I think the at large bids would penalize horses that worked to attain the graded earnings, so I really wouldn't agree with it. Plus its subjective, who gets the bid and why? The talented horses pushing for the Derby that are on the bubble, couldn't get cranked up early enough. Not only that, they LOST their big races to get in. I certainly can't see how penalizing horses that planned for meeting the conditions is proper. Its not like the horses on the bubble are sure shot better horses. How many times does a horse win the Derby that the betting public really didn't consider to be in the upper echelon?

Theres big races down the road, If Rock Hard Ten and Eddington don't get in they'll have plenty of chances to prove that they belonged but circumstances got in their way.

It's within their power to make the field. The Derby Trial is there. Plenty of horses have raced in it and gone on to win the Kenturky Derby. This year is proof that the careful path may not be what its been cracked up to be. That said, I'm starting to think Tapit is more horse than I imagined.