Cracked heels test Golden Tempo, Renegade gets special shoes for Derby

Golden Tempo’s cracked heels and Renegade’s special shoes put hoof health at the center of the Kentucky Derby picture, with two leading contenders facing different kinds of maintenance as Churchill Downs headed into race week.

Trainer Cherie DeVaux said Golden Tempo was dealing with cracked heels on both front feet, but she did not believe the issue would keep the son of Curlin out of Saturday’s Derby in Louisville, Kentucky. He jogged Tuesday morning after galloping the day before, and DeVaux planned to soak his feet in hot water and Epsom salts while deciding day by day whether he would jog or gallop. She described the problem as something that was not unusual when he breezes and said it looked manageable rather than serious.

That matters because Golden Tempo already has the form to belong. He won the Grade 3 Lecomte at Fair Grounds, then finished third in the Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes and third again in the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby, a length behind Emerging Market. DeVaux said he has improved both physically and mentally since that last run, but also stressed that he will need another step forward to matter in the Derby. He drew post 19 and will be ridden by Jose Ortiz. He also worked a half-mile in :47.40 in company with Brilliant Berti for DeVaux, a useful sign that the barn still had him moving forward despite the foot issue.

Renegade, the early favorite before the draw, carried a different kind of concern. Todd Pletcher said the colt will wear three-quarter shoes on both front feet in the Derby, the same setup used when he won the Arkansas Derby by four lengths. Pletcher said Renegade has dealt with quarter cracks during his career, and the modified shoes were meant to ease pressure on the inside quarter and prevent further trouble.

The post-position draw made the task harder. Renegade landed post 1, a spot that has not produced a Kentucky Derby winner since Ferdinand in 1986, and the rail is 0-for-6 since Churchill Downs switched to a 20-stall starting gate in 2020. Daily Racing Form linemaker David Aragona moved Renegade from 4-1 to 5-1 and made Further Ado the 9-2 favorite, while Churchill Downs oddsmaker Nick Tammaro kept Renegade at 4-1 and said the race remained wide open, with Commandment at 6-1 and Further Ado at 6-1. Tammaro said the favorite in Kentucky Derby 152 was likely to stay in the 4-1 to 9-2 range.

Irad Ortiz Jr. said the rail did not trouble him because Renegade runs from behind and should be fine with a clean break. He also pointed to Mo Donegal’s rail trip in the 2022 Derby for the same Mike Repole and Todd Pletcher partnership, when Rich Strike’s inside rally complicated the path. Renegade arrived from Florida around 2:45 a.m. on April 25, then was the second name called at the draw. For bettors, the question was clear: these were not catastrophic setbacks, but they were the kind of race-week tweaks that can sharpen or soften confidence in a Derby horse by Saturday.