A look at the horse selection. Everything revolves around the last three winners.

The days leading up to the moment when it all begins—the day of the Tratta—are filled with tension and speculation. Everything revolves around the horses: their names, their performances, the jockeys who prefer them, and the captains who do not want them because they are unsure which jockey to assign. In short, more than anything else, the horses are the heart of the Palio.

The jockeys who appeared one by one on Canale 3 and SienaTV over the past few days all expressed the same ambition: all experienced and winning horses should be present. At the moment, that seems a given. However, it has happened many times before that captains shared the same intentions beforehand, only to do the exact opposite on June 29. The selection of the ten participating horses is therefore once again of crucial importance. Ideally, all ten horses drawn should be experienced and competitive—some capable of winning, others able to play a strategic role in the game of the contrade.

As expected, the winning trio—Benitos, Diodoro, and Anda & Bola—will likely be selected, unless they failed the recently completed previsite. Since last year, the requirements for veterinary health inspections have been significantly tightened following a ministerial decree. It should be noted, however, that Siena has never been lenient in this regard. Veterinarians and captains alike agree that healthy horses contribute to greater safety.

In all likelihood, after the batterie at the tratta, between fifteen and twenty horses will remain from which the captains will be able to make their selection.

In addition to the three single-time winners already mentioned (Anda & Bola, Diodoro, and Benitos), the two-time winner Zio Frac was also presented at Il Ceppo. Furthermore, the following horses have experience on the Piazza, with one or more Palio appearances to their name: Ares Elce, Arestetulesu, Brivido Sardo, Canarinu, Comancio, Diamante Grigio, Diosu de Campeda, Dorotea Dimmonia, Entu de Petra Ulpu, Veranu, Viso d’Angelo, Volpino, and Zentiles. At least half of them are expected to take part in the Palio.

Technical profiles of all horses registered for the previsite can be found in the PalioApp.