'Road to the Kentucky Derby' NASCAR-like point system will determine 2013 entries

From bloodhorse.com: Phase one, Kentucky Derby Prep Season, includes 19 races on dirt or synthetic surfaces over distances of at least one mile that are typically run between late September and late February. The lone exception is England’s Royal Lodge, an international juvenile steppingstone carded at one mile on turf at Newmarket. Points will be awarded to the top four finishers in each race on a 10-4-2-1 scale. The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (gr. I) and $1 million Delta Jackpot (gr. III) are included in this division.

Phase two, the Kentucky Derby Championship Series, is a three-part collection of 17 marquee races on dirt or synthetic surfaces run over distances of at least one mile that traditionally occur over a compact, 10-week run up to the first Saturday in May.

The first leg of the Championship Series includes eight events in which victory is worth 50 points – the Risen Star Stakes (gr. II) at Fair Grounds, the Fountain of Youth (gr. II) at Gulfstream Park, the Gotham (gr. III) at Aqueduct, the Tampa Bay Derby (gr. II) at Tampa Bay Downs, the San Felipe Stakes (gr. II) at Santa Anita, the Rebel (gr. III) at Oaklawn Park, the Spiral Stakes at Turfway Park, and the Sunland Derby at Sunland Park. Second- through fourth-place finishers receive a 20-10-5 point scale.

The second leg features seven stakes races – the Florida Derby (gr. I) at Gulfstream Park, $2 million UAE Derby (UAE-I) at Meydan, the Louisiana Derby (gr. II) at Fair Grounds, the Wood Memorial (gr. I) at Aqueduct, the Santa Anita Derby (gr. I), Oaklawn Park’s Arkansas Derby (gr. I), and the Blue Grass Stakes (gr. I) at Keeneland – that are worth 100-40-20-10.

Read more on BloodHorse.com: http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/70551/churchill-revamps-derby-qualifying-system#ixzz1xmdSW84d