Two months out from the Kentucky Derby on May 2, no trainer holds a stronger hand with 3-year-olds than does Bob Baffert, who has four members of the Derby Watch top 20, two of whom are scheduled to run Saturday in the Grade 2, $400,000 San Felipe Stakes at Santa Anita, with at least one more scheduled to run the following Saturday in the Grade 2, $1 million Rebel at Oaklawn. For Baffert, this is a familiar springtime position. Since arriving on the Triple Crown scene in 1996 with Cavonnier, a narrow loser of that year’s Kentucky Derby to Grindstone, Baffert has been the dominant presence in the Triple Crown, most notably the Derby, which he has now won five times, with two of those winners – American Pharoah and Justify – sweeping the Triple Crown. The countdown has begun. All his Derby prospects are scheduled for two more races to see if they merit going on to Churchill Downs for the Derby. “This is when it starts,” Baffert said this week. “The next two runs are important. You cannot go backwards.” Baffert was at Santa Anita the morning after returning home from a journey halfway around the world to work the likes of Authentic, winner of the Sham Stakes, and Thousand Words, winner of the Los Alamitos Futurity and Robert Lewis. Both run Saturday in the San Felipe, against Derby Watch members Honor A.P. and Storm the Court. :: KENTUCKY DERBY 2020: Derby Watch, point standings, prep schedule, news, and more Both Baffert colts are unbeaten, but because Baffert has so many prospects and so few preps he finds appealing – Oaklawn is on the diet plan, Fair Grounds and Gulfstream are not – it was inevitable he’d end up with multiple horses in the same race at some point if all kept progressing. Baffert is planning on sending unbeaten San Vicente winner Nadal, physically the biggest of all his candidates, to the Rebel. Eight Rings, winner last fall of the American Pharoah, is coming to hand quickly for his first start since the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, with the Rebel among the possibilities for him, too, following a six-furlong work from the gate on Wednesday in 1:11.80 at Santa Anita. Baffert is shopping for a spot for dazzling maiden winner Charlatan, who will work at least once more before his second start is confirmed, though Baffert said “I want to go long” for start number two. Azul Coast, winner of the El Camino Real Derby, is under consideration for both the Sunland Derby on March 22 and the United Arab Emirates Derby on March 28. That means Baffert could have action in Derby preps each of the next three weekends, at least. “It’s very exciting, especially with so many nice horses, but at the same time you have to stay focused and not get ahead of yourself,” Baffert said. His San Felipe runners are a contrast in styles. Authentic is a precocious son of Into Mischief whose chief weapon is speed, which has carried him to two victories. He raced erratically through the stretch in the Sham, but has not done that since in his works. Baffert said he will wear ear plugs for the San Felipe. “He does everything effortlessly,” Baffert said. “But he’s never run against this kind of competition.” Thousand Words, a son of Pioneerof the Nile – sire of American Pharoah and runner-up in the 2009 Derby behind Mine That Bird – has raced three times, so he has an edge on experience compared to his stablemate. He is not flashy, more workmanlike than anything, but is a tenacious fighter who has yet to yield when challenged. “He’s a quirky little horse. He’s just going to do what he’s got to do,” Baffert said. “The farther the better for him.” Much of the groundwork for this spring assault was laid in September 2018, when many of those involved in the ownership of Justify – including SF Racing, Starlight Racing, and Madaket Stables – joined forces to buy two dozen yearling colts that all were intended to be sent to Baffert. Authentic, Charlatan, and Eight Rings all are from that group. Combined with longtime Baffert clients like Spendthrift Farm (co-owner of Thousand Words), George Bolton (co-owner of Nadal), and the team of Mike Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman (owners of Azul Coast), Baffert’s support never has been stronger. If any of those colts can bring Baffert a sixth Derby win, he would be tied for the top spot all-time among trainers with the legendary Ben Jones. That would be a most notable citation.