Post times for Road to the Kentucky Derby/Oaks races over Martin Luther King Jr. weekend

2018 is upon us and the Roads to the Kentucky Derby and Oaks are in full swing.

This holiday weekend features multiple opportunities for the boys and girls to accrue points toward starting berths in either the Kentucky Derby (G1) or Kentucky Oaks (G1) under the Twin Spires at Churchill Downs in May.

The Jerome Stakes was set to kick off the Derby points action in 2018 on New Year’s Day, but winter weather has forced Aqueduct officials to cancel multiple day thus far. That led to the one-mile Jerome being rescheduled to Saturday, losing some of the original field and gaining three new contenders.

The Jerome features a field of eight and is set for 3:43 p.m. (ET).

Saturday will also see Fair Grounds kick off its three-race series for sophomores in the Lecomte Stakes (G3). The mile-and-70-yard affair attracted an overflow of 15 entries, but two are scheduled to scratch.

The Lecomte, with an expected 13-strong group of three-year-olds, has a post time of 6:03 p.m. (ET).

On Martin Luther King Jr. Monday, Oaklawn Park will start its four-race stand for three-year-olds headed to the Kentucky Derby with the one-mile Smarty Jones Stakes.

The Smarty Jones drew a field of seven and is scheduled to be run 6:42 p.m. (ET).

The fillies get their turn in the spot light this weekend, with the Silverbulletday Stakes at Fair Grounds on Saturday offering up points to the Kentucky Oaks. The mile-and-70-yard contest is the beginning of the filly series of prep races for the Run for the Lilies at the New Orleans venue.

The Silverbulletday features a dozen sophomore misses and has a post of 5:05 p.m. (ET).

Keep up with all the Road to the Kentucky Derby/Oaks action via the TwinSpires blog and news from BRISnet.com. Fans can watch and wager on the races this weekend on TwinSpires TV.