Laurel Park-based trainers Rick Sillaman and Rob Bailes are both at Churchill Downs for today's Claiming Crown, Sillaman in the $100K Iron Horse with 2024 runner-up Freedom Road and Bailes in his Claijming Crown debut with Next Girl in the Glass Slipper. The men have known each other for 50 years, both being sons of trainers. Their horses stabled together, the trainers are enjoying a few days in Louisville. Also in town are Rick's wife Lisa and son Ricky, co-owner Jim Rashid and wife Diane and co-owner Nick Peters and wife Dinyce.

David Bushey, managing partner of Bush Racing Stable, spent five years attending the Breeders' Cup at Gulfstream Park as a spectator. “The Claiming Crown is kind of a bucket-list thing for us," he said today at Churchill Downs, where he and his dad, Bryan, have their first Claiming Crown horse with $40,000 claim Point Dume in the $200,000 Jewel. “Getting here is important. Winning would be icing on the cake.”

The 4-year-old gelding Happy Strike, a $6,000 yearling, brings in a 7-for-14 record for $168,181 and a four-race win streak at Prairie Meadows into the $200,000 Claiming Crown Jewel at Churchill Downs. We catch up with owner-trainer Dewaine Loy, who is based on an Iowa-Arkansas circuit, and his wife Taylor -- and of course Happy Strike -- in the shedrow.

Trainer Rob Bailes, in from Laurel with Next Girl for Saturday's $100,000 Claiming Crown Glass Slipper, talks about the filly, being in his first Claiming Crown and growing up in Virginia on Meadow Farm during Secretariat's era. Gwen Davis/Davis Innovation photo of Rob Bailes with Next Girl at Churchill Downs.

Joe Sharp, who has seven horses entered in six Claiming Crown races Saturday at Churchill Downs, talks about the importance of celebrating "the bread and butter horses of Wednesday through Friday races... I saw some statistics about a lot of trainers from a lot of different venues, so it's exciting to get everyone here and show off our home track. Really full fields. That makes it more difficult, but rightly so. They're giving away a good bit of money. Some of these owners, this is a big time of year for them to come out and celebrate their claiming horses."

While at High Pointe Farm & Training Center, we chat with Amanda Poston, who gave up a career as a software engineer for the racetrack, progressing from groom to exercise rider to now apprentice jockey. Though her five wins make her a seven-pound bug, meaning her Claiming Crown mounts Shotshell and Empire's Best carry seven fewer pounds than they otherwise would. Video starts out with Jimmy Roberts, dad of trainer Joe Roberts and owner of Empire's Best, telling Amanda why they're comfortable using a pretty new jockey in these $100,000 races. Then we speak with Amanda, followed by Empire's Best getting prettied up to have his picture taken, and then we talk some more with Jimmy, who is in from his Texas home with wife Judy for the Claiming Crown. Note: The Gary who Amanda references is Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens, her agent. Related: Hear from trainer Joe Roberts and his wife, Natasha, about the younger Roberts' decision at age 40 to go on the road with his racing stable, leaving behind his construction business. Here's that link: https://youtu.be/yD7NbVgd5ac

We go out to High Pointe Farm & Training Center outside LaGrange to meet trainer Joe Blair Roberts, who two months ago relocated to Kentucky after being on a Minnesota (spring, summer) and Texas (winter) circuit. He has six horses (he whittled his Minnesota stable of 15 down to the five he thought fit best, and then claimed a horse) and two of them are in the Claiming Crown: Shotshell in the Iron Horse Kent Stirling Memorial and Empire's Best in the Ready's Rocket Express. This is one of two videos, which start with Shotshell, our interview with Joe Roberts and Joe's wife, Natasha. Related: Video with jockey Amanda Poston, a 7-pound apprentice who will ride Roberts' horses in Saturday's Claiming Crown and Jimmy Roberts, Joe's dad and owner of Empire's Best. Here's that link: https://youtu.be/JZhcQsjrCJo

With Pin Oak Stud's Incredibolt closing from last to win Sunday's $200,000, Grade 3 Street Sense by 1 3/4 lengths over favored Universe, comparisons were being made to last year's winner: Sovereignty, who went on to win this year's Kentucky Derby, Belmont Stakes and Travers. In fact, when he first started getting on Incredibolt in morning workouts, jockey Jaime Torres said he thought he could be the next Sovereignty. Adding to the comparison is the fact that Incredibolt is trained by Riley Mott, son of Sovereignty's Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. We speak with Pin Oak's director of operations Michael Hardy and Torres.

When Brad Cox won the Kentucky Oaks with two-time champion Monomoy Girl and Good Cheer, those fillies earned their first victory at Horseshoe Indianapolis and then captured Churchill Downs' Rags to Riches Stakes. Sunday, odds-on favorite Life of Joy took that second step, winning the Rags to Riches after a 14 3/4-length romp in her debut at Horseshoe Indy. We talk to winning jockey Irad Ortiz and Cox afterward.