Richiebee,

Actually, I agree with you completetly that to put a lot of weight on a 1 mile race in Jan. with only 2 serious Derby contenders (one of whom is making his seasonal debut) as a Derby preview is insane. Your Giacomo example is right on the money there.
My interest in the race was almost purely from a handicapping point of view as it raised some interesting issues, i.e. how does one determine if the pace was slow or fast, how important is a clear early lead regardless of pace and how and when do any of the above effect the outcome of races, etc.
From a Derby prep point of view it, watching the race and looking at he figure just told me the 2 horses have some ability and seem to be on track in their preperations. A lot can happen between now and the first Sat. in May.

Bob