Kentucky Derby 2012: Gemologist and Jockey Still Have a Shot After Friday Mishap

Despite being thrown off the back of a horse, jockey Javier Castellano is getting right back up to chase a win at the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.

On Friday, Castellano was riding Star Channel in the American Turf Stakes when the horse swerved and tossed him onto the grass. Though he was removed on a stretcher (a formality), he was back in action for the final two races on the Friday card, bandage under his eye and all.

And fortunately for Gemologist, he'll still have a jockey for Saturday's main event.

Gemologist takes his perfect 5-for-5 record into the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, and with Castellano's help, he'll preserve it, despite 9-1 odds. One might think that an undefeated record is all it would take to become the favorite at Churchill Downs, but not so for Gemologist, who's been knocked for being untested in his wins.

The only qualifying horses Gemologist has beaten in his prep races are Alpha (20-1) and Optimizer (35-1), both of whom have crumbled against the upper tier of this year's Derby field, including Union Rags.

But there's no saying that just because those horses couldn't beat Union Rags, Gemologist can't, either.

Gemologist is the sole unbeaten contender in the field, and he's already proven he can win at Churchill Downs—twice. His trainer, Todd Pletcher, stands a chance to produce a second Derby winner in three years.

Basically, if Gemologist won, it certainly wouldn't be coming out of nowhere. Pletcher told the Associated Press' Colin Fly that perhaps the oddsmakers have underestimated his horse's talents: 

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Any time you have a horse that’s 3-for-3 with two two-turn wins at Churchill, you’ve got to go into the winter and spring confident that you’ve got the right kind of horse. You just need to get lucky. There is going to be enough pace in here that he’s going to be just behind that first wave of speed horses. 

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And fortune is exactly what it will come down to in a field as wide open as this one. There isn't much of anything that makes Gemologist any worse of a bet than Union Rags or Bodemeister. The one who comes out on top will simply be the one who gets luckiest.