Louisville, Ky. ? The day before the Kentucky Derby, everybody was curious about George.

That would be George Steinbrenner, the New York Yankees boss and owner of the Derby’s 5-2 favorite, Bellamy Road.

All eyes surely will be on Steinbrenner today when he takes his place alongside other horsemen at Churchill Downs to watch his strapping colt take on 19 others in the world’s most famous race.

Will his horse win, something only two favorites have managed in the last 25 years?

Will that ease the pain of watching his AL East cellar-dwelling baseball team?

The second most-watched man? That would be trainer Nick Zito, the two-time Derby winner who will send off a record-tying five horses — a quarter of the field — including the Boss’s baby.

“I’m thankful and grateful for this chance,” Zito said Friday morning. “No excuses. I just hope one of them gets us home.”

It’s his race to lose.

Bellamy Road, winner of the Wood Memorial by 171/2 lengths last month, should get off to a fast start.

“He doesn’t like horses around him,” Steinbrenner’s farm manager, Ed Sexton, said. “He likes them behind him.”

Zito will also send out High Fly, the 8-1 fourth choice, along with Noble Causeway (12-1), Sun King (15-1) and Andromeda’s Hero (50-1).

Trainer Todd Pletcher isn’t far behind. A rising star looking for his first Derby win, Pletcher will saddle three horses, led by 6-1 third choice Bandini.

The sentimental favorites, however, are Afleet Alex and Greeley’s Galaxy.

The second choice at 9-2, Afleet Alex has all the makings of the next “people’s horse.”

Greeley’s Galaxy has a chance to make 83-year-old Warren Stute the oldest trainer to win the Derby.