OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Lord Miles was on his way back to South Florida on Sunday morning and Hit Show was to depart New York for Kentucky on Monday as the one-two finishers from Saturday’s Grade 2 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct point to the Kentucky Derby on May 6 at Churchill Downs. Lord Miles and Hit Show both survived some bumping in the stretch – and Lord Miles withstood an inquiry and objection – to emerge from their performances unscathed and with enough qualifying points to crack the competitive 20-horse field. Lord Miles, ridden by Paco Lopez, prevailed by a nose over Hit Show in the Wood, displaying some improvement over previous efforts in the Mucho Macho Man Stakes and Tampa Bay Derby that resulted in him being sent off 59-1, the third-longest price in the Wood. Saturday, Lord Miles ran a more complete race and showed some grit fighting Hit Show, the Grade 3 Withers winner, from the 3 1/2-furlong pole to the wire. “He obviously stays the distance well, that’s one plus,” trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. said Sunday. “He was more into the bridle than before. From the five-eighths to the half, Paco stayed into him and he responded.” :: KENTUCKY DERBY 2023: Derby Watch, point standings, prep schedule, news, and more Lord Miles left New York by van Sunday morning and will join Joseph’s Gulfstream Park string. Joseph said Lord Miles would likely have two works at Gulfstream before shipping to Kentucky in time to be on the grounds by the Churchill Downs imposed 11 a.m. deadline on May 1. Joseph acknowledged that Lord Miles will likely be a longshot again behind the likes of Forte, Tapit Trice, and Practical Move in the Derby but feels the horse has earned his shot. “On paper, he’s stacked up against it, but he was stacked up against it yesterday,” Joseph said. “You hope he has four good weeks and hope for the best.” As Joseph learned when he won the Grade 1, $1 million Pennsylvania Derby in 2019 with 31-1 shot Math Wizard, “if you don’t take a chance, you have no chance.” Lord Miles, Hit Show, and third-place finisher Dreamlike, the latter beaten a head, all earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 93 for the Wood. Hit Show, who won the Grade 3 Withers in February, overcame post 12 in the Wood to get a relatively good trip under Manny Franco. “I thought he ran really well, he ran a winning race,” trainer Brad Cox said Sunday. “I had two colts show up and run very big yesterday with him and Verifying,” Cox added, referring to the horse who was beaten a neck in the Blue Grass at Keeneland. :: Bet the races on DRF Bets! Sign up with code WINNING to get a $250 Deposit Match, $10 Free Bet, and FREE DRF Formulator.  “They both got Beyers equal to the winner and end up second in both spots,” he said. “Driving home from Keeneland yesterday I didn’t know whether to be happy or sad.” Cox did say that he felt the stewards made the correct call to leave the Wood result alone. Barring a bevy of defections from the field, Lord Miles and Hit Show are likely the only two runners from the Wood Memorial who will run in the Kentucky Derby. Dreamlike, still a maiden after three starts, earned only 30 points for his third-place finish, leaving him 31st on the points list. Arctic Arrogance, fourth in the Wood, has 36 points and ranks 27th on the points list. In 2003, Empire Maker beat Funny Cide in the Wood Memorial before Funny Cide turned the tables on him in the Kentucky Derby. Since then, the Wood has produced 40 Kentucky Derby starters with no horse crossing the line better than fourth. Tacitus, the 2019 Wood winner, was elevated from fourth to third with the disqualification of Maximum Security from first to 17th for interference. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.