2018 Hollywood Derby Entries & Odds at Del Mar

It'll be East Versus West Saturday when 14 talented three-year-olds clash in the Grade I $300,000 Hollywood Derby at a mile and one-eighth over the infield Jimmy Durante Turf Course at Del Mar.

Have At It, Raging Bull, Instilled Regard, Way Early and Carrick, all of whom are based on the East Coast, will take on the home team comprised of Kazan, Risky Proposition, River Boyne, Fight On, Desert Stone, Platinum Warrior, Pubilius Syrus and Prince Earl in a wide-open betting affair for the sophomore championship of Del Mar's fall race meet.

Certain to attract strong support is the Irish-bred River Boyne, winner of the La Jolla Handicap, third in the Del Mar Derby and, most recently, victor in the Twilight Derby at Santa Anita November 4. Regular rider Flavien Prat has the call from trainer Jeff Mullins.

Chad Brown, the 2017 Eclipse Award-winning trainer, will send out French-bred Raging Bull, winner of the Saranac at Saratoga last summer and fifth as the favorite in the Hill Prince, and Instilled Regard, fourth to Justify in the Kentucky Derby when he was trained by Jerry Hollendorfer and, most recently, unplaced in the Pennsylvania Derby. Joel Rosario has the assignment on Raging Bull, while Florent Geroux will pilot Instilled Regard.

Raging Bull, a French-bred son of the Irish-bred stallion Dark Angel, won four of his first five races, among them the Grade 2 Hall of Fame Stakes on "yielding" turf at Saratoga in August and the Grade III Saranac there on "good" turf in September.

His last start, the Grade II Hill Prince at Belmont in October, was taken off the turf to the main track and Raging Bull finished fifth of seven, beaten 2 ¼ lengths by fellow Hollywood Derby entrant Have At It.

"Like Instilled Regard, we're not sure what happened last time, maybe he just didn't like the track," Hernandez said. "But he's a good horse and he's doing well, so we're here to give it a try."

Raging Bull was given the most respect of the Brown duo for the Derby. He was established as the 7-2 second choice behind 5-2 River Boyne on the morning line of oddsmaker Russ Hudak issued Thursday.

Instilled Regard, a 3-year-old son of Arch, who was a $1.05 million purchase at the Ocala Sale in March of 2017 by the OXO stable of Larry Best, finished fourth behind Triple Crown winner Justify in both the Santa Anita and Kentucky Derbies last spring before being transferred from Hall of Fame Trainer Jerry Hollendorfer to Brown.

One start for Brown, the Grade I Pennsylvania Derby at Parx in Philadelphia, produced a dead last of nine result, beaten 25 ¾ lengths by McKinzie. Saturday's Grade I $300,000 Hollywood Derby marks a fresh start on a fresh surface for Instilled Regard. The 1 1/8-mile test will be his first race on turf.

Jose Hernandez, assistant to the nation's leading trainer, said "He's doing really well. We'll see how he does on the turf. The race in Pennsylvania, we don't know what happened. But we'll give it a try."

Have At It, to be ridden by David Cohen for conditioner Christophe Clement, and Desert Stone, Tyler Baze, were second and third behind River Boyne in the Twilight Derby, beaten only a half-length.

Coming into the Hollywood Derby fresh from victories are Risky Proposition (Joe Talamo), winner of the Let It Ride Stakes November 10 at Del Mar, and the filly California Gold Rush (Rafael Bejarano), successful in the Sands Point at Belmont Park for trainer Neil Drysdale in mid-September.

Other Hollywood Derby entrants are Kazan (Brice Blanc), runner-up to Ride a Comet in the Del Mar Derby; Fight On (Alonso Quinonez), Platinum Warrior (Drayden Van Dyke), Way Early (Angel Cruz), Carrick (Kent Desormeaux), hero of the Secretariat last summer; Pubilius Syrus (Edwin Maldonado), and Prince Earl (Tiago Pereira).

The Hollywood Derby will be the seventh on a nine-race program beginning at 12:30 p.m. on the next-to-last day of the 16-day fall racing season. The meeting concludes Sunday featuring the Grade I $300,000 Matriarch Stakes for older fillies and mares at nine furlongs on the grass.