Old rivals Tapiture, Strong Mandate and Ride On Curlin butt heads once more at Oaklawn Park on Saturday in in the $1 million Arkansas Derby but face tough new rival in the unbeaten Bayern from the Bob Baffert barn.

Bayern, trying stakes company for the first time, drew post 8 in the field of nine with Gary Stevens to ride.

Kaleem Shah's Offlee Wild colt will have G1 winner Strong Mandate to his outside, while Tapiture and Ride On Curlin are together in posts 3 and 4.

Tapiture is the slight morning line favorite over Bayern with Strong Mandate third choice.

Other leading contenders in the final G1 prep race for the Kentucky Derby are Commissioner and Conquest Titan.

They are joined by maiden winners Danza, Knock Em Flat and Thundergram.

The Arkansas Derby is worth 170 points toward a possible start in the Derby on a 100-40-20-10 basis for the first four finishers.

Baffert, the Hall of Fame conditioner from Southern California with a long history of major wins at Oaklawn, shipped in Hoppertunity to successfully play the spoiler over the locally-based contingent in the Rebel Stakes on March 15 and is trying to do the same thing with Bayern

Baffert, who won the Arkansas Derby two years ago with Bodemeister, needs Bayern to land a top-two finish to make the May 3 Kentucky Derby.

The colt was two-for-two at Santa Anita this season, breaking his maiden in his debut going seven furlongs by 3 1/4 lengths and returning on February 13 with an eye-catching 15-lengths allowance triumph over a mile.

Bayern was entered in the San Felipe Stakes last month ago but had to be withdrawn with a foot bruise, which Baffert has said was only a minor setback but poorly timed.

Baffert skipped the Santa Anita Derby on April 5 with his promising runner, opting to give him an additional week of training instead.

Stevens, who has ridden Bayern in his prior starts, makes the trip to Hot Springs in search of his first Arkansas Derby win since 1990 with the Ron McAnally-trained Silver Ending.

Stevens also won the race in 1985 with Preakness winner Tank's Prospect for trainer D. Wayne Lukas.

Lukas sends out Strong Mandate, who set a contested pace over a wet/fast track in the Rebel Stakes, then got into tight quarters while battling Hoppertunity and Tapiture mid-stretch before finishing fourth, beaten by 2 1/2 lengths.

Strong Mandate's doing fine. He's ready," said Lukas, who also won the 1984 edition of the race with stakes record holder Althea, the only filly to win the race.

"I hope he'll get better racing luck this time and I think he has a little better conditioning now, too.

"I'm looking for a much better effort from him.”

In his first start of the year, Strong Mandate ran second to Tapiture in the Southwest Stakes. He was a 9 3/4-length winner of the G1 Hopeful Stakes in the mud last summer at Saratoga and was third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

Tapiture has gotten the better of his rival in their two starts this season for trainer Steve Asmussen, winning the Southwest in his seasonal debut by 4 1/4 lengths before finishing half a length behind Hoppertunity when in the Rebel Stakes.

Tapiture is currently 14th in the Derby standings employed to determine the 20-horse starting field.

He has 42 points, while Strong Mandate is 28th with 11 points and will probably need to finish first or second Saturday.

Ride On Curlin, third in both the Southwest and Rebel, and also third in the G1`Champagne Stakes at 2, is also in need of points to make a Derby appearance. He currently sits 23rd with 15.

Trainer Todd Pletcher enters WinStar Farm homebred Commissioner as well as outsider Danza for Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners. Pletcher, who took last year's Arkansas Derby with Overanalyze, has won the race a record three times.

Commissioner looks to improve in his third-place finish in the Sunland Derby when he broke poorly and lost a shoe, finishing seven lengths behind Chitu after also bobbling at the start.

Danza has had just one start since a third in the Saratoga Special last August in New York.

In his most recent effort at Gulfstream, the son of Street Boss was third in a first-level allowance/optional claiming race at seven furlongs.

He will be making his first start at two turns.

Trainer Mark Casse also doubles up with Holy Bull Stakes runner-up Conquest Titan and Thundergram, stepping up into stakes company for the first time after breaking his maiden earlier in the Oaklawn meet on a sloppy track.

$1 Million Arkansas Derby

3YOs, 1 1/8 Miles

PP. Horse, Jockey, Weight, Trainer, Odds

1. Danza J Bravo, 118, T A Pletcher, 15/1

2. Knock Em Flat , L S Quinonez, 118, D K Von Hemel, 20/1

3. Tapiture J Rosario, 122, S M Asmussen, 9/5

4. Ride On Curlin J K Court, 118, W G Gowan, 12/1

5. Thundergram N Arroyo Jr., 118, M E Casse, 30/1

6. Commissioner M E Smith, 118, T A Pletcher, 8/1

7. Conquest Titan C H Borel, 122, M E Casse, 10/1

8. Bayern G L Stevens, 118, B Baffert, 2/1

9. Strong Mandate L Saez, 122, D W Lukas, 9/2