Tale of Ekati and Colonel John were the winners in their respective final Kentucky Derby preps on opposite coasts, and War Pass bounced back from a dreadful effort in the Tampa Bay Derby.

All three are bound for a trip to Churchill Downs for a showdown that should thrill Kentucky Derby bettors.

The Barclay Tagg-trained Tale of Ekati got up late to win the $750,000 Wood Memorial (G1) at Aqueduct to stamp his ticket to the Kentucky Derby.

The colt was able to catch a game War Pass in the stretch, the winning margin a half-length. The colt paid $19.00 for a $2 wager with jockey Edgar Prado aboard.

The colt bounced back from a sixth place finish in his previous outing in the Louisiana Derby (G2).

“He got a little tangled up in the gate there (in the Louisiana Derby) and ran a disappointing race,” Tagg said. “We still felt good about him, and we worked out some of those issues in the gate. He showed up today big time.”

War Pass proved very game after being dogged in the early going by Inner Light. The champion two year old set pressured fast early fractions of 22.46 and 46.07 and was still able to pull clear on the far turn.

The colt still had a clear lead at the eighth pole but was caught in the final strides. Sent off as the 4/5 favorite, the colt held on for second by 1 ¼ lengths over Court Vision, who was third.

The $2 exacta returned $52.50.

The top three finishers of the Wood all reportedly came out of the race in good fashion and are being pointed toward the Kentucky Derby.

Colonel John proved he is best three year old colt on the left coast, taking the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby (G1), closing gamely while drifting out to win by a half length over a very tough Bob Black Jack.

The colt drifted out in the final furlong under whipping from jockey Corey Nakatani, who won his first Santa Anita Derby.

"He broke good, and I was in a really good position,” Nakatani said. “I was just biding my time. Down on the inside, it looked like Alex (Solis) was really going well with Yankee Bravo, and I know he’s a legitimate horse. So I sucked in behind him at the three-eighths pole. I followed him through there, and was able to get to the outside. For there on, I was able to let Colonel John do his running.”

Colonel John returned $7.20 for a $2 wager. The exacta returned $49.20.

El Gato Malo, who was sent off as the 9/5 favorite, checked in fifth.

While Colonel John is headed to Kentucky, the connections of runner up Bob Black Jack and El Gato Malo are still up in the air on whether they will continue on the Derby Trail.

You bet on the Kentucky Derby now a full four weeks before the big race by placing your horse racing wagers online at racebooks such as .

This Saturday’s major Derby preps:

Holy Bull Stakes, Gulfstream, 1 3/16 M
Blue Grass, Keeneland, 1 1/8 M
Northern Spur, Oaklawn Park, 1 M
Arkansas Derby, Oaklawn Park, 1 1/8 M

Weekly horse racing report is courtesy of Mike Dempsey at Turfnsport.com. Mike is a veteran of three decades in the horse racing game and provides exclusive weekly analysis in this space for PointSpread.com readers.