Sunday’s assignment for the Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown was a one-mile jog with a pony over the muddy track at Churchill Downs. Regular rider Michelle Nevin was aboard the son of Boundary, who will continue his Triple Crown quest in Saturday’s $1 million Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico Race Course.

Since Big Brown’s Kentucky Derby victory, horse trainer Rick Dutrow has limited the colt’s exercise to jogging whenever the track has been wet. With only two weeks between the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, Dutrow is determined not to put any stress on the unbeaten colt.

The $1 million Preakness Stakes (Grade I) field swelled to 13 Preakness contenders as Dallas Stewart called Pimlico racing secretary Georganne Hale to say Derby Trial winner Macho Again was headed to the 133rd running of the middle jewel of racing’s Triple Crown to test current Kentucky Derby champion Big Brown. A few hours later the field was reduced to 12 when co-owner Ronnie Lamarque announced Recapturetheglory was out of the running due to a fever.

“We have been looking at the field,” Macho Again’s trainer Dallas Stewart said. “We know Big Brown is there but we feel we can compete with those other horses. Looking at the race I think we have an excellent shot of beating a lot of horses in the race. It is a good field but we feel we fit.”

Macho Again, a son of Macho Uno, had a light half-mile breeze at Churchill Downs this morning stopping the clock in :49.80 seconds. Jockey Julien Leparoux, who was aboard the victory in the Derby Trial two weeks ago, retains the mount.

Sixteen hours after arriving at Pimlico, Bear Stables Ltd’s Kentucky Bear was on the track with assistant trainer and exercise rider Cassie Garcia in preparation for next Saturday’s $1 million Preakness Stakes (Grade I), the middle jewel of racing’s Triple Crown. The son of Mr. Greeley jogged twice around the Pimlico oval at 8:30 a.m.

Kentucky Bear finished third in the Blue Grass Stakes (Grade I) at Keeneland on April 12. The Reade Baker trainee is expected to work five furlongs at Pimlico Saturday immediately following the renovation break, weather permitting.

Jockey Jamie Theriot is expected to have the riding assignment.

Recapturetheglory, who finished fifth to Big Brown in last Saturday’s Kentucky Derby is confirmed for next Saturday’s $1 million Preakness Stakes (Grade I) at Pimlico Race Course, co-owner Ronnie Lamarque announced.

“First of all we know that we belong,” said Lamarque from New Orleans. “Of the 33,000 horses that were foaled three years ago, twenty of them made it to the Derby and we beat fifteen of them. Big Brown is a bear but we’re not going to run in it to run second. We’re there to win and we believe it is a speed favoring racetrack. I’ll look at all the other entrants. They don’t scare me at all and I believe our horse definitely belongs and we feel like the Preakness is our kind of race.”

With assistant trainer Lara Van Deren up, fifth-place Kentucky Derby finisher Recapturetheglory jogged a mile and galloped a mile before the renovation break Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs. The confirmed frontrunner won the Illinois Derby (Grade II) and has finished in the money six times in seven career starts. Jockey E.T. Baird will have the riding assignment.

Lamarque and trainer Roussel are no strangers to the Preakness. They combined to take the 1988 renewal with Risen Star, a horse who finished third in the Kentucky Derby two weeks earlier.

With the $1 million Preakness Stakes 11 days away, the field set to test Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown continues to change as the connections of some of the top three-year-olds weigh a start in the middle jewel of racing’s Triple Crown at Pimlico Race Course on May 17.

As of Tuesday afternoon there were seven confirmed starters for Maryland’s signature event: Big Brown; Behindatthebar; Giant Moon; Kentucky Bear; Stevil; Tres Borrachos and Yankee Bravo along with four other potential Preakness entries.

Horse trainer Rick Dutrow, still fighting a heavy cough, was back at the track Tuesday morning at Churchill Downs supervising his 12-horse string in Louisville headlined by 2008 Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown.

Although Big Brown could become the first Kentucky Derby winner since Citation 60 years ago not to face any of the horses who ran against him in the “Run For The Roses” when he comes to Pimlico Race Course next Saturday for the $1 million Preakness Stakes, the middle jewel of racing’s Triple Crown is likely to include eight new shooters.

The only Kentucky Derby finisher that might return to challenge the winner is Recapturetheglory, who finished fifth Saturday despite trouble in the paddock. Co-owners Louie Roussel and Ronnie Lamarque told Pimlico stakes coordinator Coleman Blind that a final decision could be made tomorrow. The son of Cherokee Run will remain at Churchill Downs until the verdict.

Big Brown, who is headed for the 2008 Preakness Stakes, made Kentucky Derby history as he became the first horse since the filly Regret in 1915 to win off just 3 career starts and the second to win from post position number 20. The joyous event, however, was marred because of the tragedy which occured when runner-up Eight Belles broke down after crossing the finish line and had to be euthanized on the track.

Eight Belles jockey in the 2008 Kentucky Derby, Gabriel Saez, said Monday he was unaware that anything was wrong with Eight Belles prior to her going down in the Run for the Roses.

“I remain heartbroken over Eight Belles, and I want to let her many fans know that she never gave me the slightest indication before or during the race that there was anything bothering her,” jockey Gabriel Saez said in a statement Monday.