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Crude Velocity or Golden Tempo?

PTF and JK sat down to go through our Top 5 for Preakness 151 — held this year at Laurel Park as Pimlico is being renovated. The big question: will Golden Tempo show up? And if he does, can he beat Crude Velocity?

JK's bottom line: "If Crude Velocity runs in the Preakness, he wins." He called the Pat Day Mile the best performance of Derby weekend. But he also thinks if Golden Tempo runs, the Derby winner will run his best lifetime race — the question is whether a 95 improving to a 98 or 99 is enough.

Our Top 5:

1. Crude Velocity — undefeated, dominant Pat Day Mile, Baffert
2. Golden Tempo — decision could come as early as today
3. Iron Honor — Chad Brown's skip-Derby-win-Preakness pattern (Cloud Computing, Early Voting)
4. Chip Honcho — JK bearish, doesn't think the form is fast enough
5. Taj Mahal — 3-for-3, all at Laurel, Brittany Russell. How cool would back-to-back female trainers winning TC races be?

Also from the show: Baffert told JK at Jeff Ruby's that the connections of Crude Velocity and Englishman were joking about "running for pink slips." JK: "Like we're in Fast and Furious and whoever wins gets the horse." Pete was reminded of the Beach Boys: "Just one more thing, I got the pink slip, Daddy."

Bob Yarmuth's 80th Derby

One more story from Derby Day that we couldn't let pass. CBS News correspondent David Begnaud helped grant a wish for Bob Yarmuth, an 89-year-old Louisville native in hospice care. His one last wish: attend the Kentucky Derby one more time.

Kentucky State Police escorted him to Churchill Downs in a wheelchair, on oxygen. He was wheeled to a seat directly in front of the leaderboard with an unobstructed view of the finish line. Track President Mike Amerson welcomed him personally. It was Bob's 80th consecutive Kentucky Derby — his first was in 1947.

The best part: Bob picked three horses before the race. Numbers 19 and 22. The top three finishers were 19 (Golden Tempo), 1 (Renegade), and 22 (Ocelli). One of his grandchildren bet his picks and won $60,000.

He also watched the first female trainer win the Derby. DeVaux and Jose Ortiz signed his program.

👉 Watch: 89-Year-Old Man in Hospice Gets Wish to Attend One More Kentucky Derby (CBS)

Decision Day for Golden Tempo?

The Golden Tempo decision could come as early as today. DeVaux: "If one day he just doesn't look like he's in tiptop shape, then we'll pivot and come up with another plan." He's back at Keeneland resting.

One fascinating wrinkle: St. Elias Stable (Vinnie Viola) owns BOTH Golden Tempo and Iron Honor. The same ownership group could have two horses in the Preakness — the Derby winner and the Gotham winner. Monique Delk confirmed Iron Honor is a go as long as he continues to train well.

The field is 16 possibles for 14 spots. Draw is Monday, May 11. Post time 6:45 PM ET on NBC.

Already confirmed/likely: Crude Velocity (Baffert), Chip Honcho (Asmussen), Iron Honor (Brown), Taj Mahal (Russell), Silent Tactic (Casse — midweek work will decide), The Hell We Did (Fincher — at Laurel, next work May 9), Napoleon Solo (Summers — ships to Laurel May 10)

Newly considering: Ocelli (Beckman — upgraded from "extremely unlikely" to "maybe"), Corona de Oro (Stewart — working Saturday), Great White (Ennis — will go if he works well Saturday), Crupper (Von Hemel — Alvarado riding), Express Kid, Pretty Boy Miah (Englehart), Talkin (Gargan), Talk to Me Jimmy (Rodriguez)

OUT: Renegade (Belmont), Ottinho (Brown confirmed out)

DeVaux is everywhere this week — TODAY Show (130K views), Pat McAfee (12K), Dan Patrick (13K), Rich Eisen (13K), CBS News (19K), FanDuel Racing (61K), WDRB (196K), Newsmax. The sport couldn't ask for a better ambassador.

Best detail from TODAY: Golden Tempo "was really in love with my barn pony, which he never is, and I was like, you're feeling yourself."

One nugget from the BloodHorse Preakness coverage that deserves its own mention: Curlin — the 2007 Preakness winner — has now sired winners of all three Triple Crown races. Palace Malice won the 2013 Belmont. Golden Tempo won the 2026 Derby. Asmussen: "Curlin finally got his Derby done, which is unbelievable. The horse that was second is out of a Curlin mare and the horse that was third is by Connect, who's by Curlin. It was a Curlin Derby."

Daisy Phipps Pulito on On the Lead

Daisy Phipps Pulito — racing manager for the Phipps family, whose involvement in the sport traces back to 1926 — joins us on On the Lead this week. The Phipps-St. Elias partnership that produced Golden Tempo connects directly to Bold Ruler, Secretariat's sire. A century of breeding, one Saturday at Churchill Downs.

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