He made a successful transition from racing on the all-weather surface at Woodbine in 2025 (a first and second in two starts) to competing on dirt after shipping to Oaklawn. He finished second in the Smarty Jones Stakes, dominated the Southwest Stakes, and then ran a very game second by a nose to Class President in the Rebel Stakes. Each of those Oaklawn Kentucky Derby preps was held at 1 1/16 miles, and Silent Tactic’s pedigree suggests he’ll relish the added distance in the Arkansas Derby. He’s a deep closer who would benefit from a fast early pace, but it’s worth noting that he rallied into a very slow pace to finish second in the Smarty Jones and a moderate pace to romp by 3 ¼ lengths in the Southwest. His narrow loss in the Rebel should not be held against him in the slightest, and all signs point to another top-two finish Saturday, even though he’s probably already amassed enough qualifying points to make the Kentucky Derby field. Cristian Torres remains aboard after riding Silent Tactic in his three prior starts at this track as he tries to give Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse his third Arkansas Derby win and second in a row after Sandman’s victory last year.

Eclipse Sportswire

3. Blackout Time (6-1)

Jockey: Brian Hernandez Jr.

Trainer: Ken McPeek

Owners: BR Thoroughbreds, Lance Gasaway, and Magdalena Racing

Career record: 4 starts – 1 win – 2 seconds – 0 thirds

Career earnings: $264,691

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 94

Kentucky Derby points: 15

Pedigree: Not This Time – Beauty Parlor, by Elusive Quality

Color: Dark bay or brown

Running style: Stalker

Analysis: It’s the now-or-never moment for Blackout Time in terms of qualifying for the Kentucky Derby. The highly regarded son of hot sire Not This Time came back off of a nearly four-month layoff to finish a nonthreatening fourth in the Rebel Stakes March 1 at Oaklawn. He established good early position in third behind Litmus Test and eventual winner Class President but had no rally when asked by Brian Hernandez Jr. and finished eight lengths back from the dueling Class President and Silent Tactic and 2 ¾ lengths behind Litmus Test. He’ll need to improve significantly to finish at least third in the Arkansas Derby and keep Derby hopes alive for his owners, which include trainer Ken McPeek’s Magdalena Racing. A third would give Blackout Time 40 total Derby points and place him on the borderline to secure a starting gate spot, based on recent history. Blackout Time was one of the most promising Derby contenders last fall based on a dominant maiden win at Ellis Park and then a good second behind eventual champion 2-year-old male Ted Noffey in the Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland. He’s certainly eligible to improve in his second 3-year-old start, and his two workouts at Oaklawn since the Rebel have been excellent. 

Coady Media

4. Bricklin (20-1)

Jockey: Jaime Torres

Trainer: Rodolphe Brisset

Owner: Imagine Racing

Career record: 5 starts – 2 wins – 0 seconds – 1 third

Career earnings: $141,068

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 84

Kentucky Derby points: 6

Pedigree: Nyquist – Majestic Vixen, by Majesticperfection

Color: Dark bay or brown

Running style: Press the pace/stalker

Analysis: This longshot contender returns to the track where he won his 3-year-old bow after a trip to New Mexico in his first attempt in a Kentucky Derby prep (although he is cross-entered in the one-mile Hot Springs Stakes for 3-year-olds March 26 at Oaklawn and could run in that spot instead). Following three starts as a juvenile in 2025, including a win sprinting at Horseshoe Indianapolis and a distant sixth in the 1 1/16-mile Street Sense Stakes at Churchill Downs, Bricklin raced at Oaklawn Jan. 3 in a one-mile, two-turn allowance optional claiming race and won impressively by 3 ½ lengths after setting a contested early pace. He then shipped to Sunland Park for the Feb. 15 Sunland Park Derby held at 1 1/16 miles, where instead of vying for the early lead he settled in a stalking spot behind pacesetter and favorite Express Kid and finished third, 5 ¼ lengths behind pace-pressing Pavlovian, who edged Express Kid by a nose. Pavlovian came back to run a very good second in last week’s Twispires.com Louisiana Derby, but Bricklin’s Equibase Speed Figure was modest in the Sunland Park Derby, and he’ll have to run the best race of his career by far just to have a chance at hitting the board in the Arkansas Derby. On the positive side, Bricklin’s workouts at Oaklawn since the Sunland Park Derby have been solid, and new jockey Jaime Torres figures to be aggressive riding him out of the starting gate. Look for this runner to be more forwardly placed Saturday than he was in his last start.

Coady Media

5. Taptastic (20-1)

Jockey: Erik Amussen

Trainer: Steve Asmussen

Owners: Winchell Thoroughbreds and Stonestreet Stables

Career record: 1 start – 1 win – 0 seconds – 0 thirds

Career earnings: $66,000

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 80

Kentucky Derby points: 0

Pedigree: Tapit – Valadorna, by Curlin

Color: Gray or roan

Running style: Stalker

Analysis: Last week, Emerging Market galloped onto the Kentucky Derby trail by winning the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby after just one prior start. Can this well-bred colt do the same? Taptastic made his first career start less than three weeks ago in a March 8 maiden race held at one mile and around two turns at Oaklawn. He was the 4-5 favorite in that race, competing against only four horses on a muddy track, and stalked the early pace along the inside before accelerating in the stretch and winning by 1 ½ lengths. Now, Hall of Fame trainer and four-time Arkansas Derby winner Steve Asmussen will wheel Taptastic right back for a shot at the big time, and he’ll need to boost his debut 80 Equibase Speed Figure by around 20 points to have a chance at the upset. The forecast for Saturday in Hot Springs, Ark., calls for sunny skies, so Taptastic will not get repeat conditions from his maiden win. On the other hand, his pedigree is superb for stretching out in distance as he’s by leading sire Tapit and out of Valadorna, a graded stakes-winning daughter of another stamina sire in Curlin who did her best racing around two turns. He’s a wild card entrant in the Arkansas Derby who could improve and contend for a top-three spot or come up short on experience and finish last.

SV Photography

6. Renegade (3-2)

Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.

Trainer: Todd Pletcher

Owners: Robert Low, Lawana Low, and Repole Stable

Career record: 4 starts – 1 win – 2 seconds – 1 third

Career earnings: $199,000

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 100

Kentucky Derby points: 25

Pedigree: Into Mischief – Spice Is Nice, by Curlin

Color: Bay

Running style: Stalker/closer

Analysis: Morning-line favorite Renegade finished up 2024 as a promising Kentucky Derby contender despite officially being winless through three starts, and he validated that judgment with a dominant victory to kick off his 3-year-old season in the Sam F. Davis Stakes Feb. 7 at Tampa Bay Downs. The well-bred Into Mischief colt tracked patiently in eighth (of nine horses) early in the 1 1/16-mile race and then mounted a sweeping rally through the far turn to move up near the lead entering the stretch. He surged past pacesetting longshot Wayne’s Law and won going away by 3 ¾ lengths, with subsequent ESMARK Tampa Bay Derby winner The Puma finishing third. Renegade had already established his reputation with two races vs. highly rated Paladin last fall: a first-place finish over that foe in a one-mile maiden race in which he was disqualified to second, and then a runner-up effort to Paladin in the 1 1/8-mile Remsen Stakes, both at Aqueduct. He showed encouraging development right off the bat in the Sam F. Davis, which came after a two-month layoff, and if he takes yet another step in Saturday’s Arkansas Derby following a break of seven weeks, he’ll be in the Oaklawn winner’s circle and one of the top two or three Kentucky Derby contenders in most polls. Champion jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. rode Renegade in the Sam F. Davis and travels to take the mount again Saturday rather than riding leading Florida Derby contender Commandment at Gulfstream Park, his home track. Todd Pletcher is tied for the most all-time Arkansas Derby wins with five, and he’s got a good chance to notch his sixth victory against a field that includes a colt in Litmus Test that’s trained by his wins rival, Bob Baffert.

New To Horse Racing? Let Us Explain ...

Morning line: In horse racing, each racetrack hires an oddsmaker to give estimates about what kind of support a horse will receive from bettors in the pari-mutuel pool, which collects wagers from everyone gambling on a particular race. These estimates are called morning-line odds and are usually announced a few days before the race is run. The morning-line odds are a starting point when a race becomes open for betting and will change as bettors begin to make their wagers. The final odds can be very different from the morning line odds by the time the race starts.

7. Napoleon Solo (SCRATCHED)

Jockey: Kendrick Carmouche

Trainer: Chad Summers

Owner: Gold Square

Career record: 3 starts – 2 wins – 0 seconds – 0 thirds

Career earnings: $330,520

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 99

Kentucky Derby points: 15

Pedigree: Liam’s Map – Atomic Blonde, by Scat Daddy

Color: Gray or roan

Running style: Pacesetter/press the pace

Analysis: On March 23, owner Al Gold of Gold Square Racing told Daily Racing Form’s David Grening that 2025 Champagne Stakes winner Napoleon Solo would be withdrawn from the Arkansas Derby and run instead in the Wood Memorial Stakes Presented by Resorts World Casino April 4 at Aqueduct for his final Kentucky Derby prep.

Coady Media

8. Exosome (20-1)

Jockey: Adam Beschizza

Trainer: Kelsey Danner

Owner: NBS Stable

Career record: 5 starts – 2 wins – 0 seconds – 0 thirds

Career earnings: $145,195

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 80

Kentucky Derby points: 0

Pedigree: Candy Ride – Incredible Grace, by Medaglia d’Oro

Color: Bay

Running style: Stalker

Analysis: This longshot contender enters the Arkansas Derby off of a game neck win in a 1 1/16-mile allowance optional claiming race Feb. 28 at Oaklawn, where he stalked the pace three and four wide early on, moved to the lead in the stretch, and then floated out six wide but still finished well to hold off favorite Top Level. That win followed two discouraging efforts in his prior 2026 starts, a sixth-place finish in the 1 1/16-mile Lecomte Stakes at Fair Grounds in January and then a fifth-place finish in a one-mile allowance optional claiming race at Turfway Park in early February. This colt gamely won a maiden race in October 2025 going 1 1/16 miles by a half-length, and he’s bred to handle a mile and an eighth as a son of top sire Candy Ride and from a female family that includes several stakes-winning routers. Having said that, he’ll need to run a lot faster to have a chance at upsetting Renegade and Silent Tactic Saturday, which makes using him in trifecta or superfecta bets a more realistic proposition from a gambling perspective.

Eclipse Sportswire

9. Litmus Test (5-1)

Jockey: Francisco Arrieta

Trainer: Bob Baffert

Owners: SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Stonestreet Stables, Bashor Racing, Determined Stables, Golconda Stable, Waves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan

Career record: 6 starts – 2 wins – 0 seconds – 2 thirds

Career earnings: $440,188

Top Equibase Speed Figure: 105

Kentucky Derby points: 34

Pedigree: Nyquist – Study Hard, by Malibu Moon

Color: Bay

Running style: Press the pace/stalker

Analysis: Litmus Test shapes up as the best bet to post a mild upset over Renegade and Silent Tactic in the Arkansas Derby as he’s run just as fast as those favorites in prior races and carries appealing morning-line odds – not to mention that he’s trained by five-time Arkansas Derby winner Bob Baffert. The Nyquist colt had a successful juvenile season, winning two of five starts including the 1 1/16-mile Los Alamitos Futurity to close out 2025. He also finished fourth, defeated by only 1 ¾ lengths, in the 2025 FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Presented by TAA, in which he lost to eventual champion 2-year-old male Ted Noffey, the now-sidelined winter-book Kentucky Derby favorite. In his 3-year-old debut, Litmus Test set a solid early pace in Oaklawn’s March 1 Rebel Stakes held at 1 1/16 miles only to tire in the stretch and finish third behind dueling Class President and Silent Tactic. After earning two triple-digit Equibase Speed Figures to close out 2025, he regressed to a 91 in the Rebel, and he’ll need to rebound back to his prior form to win Saturday. That’s not out of the question since improvement can be expected in his second start of the year, and his two workouts at Oaklawn since the Rebel have been solid. Look for first-time jockey Francisco Arrieta, one of Oaklawn’s leading riders, to situate Litmus Test off of the early pace this time but keep him within striking range of potential leaders Redland Rebels and Bricklin. He’ll have his blinkers removed for the Arkansas Derby after wearing them in all of his prior races, which will hopefully help him relax.

New to racing? Let us explain …

Blinkers are cups that are placed on the outside of each eye on a horse prior to a race. They can be cut to different lengths and are used to restrict the horse’s field of vision, which ideally will enable him/her to perform better through improved focus on what is in front of them rather than what is behind. When a trainer removes blinkers it could be to help the horse relax in the early stages and gain a better sense of his/her surroundings in a race.