Danthebluegrassman misses Derby The Kentucky Derby field was whittled down to 18 when the Bob Baffert-trained Danthebluegrassman was scratched from the race early today.The colt, a 24-1 chance in early betting, cramped up after a quick jog on the track, according to the track`s publicity office, leaving Kent Desormeaux, twice a Derby-winning jockey, without a mount in the 128th `Run for the Roses`.The withdrawal made Danthebluegrassman a curious footnote to the race. Connections entered him only hours before the post position draw on Wednesday and in the process knocked out Winward Passage, whose graded stakes earnings just fell short. Co-second favourite Buddha was scratched on Friday. The challenge for fans attempting to find the winner of the race started with gaining admission to the race track amid tight security, and some began arriving 12 hours before the race.The Irish-trained duo Johannesburg and Castle Gandolfo arrived around 7 a.m. from Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, and an hour later workmen were tacking up blue plastic tarpaulin in front of the colts` barn, apparently to prevent the three-year-olds from getting too excited by the noise of early Churchill races which would start a few hundred yards away.The colts` trainer Aidan O`Brien will not attend the Derby because of the flu, according to a track official.Essence of Dubai, however, the only entry to have run a dirt race at the Derby distance of 1 1/4 miles, had the company of his trainer Saeed Bin Suroor.A fast track, along with partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the high 60s, was expected for the 11-race card, with the Derby, the ninth race, to be run at 6:04 p.m. (23:04 Irish time).Betting on the race today showed strong support for Saarland, whose 15-1 early price was slashed to 5-1, making him the co-favourite with Harlan`s Holiday.
