ON May 1 the first date of the Triple Crown of thoroughbred racing in the United States will begin, and the Kentucky Derby odds favor the two major candidates, the colt Eskendereya and Sidneys Candy.

Eskendereya is emerging as one of the favorites for winning this year's edition of the Kentucky Derby, which will be held at Churchill Downs.

Eskendereya is assembled by John Velazquez, who seeks to become the second Puerto Rican to win the most prestigious horse race in North America. However, Velazquez has had good opportunities in recent years, but luck has not been on his side.

The victory achieved by Eskendereya in the Wood Memorial was its fourth in six performances and its third this year, and after the easy Wood Memorial victory, he became the favorite for winning the Kentucky Derby this year.

On the other hand, this past April 3 in California, Sidneys Candy won the traditional Santa Anita Derby, which the horse dominated since the start, going over 1800 meters with 1:48 flat, beating the favorite Lookin At Lucky, who finished third.

Sidneys Candy, son of Argentine Candy Ride, became like a train at full stretch, leaving all rivals behind, including Champion Lookin At Lucky, who had to settle for third place.

For its part, Garret Gomez, the jockey of Champion Lookin at Lucky said it was a matter of bad luck. Gomez tried to move against Sidneys on the inside of the track and the result was a severe setback that left him in the penultimate position before finally reaching the third position.

Both Eskendereya and Sidneys Candy have three wins each so far this year and will be sent in the coming days to Kentucky to participate in the opening round of the 2010 Triple Crown.