By Dick Downey

Recently, trainer Joe Martin at Oaklawn got some 20 horses from Drs. K.K. and Devi Jayaraman. Now people are betting an over-and-under on when he'll be fired.

Maybe a mild case of Angry Birds has infected the backside?

“There’s some action out there on how long we last,” Martin told Oaklawn barn notes. “That’s just the way the game is with trainers chirping and all. We know we need to come out strong as quickly as we can, but he’s been great to work for, and he’s really sent us some nice horses.”

Martin could have some relevance on the Derby Trail this year. He co-owns Big Wednesday (Just In Case) with Napier Stables -- the Jayaraman's are not involved with the colt. Unraced so far this year, Big Wednesday has won three of four races. His loss came on the dirt in the Mountaineer Juvenile in West Virginia back in August.

Nevertheless, Martin is pointing Big Wednesday to the Grade III Southwest Stakes on Feb. 20. He worked at Oaklawn today on a muddy track in 1:02.80.

“He just handles this track so well,” Martin said. “I watched the horses in the Smarty Jones, and there were some nice horses in there, but the winner (Junebugred) just broke his maiden. My horse is training like a monster, and he acts like he wants more distance.”