LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Four years after recording what was then the second-biggest upset in Kentucky Derby history when Country House, at 65-1, was awarded first via disqualification, Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott looks to pull off another surprise in Saturday’s 149th Run for the Roses with Rocket Can. Rocket Can, the winner of the Grade 3 Holy Bull Stakes in January, completed preparations for the Derby by working five furlongs in 59.80 seconds Sunday morning at Churchill Downs. Under exercise rider Guelser Cardona, Rocket Can worked in company with the 3-year-old maiden Mr. McGregor, starting about three lengths behind him and then coming up the inside of Mr. McGregor in the stretch and finishing two in front at the wire. He completed his final quarter in 23.72 seconds per Daily Racing Form clocker Mike Welsch, who caught him galloping out six furlongs in 1:13.53. “I wanted to come up inside a horse, you can always go around,” Mott said. “I wanted to see if he would hesitate at all coming up the inside and the boy said he went right through.” :: KENTUCKY DERBY 2023: Derby Watch, point standings, prep schedule, news, and more This was Rocket Can’s third workout in blinkers, equipment he will wear for the first time in a race in the Derby. Mott said he felt Rocket Can idled at the top of the lane in the Arkansas Derby, where he finished fourth, 4 3/4 lengths behind Angel of Empire. Asked if he’s seen a change in the colt’s training with the blinkers, Mott said, “Not huge, but maybe a bit. You can’t duplicate a race.” Rocket Can, a son of Into Mischief, has two wins from seven starts. In addition to his victory in the Holy Bull at Gulfstream, he won a maiden race on Oct. 30 at Churchill.. He also has a second-place finish at Churchill, that to Confidence Game in an allowance race here last November. Confidence Game has since gone on to win the Rebel Stakes and is running in the Kentucky Derby. Mott’s relying on Rocket Can’s pedigree - he’s by Into Mischief out of the Tapit mare Tension - to help his horse close the gap on likely Derby favorite Forte going 1 1/4 miles. Rocket Can was second to Forte in the Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream in February. “I think the mile and a quarter sorts them all out, I don’t care who it is,” Mott said. “There’s a lot of horses that go from the head of the stretch” - where the Kentucky Derby starts - “all the way around and when they get back to the head of the stretch they say ‘holy [cow], how far am I going?' ” :: DRF Kentucky Derby Package: Save on PPs, Clocker Reports, Betting Strategies, and more. Taylor’s Special, Mott’s first Derby starter in 1984, found the 1 1/4 miles too far when he finished 13th. Of Mott’s Derby duo in 2019, Tacitus looked the best equipped to get the distance. But it was Country House, coming off a third in the Arkansas Derby, who rallied to finish second behind Maximum Security. Tacitus finished fourth. However, Maximum Security was disqualified for interference and Country House was elevated to first. His $132.40 winning mutuel was the second highest before Rich Strike ($163.60) supplanted that last year. Donerail ($184.90 in 1913) set the record for highest mutuel payout on a $2 bet in Derby history. “We were so excited just the way he ran,” Mott said of Country House. “I didn’t really see what happened. We came down on the racetrack and Jose Ortiz, who was on Tacitus, said they’re going to take the winner down. I said ‘Really?’ ” Rocket Can was the only Kentucky Derby horse to put in a workout Sunday morning. In fact, only three other Derby horses went to the track as several had walk days following Saturday workouts or training sessions. Disarm, trained by Steve Asmussen, galloped and is expected to have his final workout on Monday. Practical Move and Reincarnate both jogged one lap around the Churchill oval after arriving from Southern California on Saturday. The post position draw for the Kentucky Derby is scheduled for Monday at 2 p.m. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.