Before War of Will turned in another routine gallop this morning, trainer Mark Casse reflected on the unfortunate circumstances for the Derby's scratched morning-line favorite Omaha Beach. While Casse pragmatically noted that the race is more wide-open now, he commiserated with trainer Richard Mandella noting that he had similar experiences two years ago with champion Classic Empire. The Preakness runner-up would have been favored in the Belmont Stakes before being knocked out of consideration with foot trouble days before the race.

"You don't like winning races that way, and you feel their pain," Casse said.

"There's only one Kentucky Derby."

Haikal's foot trouble was reported by colleague Dave Grening shortly after the Derby training session - and War of Will does figure to benefit if that colt comes out. Jay Privman checked in with starter Scott Jordan, who said that if Haikal defects, all the horses inside him in the starting gate would move outward one hole, so the 19-horse field breaks from posts 2 through 20. That would be a benefit for War of Will - he would still have to break running from the inside of the field to avoid being shuffled back, but will no longer have to break slightly outward to avoid the rail after the start.