Ky. Derby Trail: A Vision at the Downs
by Steve Haskin
Updated: April 17, 2008
With the Derby getting closer, were doubling up this week to take a look at the Coolmore Lexington Stakes (gr. II) and mostly to discuss what may turn out to be one of the most important works on this years Derby trail.
If there is one thing you want to see in a Derby horse this time of the year its a dramatic change that suggests the roses are beginning to blossom overnight. Although we didnt see his work this morning, just knowing the horse and listening to the comments of trainer Bill Mott, Court Vision is going through such a change.
As a result, just as we returned to the first Derby Dozen last week and put Monba back up top, were going to do the same thing next week with Court Vision, despite all the statistical evidence that hes too slow. In a year of mostly slow horses, that is not as much of a deterrent as it might normally be.
Over the deep Payson Park track this winter, Court Vision worked six furlongs in 1:19, a half in :51 2/5, five-eighths in 1:02 4/5, a half in :50, five furlongs in 1:04, and a half in :49 3/5. In his two starts, he came from out of the clouds to finish third in the Fountain of Youth (gr. II) and Wood Memorial (gr. I). In the Wood, he was criticized for not winning after his rabbit forced War Pass into a suicidal pace. Most felt he should have finished stronger through a snaillike closing three-eighths in :40 4/5. But jockey Garrett Gomez said the colt was slipping and sliding over the drying out, greasy track, and he had trouble finding footing he could get hold of.
Mott shipped him to Churchill Downs, put a set of blinkers on him, which he normally doesnt do for a work or a race, and worked him a half-mile Thursday morning. This is when the roses began to burst. Court Vision went a half in :46 1/5 breezing, galloping out five-eighths in about 1:00 3/5 under exercise rider Neil Poznanski. The work was the fastest of 25 at the distance and a full second faster than the second fastest work. Another clocker caught him in :45 and change. When a horse of this quality undergoes such a dramatic change, especially at Churchill Downs, where he has already won a grade II stakes, it is exactly what youre looking for.
Can one half-mile work stamp a horse as a major Derby contender just like that? The answer is yes if hes already shown his class and proved for a second time that he loves Churchill Downs. Remember the determination and tenacity this colt showed last year turning certain defeat to victory in the Iroquois Stakes (gr. III) and Remsen Stakes (gr. II). Right now is when youre looking for your horse to suddenly blossom, and Court Vision showed today thats whats happening with him.
We decided to put the blinkers on him, and (the work) was maybe a bit more than I was anticipating, Mott said. Wed never tested him with the blinkers and it was a big wake-up call. As good as he worked in them Id be foolish not to put them on for the Derby. We just felt he was back a little too far in his races and maybe not responsive enough.
After the work, Neil said thats just what we were looking for. I dont know if he realized he had gone as quickly as he did. I had a horse in front of him and he went after him a little early. But when (Court Vision) came alongside him, Neil gave him a little nudge, and, shooo, he just flew away from the other horse.
There obviously are no personal observations that can be made, but there is more than enough here to suggest Court Vision is now a horse who must be taken seriously, slow speed figures and all.
Another person who was thrilled when he heard about the work was Gomez agent Ron Anderson, who stands by last months decision to ride Court Vision instead of Colonel John.
With Colonel John, youre dealing with a horse coming off synthetic surfaces and who had won the Sham Stakes by a half-length, Anderson said. "With Court Vision, youre dealing with Billy Mott and going to Aqueduct where he had already won a stakes, and then going to Churchill Downs where he had already won a stakes. How could I take off him? And when youre going a mile and a quarter for the first time, you cant count speed figures.
I was at Keeneland this morning and didnt see the work, but the clockers said they were really impressed with him. Its pretty exciting, because Billy normally never works horses that fast, and nobody that works for him works that fast. My whole mindset was that he would handle Churchill Downs and he obviously does that, so Ive been pretty pumped since I heard about it.
Court Vision is scheduled to work again either next Wednesday or Thursday. With Wednesday being our travel day (late this year), it is hoped hell work Thursday, but even if its Wednesday, theres a good chance well see it on a local news feed tape the following morning. Until then, Court Vision will be climbing back up the Derby Dozen list.
Lexington Ave. Express
With a couple of Kentucky Derby berths still open to any horse who can win the Lexington, and either a first- or second-place finish by Tomcito enough to get him in the race, it is not surprising to see a contentious field of 11 entered. Of course, we still have the same Polytrack puzzlement we had in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (gr. II), so talent alone will not get anyone to Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May.
Almost every horse in the field has proven himself at some point on a synthetic surface, with Tomcito and Atoned two who have not, putting them at a disadvantage. Atoned, as of now, is being considered more of a Preakness horse, so Tomcito is the one who needs to show something over a foreign surface in order to make the Derby field. If the son of Street Cry does finish first or second, he is the real goods, and must be taken seriously in the Derby, considering the unprecedented feats hes accomplished in Peru and his excellent U.S. debut in the Florida Derby (gr. I). In that race, he rallied from last in the field of 12 to finish a well-beaten third to Big Brown off a four-month layoff. And he was 3 1/4 lengths ahead of the fourth-place finisher, Hey Byrn, who came back to win the Holy Bull Stakes (gr. III).
Another horse who has Derby credentials is Racecar Rhapsody, a late-closing son of Tale of the Cat who has finished a close third in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (gr. II) and turned in solid fourths in the Lanes End Stakes (gr. II) and Delta Jackpot (gr. III). He seems to handle dirt and Polytrack equally well.
Todd Pletcher could add to his list of Derby starters with Atoned (if they change their mind about running) and Behindatthebar, an impressive allowance winner last out in a a Santa Anita allowance race.
If the Mott-trained Riley Tucker wins, itll be interesting to see if hes wheeled back in the Derby. His owner, Zayat Stables, appears determined to run as many horses as they are allowed to. They already have legitimate Derby horses in Z Fortune andZ Humor, with Halo Najib needing some defections to get into the starting field. Another horse, Massive Drama, is being considered, according to trainer Dale Romans, even though he was just beaten 42 lengths in the UAE Derby and has traveled back and forth half way across the world. And running him as a pacesetter for the Z pair makes no sense considering there are already five brilliant, classy speed horses in the field who will assure a fast pace. They ran J Be K in the Louisiana Derby (gr. II) off one six-furlong race in six months and he stopped to a walk, beating one horse, before dropping back to a sprint in the Bay Shore (gr. III), which he won and where he belonged.
Z Humor also had a good breeze for Mott this morning, going a half in :47 3/5. Tale of Ekati breezed a half in :49 1/5 at Keeneland.
Marc Serota for The New York Times
There is no telling how much Big Browns value would increase if he won the
Triple Crown. By JOE DRAPE
Published: April 21, 2008
BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. Big Brown is lightly raced, has tender feet and is the early favorite to win the 134th Kentucky Derby, which, statistically, has proved to be the kiss of death on the first Saturday in May. Still, his trainer, Richard Dutrow Jr., said he would be all in on Big Brown.
Marc Serota for The New York Times
The trainer Richard Dutrow Jr., left, with Big Brown. Dutrow says there is no comparison with any other 3-year-old.
The last time Dutrow went all in on one of his horses was at the 2005 Breeders Cup Classic: he said he bet $160,000 on Saint Liam and won $384,000 when the horse won by a length. No matter how much he wagers on Big Brown in the Derby, however, it will pale in comparison to what the colts majority owner, International Equine Acquisitions Holdings, will have at stake.
I.E.A.H. is applying the lucrative lessons its founders learned on Wall Street to an industry that has proved inscrutable to many other successful businessmen. It is currently raising $100 million to buy, sell and breed horses, and it will operate like a hedge fund, collecting management and performance fees. The founders want to take the company public before the end of the year.
So far, their fundamentals have been sound; the companys horses have won 25 percent of the time this year and earned more than $3.1 million in purses, putting I.E.A.H. among the top owners in North America. On Sept. 3, when Big Brown rocketed to an 11 1/4-length victory in his debut on the turf at Saratoga, the companys co-president, Michael Iavarone, said he knew he had found a key component of I.E.A.H.s future.
He called Dutrow from his house in Long Island as Big Brown crossed the finish line. I have to own this horse, he told him. We can win the Derby with this one.
A few days and $3 million later, the company owned 75 percent of Big Brown. Now, I.E.A.H. is not only intent on capturing the Kentucky Derby, Americas greatest horse race, but it also wants to remake the economic landscape of a multibillion-dollar industry.
It would show how you can move the blue blood from Kentucky to New York, Iavarone said, referring to both a Big Brown victory and his horse hedge fund.
Neither the racetrack nor Wall Street traffics in sure things, however, and as talented as Big Brown, the undefeated son of Boundary, is, he must defy some compelling historical data.
A chestnut colt, Big Brown has raced only three times. The last Derby winner
so untested was the filly Regret in 1915. Last year, for example, Curlin, the eventual Horse of the Year, arrived at Churchill Downs similarly undefeated after three starts, but he finished third as the second betting choice. Big Brown ran in only two prep races this year, a lack of seasoning that only two Derby champions in the last 60 years have been able to overcome: Sunnys Halo in 1983 and Street Sense last year.
Then there are Big Browns troubled front hooves, which have been responsible for his limited number of starts and his long absences from the racetrack. Shortly after I.E.A.H. purchased him, Big Brown got an abscess in the sole of his left front hoof, which caused a wall separation and kept him idle for 45 days. He had the same injury in his right front hoof in mid-December and did not train in January.
The injury is caused by concussion his feet hitting a hard surface and they take time to heal, said Ian McKinlay, a New York-based hoof specialist who continues to treat Big Brown.
When Big Brown finally returned to racing, at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., in a mile race on March 5, McKinlay fitted him with special glue-on shoes. The shoes had a thick polyurethane bottom to ensure that nothing hard touched the colts sole. Big Brown won effortlessly, by 12 3/4 lengths.
Twenty-four days later, in the Florida Derby, Big Brown led every step of the way as his jockey, Kent Desormeaux, sat atop him like a leisure rider during a five-length victory.
His feet are ice-cold now, and were not going to have any more problems, Dutrow said. I look at everything Big Brown has done and then at every other 3-year-old out there, and there is no comparison. Beat him? Im not sure any of them can run close to him.
Big Browns Stock Is Up, but It Could Really Soar
There is little doubt that Big Brown will be the most accomplished horse in the field of 20 that is expected to line up at the gate in Louisville beneath Churchill Downss famed twin spires. But is he or any other racehorse a valuable enough commodity to build a lucrative hedge fund around?
Marc Serota for The New York Times
Big Brown, the early Kentucky Derby favorite, has raced only three times because of abscesses in each of his front hooves.
In 2007, more than $15.4 billion was bet on horses in North America, more than $1.1 billion in purses was distributed and more than $1.2 billion was spent purchasing thoroughbreds, according to the Jockey Club. Iavarone and his co-president, Richard J. Schiavo both of whom left Wall Street and investment banking say they have a way of offering more people more opportunity to make money at the racetrack.
Since its inception in 2003, I.E.A.H. has raised more than $40 million from more than 80 investors and has formed partnerships to own various horses. The hedge fund model will supplant this arrangement; partners will own a part of all I.E.A.H. assets, from its 80 horses in training to its 15 broodmares and its future stallions, including the 2007 Breeders Cup Mile champion, Kip Deville; Benny the Bull, winner of the $2 million Dubai Golden Shaheen; and Big Brown.
Each financial quarter, an independent auditor will assess the funds value, and investors will be able to decide to buy into the fund or sell their positions. What were offering are liquidity and options that people in the horse business have never had before, Iavarone said.
There is no doubt Big Brown is the component with the greatest upside within the companys portfolio. If he wins the Derby, he will immediately be worth $30 million as a stallion. As a rookie sire, he is certain to command at least the $100,000 per coupling that the 2004 Derby winner, Smarty Jones, commands, and attract 150 or more mares. If Big Brown becomes the first horse since Affirmed in 1978 to win a Triple Crown, there is no telling how valuable he will become.
So just like Dutrow, I.E.A.H. is all in on Big Brown.
The colts minority owner, Paul Pompa Jr., has already experienced a windfall. In April 2007, he bought Big Brown at a 2-year-old-in-training sale for $190,000, and named him because his family-owned trucking company in Brooklyn had just renewed a contract with a longtime client, U.P.S. When Big Browns scintillating debut at Saratoga brought deep-pocketed suitors, Pompa adhered to the golden rule of horse racing: take the money.
I chose I.E.A.H. because they were young, classy, impressive guys, said Pompa, who has owned horses for 15 years. And they were going to let me keep a piece of the horse.
He said he wished them well in their mission to change the face of horse partnerships, but that he was not interested in joining them. He said some things remain priceless.
I want to win the greatest race in the world, he said. I want to make history.
Denis of Cork Works Super at Churchill
by Steve Haskin
Updated: April 21, 2008
For all those who have written off Denis of Cork, the one-time leading Kentucky Derby contender turned in a sensational work at Churchill Downs Monday.
With trainer David Carroll at home sick, Denis of Cork drilled five furlongs in a bullet 1:00 flat, coming home his final quarter in :22 4/5, before galloping out a powerful six furlongs in 1:12 2/5 and pulling up seven panels in 1:26.
The son of Harlans Holiday was ridden by jockey Calvin Borel, who won last years Derby on Street Sense and who will be aboard Denis of Cork on May 3.
Denis of Cork went in splits of :12 4/5, :25, :37 1/5, and :48 3/5.
After winning his first three career starts, including the Southwest Stakes (gr. III), a decision was made by owner William K. Warren and his advisors to deviate from their original plan and skip the Rebel Stakes (gr. III) and Arkansas Derby (gr. II) and instead run only once in the Illinois Derby (gr. II). Denis of Cork ran a dull fifth after a seven-week layoff and now must wait for one defection before he is assured of a starting berth in the Derby. As of now, that defection appears likely.
Also working at Churchill Monday was Arkansas Derby runner-up Z Fortune, who breezed a half in :50 1/5.
I look at everything Big Brown has done and
then at every other three-year-old out there, and
there is no comparison. Beat him? Im not sure
any of them can run close to him.
Trainer Richard Dutrow Jr., in the New York
Times, on unbeaten Big Brown, a leading contender
for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) on
May 3 at Churchill Downs
Change in Big Brown's Daily Schedule. The schedule on the IEAH website has changed since yesterday. The schedule that was online yesterday, copied and pasted verbatim from the site, is set out below on April 21 Racing News. No gallops were written in the schedule at the time.
Today, we found a new outline on the site that--maybe--includes gallops. It will be interesting to see if Big Brown does that after he arrives in Louisville on Monday amidst a great deal of public scrutiny.
Friday, April 18: Breezed five furlongs in 1:00 3/5 at Palm Meadows training center
Saturday, April 19: Walk
Sunday, April 20: Jog or gallop
Monday, April 21: Jog or gallop
Tuesday, April 22: Jog or gallop
Wednesday, April 23: Jog or gallop
Thursday, April 24: Tentative breeze date at Palm Meadows training center
Friday, April 25: Walk
Saturday, April 26: Jog or gallop
Sunday, April 27: Jog or gallop
Monday, April 28: Arrival at Churchill Downs
Tuesday, April 29: Walk or jog or gallop
Wednesday, April 30: Jog or gallop
Thursday, May 1: Tentative breeze date at Churchill Downs
Friday, May 2: Walk or jog or gallop
These were the options Edgar Prado had for the Kentucky Derby:
He could ride Monba, winner of the Blue Grass Stakes or Tale of Ekati, victor of the Wood Memorial. Or, he could take the call on Adriano, who won the Lane's End Stakes.
It came as a surprise to many when Prado picked Adriano.
Monba and Tale of Ekati won bigger Derby preps, so, one could argue, would have better chances to find the winner's circle at Churchill Downs.
Prado, who won the 2006 Derby with Barbaro, made his surprise announcement mostly because he has a longtime relationship with Graham Motion, the trainer of Adriano. The two had success years ago on the Maryland circuit, and, after Prado rode the colt to a win in the Lane's End on March 22, Motion asked the jockey for a commitment. He got it.
"You always want to honor the commitments you make," Prado said Monday, just hours after finding out he had been elected to the Racing Hall of Fame. "It was really hard to make the decision but it was harder to tell the other people. They have good horses."
When Prado agreed to ride Adriano, Monba had yet to win the Blue Grass and Tale of Ekati hadn't won the Wood. Both of those horses were coming off dismal performances. Monba was 12th in the Fountain of Youth and Tale of Ekati was sixth in the Louisiana Derby.
It's not as though there aren't questions with Adriano. In his only start on a dirt track, the Fountain of Youth, he finished ninth.
"At the time, we didn't know how the other horses were going to run," Prado said. "I think (Adriano) has a chance. We'll have to wait and see."
War Pass's ankle fractured
War Pass, declared out of the Derby over the weekend, could be out of action until October, trainer Nick Zito said.
Zito said he talked with equine surgeon Dr. Larry Bramlage on Monday, showing him the X-rays of War Pass's left front ankle, which revealed a small fracture. On Tuesday, Zito said Bramlage said he wanted new X-rays in two months.
"He said the fracture has to fill in," Zito said from Louisville. If that happens, "we'll be OK. If it doesn't, it will take longer."
War Pass had lost his past two Derby prep races, finishing last in the Tampa Bay Derby and then second in the Wood Memorial. Zito said he believes War Pass suffered the injury 20 yards from the wire in the Wood, on a drying out, tiring Aqueduct track.
He won his first five career starts, including last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile to become a legitimate Derby threat.
"I try not to think about it and just go on," Zito said.
War Pass is at Churchill Downs, but will spend the summer resting at Zito's base in Saratoga Springs.
"Maybe I'll take him to Congress Park and let him put the ankle in the water," Zito said.
Barn banter
Zito is pointing Fountain of Youth winner Cool Coal Man and Anak Nakal, who has been off the board in all three starts this year, to the Derby. Zito said Julien Leparoux will ride Cool Coal Man and Rafael Bejarano, who just won the riding title at Santa Anita, will be on Anak Nakal. ... Majestic Warrior, last year's Hopeful winner at Saratoga, is a possible starter in Saturday's Derby Trial at Churchill Downs. ... The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will hold its annual Countdown to the Triple Crown program at 4 p.m. Saturday. Admission is free.
Big Truck, a game winner of the Tampa Bay Derby two back, will attempt to rebound from a disappointing effort over the Polytrack at Keeneland (Joseph DiOrio/Horsephotos.com)
Tampa Bay Derby (G3) winner BIG TRUCK (Hook and Ladder) breezed four furlongs in :48 4/5 on Keeneland's Polytrack on Tuesday in preparation for the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby (G1) on May 3 at Churchill Downs. Trainer Barclay Tagg described the move as a "maintenance work." It ranked eighth out of 43 works at the distance.
"He went a little faster that I wanted, but it's fine," Tagg said. "I generally like their maintenance works to be around :49, but it's no problem."
Big Truck most recently finished 11th in the Blue Grass S. (G1) on April 12 at Keeneland. In his prior start, he defeated Atoned (Repent) in the Tampa Bay Derby. The bay colt currently ranks 20th on the Kentucky Derby graded stakes earnings list with $194,500.
Tagg's other Derby contender, Wood Memorial (G1) hero TALE OF EKATI (Tale of the Cat), is scheduled to work five furlongs at Keeneland on Wednesday.
Javier Castellano has the mount on Big Truck and Eibar Coa is slated to ride Tale of Ekati. Tagg plans to ship both colts to Churchill Downs on Saturday.
Gotham S. (G3) winner VISIONAIRE (Grand Slam), who finished a closing fifth in the Blue Grass, breezed four furlongs in :49 3/5 in company with Scenery Change (Royal Academy), a four-year-old maiden filly who was awarded the same time.
Jockey Jose Lezcano was aboard the Michael Matz trainee, who is scheduled to turn in his final work prior to the Run for the Roses on Monday at Churchill Downs.
"He just did a little maintenance work here, and then he'll do one more at Churchill," Matz said.
Visionaire currently ranks 19th on the graded earnings list with $202,500.
OBS Championship S. winner HALO NAJIB (Halo's Image) breezed four furlongs in :50 2/5 on a firm turf course at Churchill Downs. The Dale Romans trainee most recently finished seventh in the Blue Grass after a good runner-up performance in the Lane's End S. (G2) on March 22 at Turfway Park.
"I wanted to see how he would handle the grass," Romans said. "If you don't get in (the Kentucky Derby), he would go in the Crown Royal (American Turf S. [G3] on May 2). It looked like he handled if fine."
Halo Najib has $157,996 in graded stakes earnings and is on the outside looking in with respect to securing a position in the Kentucky Derby field.
TRES BORRACHOS (Ecton Park), last seen finishing third in the Arkansas Derby (G2) on April 12 at Oaklawn Park, breezed three furlongs on the main track in :35 3/5. The Beau Greeley trainee has only $118,000 in graded stakes earnings and would need many defections in order to make the field for Derby 134.
"It is not really frustrating," co-owner John Greeley said. "If a bunch drop out and we get in, fine. If not, we go on to the Preakness (S. [G1] on May 17 at Pimlico)."
In other Kentucky Derby news:
Blue Grass winner MONBA (Maria's Mon) and runner-up COWBOY CAL (Giant's Causeway) remain on target for their final works on Saturday or Sunday at Keeneland prior to Derby 134, according to trainer Todd Pletcher.
"We'll stay here through the weekend and move to Churchill next week depending on the weather," Pletcher said.
Some folks' ideas of packing for a week-long Kentucky Derby junket require big, clunky hat boxes and garment bags. Me, I'm toting 102 years of Xeroxed past performances.
Hey, to each their own on Derby Week.
But if you're looking to seriously analyze next Saturday's "Greatest Two Minutes in Sports," the best tools you can bring to the party don't fit in your carry-on.
It's time to use your eyes and ears, God's gifts.
The paper trail puts you on the path toward the horses that have a puncher's chance in Louisville; but after the horses arrive in Derby City, that all just becomes expensive litter. Horses will either blossom or bust on Derby Week. It happens every year, and 2008 should be no different.
I cannot think of a single horse in my years of scouring Churchill Downs' backstretch on Derby Week that outran his poor looks. And, you'll hear the proverbial, "He couldn't be doing better" line from just about every trainer. But as horseplayers, you need to entrust your own eyes with every bit of workout video you can find -- and read only the handicapping information from analysts whom you trust. Everyone has an opinion Derby Week. If you want to swoon with talk of the Derby Gods and place your hard-earned cash on soft-core angles, enjoy the show.
As a serious handicapper, these are the items I'll be evaluating first-hand once I set foot on the hallowed grounds of Churchill later this week.
Big Brown: Demeanor amongst the throng of media and any starting gate schooling.
The likely favorite has been holed up at tranquil Palm Meadows training center in Florida and has never seen anything like he's about to encounter. He's expected to arrive on Monday of Derby Week, so Tuesday morning should be a real show. I want to see a Bob Baffert or Carl Nafzger-like appearance, where Big Brown is brought to the track after the morning renovation break, able to stand and gawk at the masses around him and soak up the hub-bub before the track is re-opened. That has worked so well for horses like Silver Charm, Real Quiet and Street Sense. Bringing Big Brown out at the crack of dawn may keep his nerves down during the week, but won't do much to simulate Saturday.
Also, Big Brown bucked and hesitated before loading in front of a smallish crowd on Florida Derby Day. In the big one, he'll have to load at the top of the stretch with huge bleachers overlooking and a crush of onlookers surrounding the gate. I want to see him make a gate schooling appearance or two Derby Week to let the local gate crew get acquainted with his habits. Of course, any raceday paddock schooling would be must-see as well -- watch the Churchill Downs' simulcast signal during the week for a host of Derby schoolers. The track typically tries to graphically identify them, or have their paddock hosts mention verbally, when Derby runners are dress rehearsing during the weekday races.
Adriano: Leg action and paddock schooling.
Still photos of turf/Polytrack ace Adriano working at Churchill Downs have been a wee bit of a concern. The Lane's End winner has tons of pedigree for dirt and a wonderfully long stride, but his high leg action captured in the still photos looks awfully turfy. Of course, Barbaro had the same action, a far cry from the daisy-cutter efficiency of a Smarty Jones, though Barbaro was able to be just as effective.
But nothing in Adriano's repertoire yet has hinted to Barbaroan feats. My personal "two eyeball test" will mean a lot when I get to see Adriano in motion, and not relying on still photos. And after his ungluing in the paddock at the Fountain of Youth, it will be interesting to watch master horseman Graham Motion massage Adriano's psyche with paddock schooling all week, in the a.m. and p.m.
Colonel John: Final Derby workout.
With everything on his resume accomplished over synthetic tracks, the Colonel's final drill at Churchill Downs will be our only feel for his ability on natural soil. Trainer Eoin Harty is a disciple of the Baffert camp, and Colonel John's recent, blazing workouts out West are very Baffert-esque in terms of indicating a big effort. Don't be surprised to see a :59-flat workout at five panels on Derby Week from this guy. In fact, if he loafs a 1:01 or 1:02, there's cause for concern.
Pyro: Presence and workmate.
I'll be following the Steve Asmussen barn all week long as part of the official Kentucky Derby Notes Team, an assignment that takes added importance after the mystifying effort by Pyro in the Blue Grass Stakes. The fact that the Louisiana Derby winner's first drill after that non-effort came in company against graded-stakes class sprinter Noonmark tells me that the Asmussen camp knows they have a lot of work to do to tighten Pyro for Derby Day. Will he work solo, or with a barnmate? And, just who will that barnmate be? That could go a long way in helping handicappers gauge Pyro's ability to rebound on the first Saturday in May.
Quick Hitters: Around the Derby horn.
I'll be very interested to see first-hand how Bill Mott responds to Court Vision's final tuneups. Mott never dances into hyperbole, and any visual cues of excitement from him should be a big sign. Court Vision's blazing local drill last week is the kind of move that screws in the light bulb of a horse waiting to break through ... Read very closely any comments you might find online or in your papers where non-Derby trainers remark about Derby horses. Those are especially prudent when a lesser-known horse arrives in Louisville and takes the "name" trainers by surprise. Baffert's effusive praise of Smarty Jones in 2004 is an example. I'd be excited to hear name trainers step up with positive remarks about horses like Smooth Air, Gayego or Bob Black Jack, who hail from lesser-known stables.
Daily Derby Notes: April 23
Updated: April 23, 2008
(from Churchill Downs)
ADRIANO Lanes End (GII) winner Adriano was one of the last Kentucky Derby hopefuls on the track Wednesday morning, coming on to the track at 9:20 and schooling in the paddock before galloping mile and three-eighths under Xavier Aizpuru.
We have been taking him to the paddock every morning, said Alice Clapham, assistant to trainer Graham Motion. Tomorrow morning we will probably gallop a little more.
Owned by Courtlandt Farm, Adriano is scheduled for his final Kentucky Derby work on Sunday.
Edgar Prado has the Derby riding assignment.
ANAK NAKAL/COOL COAL MAN Two-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Nick Zito is flying under the radar this year with Anak Nakal and Cool Coal Man, and he doesnt seem to mind a bit.
Hey, one of them could be this years Giacomo, Zito said, referring to the 2005 Kentucky Derby winner who scored at 50-1 odds.
Cool Coal Man, who is owned by Robert LaPenta, galloped a mile and a half after the renovation break with Megan Smillie up and is scheduled to work Thursday morning after the break.
The son of Mineshaft is coming off a ninth-place finish in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (GI), which was the colts third mile and an eighth race of the year.
He won two of those races and didnt like the Polytrack, Zito said. Hes got a solid foundation coming into this race.
Cool Coal Man is the only horse among the top-20 Derby contenders to have run three nine-furlong races. Halo Najib, who stands 22nd in graded stakes earnings among Derby hopefuls, has three such races also.
Julien Leparoux has the riding assignment on Cool Coal Man.
Four Roses Thoroughbreds Anak Nakal, who galloped a mile and a half before the break under Heather Stark, won his only start at Churchill Downs and enters the Derby off a fifth-place finish in the Wood Memorial (GI).
We are catching up a little bit with him, but he is improving, Zito said. Look at the chart of the Wood five-wide run second turn. He was moving and had a horse stop right in front of him.
Rafael Bejarano has the call on Anak Nakal.
COLONEL JOHN Santa Anita Derby (GI) winner Colonel John galloped a mile and a half after the renovation break with Karine Lhuillier up.
Trainer Eoin Harty plans to give the WinStar Farm homebred some schooling in the paddock and gate but has not firmed up a date for the colts final work.
Ive got an idea, but it will be determined by Mother Nature, Harty said. Ill be watching the weather.
Corey Nakatani, who has been aboard Colonel John in three of his four victories, has the call for the Derby.
COURT VISION/Z HUMOR Hall of Fame trainer Bill Motts pair of contenders for Kentucky Derby 134 IEAH Stable and WinStar Farms Court Vision and Zayat Stables LLCs Z Humor galloped over the fast surface at Churchill Downs on Wednesday.
Mott said both colts would turn in their final pre-Kentucky Derby works on Monday or Tuesday.
Both horses are doing well, said Mott. Were really happy. Its nice to have two horses that have no flies in the ointment right now. Everything is going very well.
Court Vision has racing experience at Churchill Downs in a stretch-running victory in last falls $150,000-added Iroquois Stakes (GIII). Z Humor, the dead-heat winner of the $1 million Delta Jackpot (GIII), will race over the Louisville track for the first time in the Kentucky Derby on May 3.
Any horse that likes Churchill Downs is at some sort of an advantage, Mott said. I believe there are horses for courses. No matter what track it is, youll get the odd horse that just doesnt handle the surface for whatever reason, then theyll go to the next track and handle it just fine. Fortunately, ours seem to be getting over it very well. Were pleased with that end of it.
Mott is the all-time leading trainer at Churchill Downs with 583 career wins under the Twin Spires and a routine year at the track would take him past the 600 mark sometime in 2008. But he has yet to come close in four attempts at the tracks biggest race, but his hoping for better in Kentucky Derby 134.
Maybe this time next year well still be looking for my first win, but were going to start with this one, said Mott. Weve had a couple of chances at it before and I think maybe were coming in with some of our most legitimate chances this year and well try to make the best of it. Well try not to make any foolish mistakes, get them over there and hope we have some racing luck.
Garrett Gomez, the Eclipse Award winner as Americas top jockey in 2007, will ride Court Vision. Z Humor is scheduled to be ridden by Rene Douglas.
DENIS OF CORK Trainer David Carroll made it back to the track Wednesday after being home sick for two days and his Kentucky Derby hopeful, Denis of Cork, went back to the track, jogging two miles before the renovation break under Paul Griffiths.
Owned by Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr., Denis of Cork had worked five furlongs in 1:00 on Monday and walked the shedrow Tuesday.
Denis of Cork ranks 21st in graded stakes earnings among Kentucky Derby hopefuls with the top 20 earning starting berths. It is a position the Carroll barn is not worried about.
If its meant to be, its meant to be, said Kim Carroll, Davids wife, who ran the barn in her husbands absence. Thats the only way you can look at it.
Calvin Borel will ride if the colt makes the Derby field.
GAYEGO Cubanacan Stables Gayego had the morning off Wednesday, walking the shedrow at Barn 33.
The Paulo Lobo trainee is scheduled to return to the track and gallop in the morning before the break.
Mike Smith has the Derby riding assignment.
HALO NAJIB Trainer Dale Romans reported all was well with Zayat Stables Halo Najib, a day after the Halos Image colt got his first run over the turf with a half-mile work in :50.40.
Halo Najib is 22nd on the graded stakes earnings list among Kentucky Derby hopefuls and would need some defections from the prospective field to get in the starting gate. Romans said he would run Halo Najib in the May 2 Crown Royal American Turf (GIII) if he doesnt go in the Derby.
PYRO/Z FORTUNE Winchell Thoroughbreds Pyro jogged one-mile Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs, his first exercise this spring under the Twin Spires since arriving from Keeneland on Tuesday afternoon.
Trainer Steve Asmussen also sent out Zayat Stables Z Fortune for a mile jog. Both colts are scheduled to gallop Thursday morning, leading up to easy breezes here Monday.
Pyro had worked at Keeneland on Monday and Z Fortune had a half-mile drill at Churchill Downs on Monday.
Shaun Bridgmohan, who has ridden Pyro in all seven of his starts, has the call for the Kentucky Derby. Robby Albarado, who rode Z Fortune for the first time in the April 12 Arkansas Derby (GII), is slated to ride the Siphon colt in the Kentucky Derby.
RECAPTURETHEGLORY Trainer and co-owner Louie Roussel III has called an audible with Illinois Derby (GII) winner Recapturetheglory, postponing a scheduled Thursday work until most likely Saturday.
I think he is fit enough right now and he doesnt need it (to work on Thursday), Roussel said after the colt galloped two miles under Lara Van Deren. It will be Friday or Saturday, but most likely Saturday.
Jockey E.T. Baird, who rode Recapturetheglory for the first time in the Illinois Derby, may come in to handle the work.
SMOOTH AIR Mount Joy Stables Smooth Air jogged two miles with Susie Milne up before the renovation break Wednesday morning.
Trainer Bennie Stutts Jr. calls Smooth Air obviously the best horse Ive ever trained and is living his Derby dream.
I gave up on my Derby dream 25 years ago, Stutts said. I had chances to go to New York and other places, but I wanted to stay in Florida with my family.
Smooth Air is scheduled to work five furlongs on Sunday.
TALE OF EKATI/BIG TRUCK Charles Fipkes Tale of Ekati worked five furlongs in 1:00.20 at Keeneland over the Polytrack on Wednesday morning. The move was the second fastest of 11 at the distance.
It was the colts second work at Keeneland since winning the April 5 Wood Memorial (GI). Tale of Ekati worked a half-mile in :49.20 on April 17.
Trainer Barclay Tagg plans to ship Tale of Ekati and Eric Feins Big Truck, who worked a half-mile in :48.80 at Keeneland on Tuesday, to Churchill Downs on Saturday with final works for the duo slated next Tuesday.
Daily Derby Notes: April 24
Updated: April 24, 2008
(from Churchill Downs)
ADRIANO Courtlandt Farms Adriano visited the Churchill Downs paddock Thursday morning and then galloped 1 ½ miles under Xavier Aizpuru in preparation for the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands on Saturday, May, 3.
Winner of the Lanes End Stakes (GII) in his most recent start, Adriano is scheduled to work Sunday morning with Aizpuru handling the work, according to Alice Clapham, assistant to trainer Graham Motion.
Motion is scheduled to return to Louisville on Saturday night. Edgar Prado has the mount.
ANAK NAKAL/COOL COAL MAN Robert LaPentas Cool Coal Man put in his final Kentucky Derby work Thursday morning, breezing a half-mile in :47.40 in company with stablemate Chris Got Even, who was clocked in the same time, which was the second fastest of 35 at the distance.
Megan Smillie was aboard Cool Coal Man and Julien Leparoux, who will ride Cool Coal Man in the Derby, was on Chris Got Even. The duo did their work over a fast track after the renovation break. Fractions for the work were :11.60, :23.40, :35 and out in 1:02.60.
I was very happy. He was galloping along the right way, trainer Nick Zito said. You always worry about the breeze before the Derby, but they were really comfortable. I worked him with a really nice maiden, Chris Got Even, and he wont be a maiden for long. He is going to run Derby Day. Hes a pretty nice colt.
I just wanted Julien to see his horse, which is why I had him work the other horse. Basically, I just wanted him to get alongside him and see what kind of horse hes got instead of being on top of him. Plus, Megan gets on him all the time and I didnt want to change anything.
Cool Coal Man followed a similar work pattern before his Fountain of Youth (GII) victory in February with a :47.20 work nine days before the race.
Hes not a big, giant horse. Hes perfectly built, but not really big, Zito said. I dont think many horses can boast his record as far as conditioning goes. Nobdoy has three mile-and-an-eighth races, so I dont want to overdo it. I dont want to underdo it. Id rather have him gallop all week into the Derby.
Anak Nakal, who galloped 1 ½ miles under Heather Stark before the renovation break, is scheduled to work Friday morning in what would be his final pre-Derby work.
Hes not a really big horse either and this will be his last work, Zito said. I am not training anybody elses horses, but I have seen a few that are running in the Derby and if I had those, maybe I would do it differently. Obviously I have a sixth sense for some reason and Gods been good to me and I have to do what I am told to do. I go by feel.
BIG BROWN IEAH Stables and Paul Pompa Jr.s Big Brown worked five furlongs in :58.60 over a fast track Thursday morning at Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida with Michelle Nevin up.
Its exactly what he wanted and thats fine with me, trainer Rick Dutrow said. He did it the right way, looked real good, and did it in racehorse time while well within himself. He went about his business in a smooth and ordinary way.
We needed to turn his head loose a little in the lane, because weve kept him covered up in his last couple of breezes. I told Michelle to let him out just a little notch in the stretch, she did just that, the colt took the bit, and just carried her to the wire. With the race 10 days away, this is what we needed and wanted.
Undefeated in three starts, Big Brown is scheduled to ship to Churchill Downs on Monday (estimated arrival is 5 p.m.) and is tentatively scheduled for a three-furlong work next Thursday.
Two-time Kentucky Derby-winning rider Kent Desormeaux has the mount.
COLONEL JOHN WinStar Farms Colonel John galloped 1 ½ miles after the renovation break Thursday morning with Karine Lhuillier aboard.
Trainer Eoin Harty is anxiously watching the weather with a slight chance of rain forecast to move into the Louisville area beginning Thursday night.
There is no one day that I have to work, but I have a day that I would prefer, Harty said. But, what can you do?
Corey Nakatani has the Derby mount, but Harty said that Lhuillier would handle the work.
COURT VISION/Z HUMOR Trainer Bill Motts two Kentucky Derby hopefuls galloped before the renovation break Thursday morning.
IEAH Stables and WinStar Farms Court Vision was partnered by Joanna Trout and is scheduled to work Monday or Tuesday.
Court Vision would represent the second prospective starter in the Derby 134 field owned by WinStar Farm and high times for Elliott Walden, vice president and racing manager for WinStar.
So, Elliott, how would you feel if Colonel John and Court Vision are sweeping to the lead at the sixteenth pole?
Id probably be jumping off the grandstand, Walden said with a grin.
Zayat Stables Z Humor had Keith Allen aboard Thursday morning and is scheduled to work Monday or Tuesday.
Rene Douglas has the Derby call on Z Humor and Garrett Gomez will be on Court Vision.
DENIS OF CORK Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.s Denis of Cork galloped 1 ½ miles with trainer David Carroll back in the saddle Thursday morning after the renovation break.
Carroll had been home sick the first part of the week and Thursday was the first day he was able to be a full participant in the morning activity this week.
I think all the traveling got to me, going to Illinois and Arkansas and back and forth to Keeneland, Carroll said. You get used to do doing the day-to-day stuff and you dont realize how much you miss it.
One thing Carroll may miss is the Kentucky Derby, as Denis of Cork with $165,000 in graded stakes earnings, may not make the field of the top 20 earners when entries close next Wednesday.
I am hearing now that Behindatthebar may run and I am resigned to not getting in, Carroll said. Hes a good horse and I would be proud to lead him over. But if we dont get in, its nobodys fault but our own. We had our chance and didnt get it done.
GAYEGO Cubanacan Stables Gayego jogged a mile and galloped a mile shortly after the track opened Thursday morning under Jody Pieper.
Hes feeling so good, maybe they should do with him like they did with Afleet Alex and take him out twice in the morning, said Pieper, referring to the training regimen used by Tim Ritchey in 2005 with Afleet Alex.
Pieper said the Paulo Lobo trainee may go to the starting gate in the morning before galloping. Gayego is scheduled to work Saturday.
Pieper began getting on Gayego in the mornings prior to the colts victory in the Arkansas Derby (GII).
I have known (jockey) Mike Smith for 30 years and he asked me if I would get on him and if Id go to Louisville, said Pieper, who galloped Steppenwolfer prior to the 2006 Derby.
Pieper was asked his first impression of Gayego.
Hes so thick. I was surprised a horse that carries that much weight can run so fast, Pieper said. Same way with Tiago (who won the Oaklawn Handicap), who I got on, and Zenyatta (who won the Apple Blossom).
HALO NAJIB Zayat Stables Halo Najib jogged two miles under exercise rider Gennero Garcia on Thursday morning, his first day back at the track after working a half-mile on the turf on Tuesday in :50.40.
He came out of his work fine, trainer Dale Romans said.
The turf work came as a backup plan for Halo Najib in case he does not make the Derby field because of a lack of graded stakes earnings. Romans said if it looked like the colt would not make the Derby, Halo Najib probably would have another grass work Tuesday in preparation for the May 2 Crown Royal American Turf (GIII).
PYRO/Z FORTUNE Trainer Steve Asmussens two Kentucky Derby hopefuls galloped a mile Thursday morning, according to assistant trainer Scott Blasi.
Pyro is owned by Winchell Thoroughbreds and Z Fortune is owned by Zayat Stables and both are scheduled to work Monday.
Shaun Bridgmohan has the call on Pyro and Robby Albarado the mount on Z Fortune.
RECAPTURETHEGLORY Ronnie Lamarque and Louie Roussel IIIs Recapturetheglory jogged a mile and then galloped two miles after the renovation break with Lara Van Deren up.
Roussell, who trains the son of Cherokee Run, said the colt would work Saturday or Sunday, depending on the weather, and would go in the Derby no matter what the weather.
Hes not like Kandaly, said Roussel, referring to the colt he scratched on the afternoon of the 1994 Derby because of sloppy conditions. He will go. If its sloppy, hes going.
E.T. Baird has the mount.
SMOOTH AIR Mount Joy Stables Smooth Air jogged a mile and galloped a mile before the renovation break with Susie Milne up.
He goes twice around every morning and tomorrow it will be less jog and more gallop, trainer Bennie Stutts Jr. said.
Stutts said the Florida-bred son of Smooth Jazz is scheduled to school in the paddock Saturday afternoon, but that the colt would not visit the starting gate.
He has always been good at the gate and if I thought he needed it, Id do it, Stutts said.
Smooth Air is scheduled to work Sunday, but Stutts said he could wait a day should the weather turn bad.
Manoel Cruz has the mount in the Derby.
TOMCITO Jet Set Racing Stables Tomcito, sixth in the Coolmore Lexington (GII) in his most recent start and sitting in 25th place on the graded stakes earnings list of Kentucky Derby hopefuls with $151,292, galloped 1 ¾ miles Thursday morning with Manfreddy Guzman aboard.
He is doing very well and we are here, trainer Dante Zanelli said.
And if Tomcito does not get in the Derby . . .
We will wait for the Belmont or maybe go in the Peter Pan (May 10), Zanelli said.
VISIONAIRE Vision Racing and Team Valors Visionaire, winner of the Gotham (GIII) at Aqueduct, is scheduled to depart trainer Michael Matzs Keeneland Stable on Friday for the trip to Churchill Downs for Kentucky Derby 134.
Visionaire will be stabled in Barn 42.
Florida Derby winner and Kentucky Derby favorite Big Brown blew through five furlongs at Palm Meadows early Thursday morning in :58 3/5, and while most trainers handle their nerves by counting sheep at night, trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. eagerly counts the days in the runup to May 3.
Its a horse race, and I have the best horse in the race. Its that simple, he told a group of reporters assembled outside his office. Were going to Kentucky to win, anything less than that is not going to be OK with us. Theres such good karma going around the stable now that I dont see how he can get beat.
Dutrow watched Big Brown work from the top of the stretch and after his colt finished in a straight line, tight against the rail, he told exercise rider Michele Nevin I cant believe he went that fast. He looked like he was just galloping along when he went past me.
Big Brown, who is owned by IEAH Stable and Paul Pompa Jr., will be Dutrows first Kentucky Derby starter, and his famously laid-back trainer is not getting caught up in the hype.
Ive never been in this kind of spot before but I dont feel any pressure, not as long as my horse is going good. Im having fun. This is what I was born to do.
The son of a successful New York-based trainer, the younger Dutrow, 47, has already trained a Horse of the Year in Saint Liam, who took the 2005 title after winning that years Breeders Cup Classic. Most horsemen will tell you that Breeders Cup pressure is immense, and that Kentucky Derby pressure is somewhere beyond that. Most horsemen feel it differently from Big Browns trainer.
I love the spot Im in. I cant see anyone going into this race nearly as well as we are, he said.
Big Brown has won all three of his starts, the first two by a combined 24 lengths and his last, the $1 million Florida Derby, by five lengths while competing against South Floridas best 3-year-olds in training.
He ran on turf in his first race, at Saratoga Sept. 3, when owned solely by Pompa and trained by Patrick Reynolds; on a drying-out track at Gulfstream on March 5 well after IEAH Stable had bought in and Dutrow had taken over the colts training; and on a fast track in the Florida Derby March 29, from which he broke from Post 12 in the 1 1/8-mile race.
(The Saratoga race) was amazing, Dutrow said of the bay colts 11¼-length victory, and he took our breath away the first time he ran at Gulfstream, winning by 12¾ lengths.
Much was made of Big Browns post position in the Florida Derby, but Dutrow said it was never a concern.
I thought the only way he could get beat in the Florida Derby was if he ran into trouble, and the outside post assured us that he wouldnt get into trouble, he said.
We thought about the (April 12) Blue Grass, but the spacing from the Florida Derby to the Kentucky Derby (five weeks later) better suited us. We wanted a lot of time after the Florida Derby, and I think a lot of time is best for a race like (the Kentucky Derby).
Big Brown suffered from quarter cracks earlier in his career, but Dutrow said the colts one-time brittle feet are no longer a concern.
His feet have been cold the last three or four weeks, he said. Im not worried about his feet at all.
Big Brown is expected to depart Palm Meadows winter headquarters for Street Sense and Barbaro, the last two Kentucky Derby winners Monday.
I have about 80 horses up in New York, and I talk to my people up there every day, Dutrow said, but Id rather be here with this horse because its so much fun. He wants to be here at Palm Meadows.
Getting off his seat long enough to give his colt a peppermint, he said, We spoil him he probably gets away with murder but hes the one who told us he wants to be here.
Big Brown closed at 3-1, the favorite, after Pool 3 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.
Its an honor to be the favorite now, and hell be the favorite on Derby Day, I can guarantee that, Dutrow said. Were a betting stable, and well make sure hes the favorite.
Roussell Expresses Concern about Recapturetheglory.
Recapturetheglory worked today at Churchill Downs, breezing five furlongs in 1:01.20 (9/27), a day earlier than planned. Actually, it was a day later than originally planned, with trainer and co-owner Louis Roussell III calling a few audibles this week. After a strong gallop on Wednesday, Roussel postponed a Thursday work until Saturday.
Recapturetheglory's splits were :12.20, 24.40, 35.80, and :48.40. He galloped out in 1:15.
Roussell said it was a maintenance work. If you can look at an individual and you can see, in your mind, that hes fit and you can see some ribs showing, then you know hes not carrying any excess fat. Youre going do something with him thats going to keep him at that level, but not hurt him," Roussell said.
Roussell implied that Recapturetheglory has gone off his feed, or that he's worried that it will happen.
I did a little bit too much with him, Roussel said. The van trip down from Chicago was supposed to be six hours; it was eight. And I was worried because I wanted to get his major work done Thursday and I kind of overdid it a little bit with him. Instead of him getting right into it, it knocked him back a little bit, so this last week has been kind of like a time to try to build him back up again.
The real secret, I think, in these works is to keep them happy so they stay in the feed tub. If hes eating up everything afterward, then its been great. If he backs out of the feed tub, then I did too much and Ill have to take the responsibility for it.
It was Recapturetheglory's second work since winning the Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5.
On April 17, RECAPTURETHEGLORY breezed five furlongs in 1:01.00 (5/16) at Churchill Downs.
Roussell said Recapturetheglory would gallop into the Kentucky Derby.
Daily Derby Notes: April 26
Updated: April 26, 2008
(from Churchill Downs)
ADRIANO Lanes End Stakes (GII) winner Adriano galloped 1 ½ miles under exercise rider Xavier Azipuru at Churchill Downs Saturday morning. The Graham Motion-trained colt is scheduled to breeze shortly after the renovation break Sunday in preparation for a start in the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (GI) on May 3.
Thats the plan, as long as we get some nice weather, said assistant trainer Alice Clapham, looking up at the clearing skies with obvious approval. Well find out when Graham gets here what hes going to do.
Motion was scheduled to arrive in Louisville Saturday afternoon.
The son of A.P. Indy appeared to have settled well into to his surroundings at Barn 42 on the Churchill Downs backstretch.
Hes gotten so relaxed and laid back, Clapham said. He loves it.
Edgar Prado, who rode Barbaro to victory in the 2006 Derby, has the mount aboard Adriano.
ANAK NAKAL/COOL COAL MAN Anak Nakal walked under tack Saturday morning, 24 hours after breezing four furlongs in :46.60 at Churchill Downs, where he won the Kentucky Jockey Club (GII) last fall.
Stablemate Cool Coal Man galloped 1 ¼ miles under Megan Smillie after the renovation break. The Fountain of Youth winner, who captured an allowance race at Churchill last fall, is looking to rebound from a ninth-place finish in the Blue Grass Stakes over Keenelands Polytrack surface.
Theyve both won here, so thats something in their favor, said trainer Nick Zito. Wherever weve gone before, at least weve done well on the track. Im hoping the form (Anak Nakal) had in the Kentucky Jockey Club is something he has in the Kentucky Derby a week from today. Cool Coal Man also won on the track, so hopefully thats a good sign, too.
Julien Leparoux will ride Robert LaPentas Cool Coal Man for the first time in the Derby, while Rafael Bejarano will be aboard Four Roses Thoroughbreds Anak Nakal, also for the first time.
BEHINDATTHEBAR/COWBOY CAL/MONBA At Keeneland, Monba and Cowboy Cal worked for the first time since they finished first and second, respectively, in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G1) on April 12.
Monba, with exercise rider Patti Krotenko aboard, was on the track by 6:45 a.m. and after jogging once the wrong way around the oval worked five furlongs over the Polytrack in 1:02.60 in company with Readys Echo. Monba was clocked galloping out in 1:14.60.
I thought he went well, trainer Todd Pletcher said about the son of Marias Mon. It was kind of in the norm for him in terms of what he does. Hes not an overzealous work horse. I thought he did fine.
We normally work him in company, Pletcher added. He wont do much on his own.
Less than 45 minutes later, Krotenko was aboard Cowboy Cal, who also jogged around the track the wrong way before he worked five furlongs by himself. The Giant's Causeway colt was clocked in 1:00 and galloped out in 1:12.
I thought he worked extremely well, said Pletcher.
Pletcher, who won 14 races during Keenelands spring meet that ended on Friday to earn his second training title at the track, said he has not decided when Monba and Cowboy Cal will ship to Churchill Downs and might stay at Keeneland as late as Wednesday. Asked if he would work Behindatthebar, who won the Coolmore Lexington (G2) a week ago, again before a possible start in the Kentucky Derby, Pletcher also said he had not decided.
He galloped well this morning, and were just kind of playing it by ear, he said about Behindatthebar. The son of Forest Wildcat galloped 1 ¼ miles with exercise rider Valerie Buck aboard.
With a week until the Derby, Pletcher said the race appears to be wide open.
A lot of times you learn more about the quality of the three-year-old crop a couple of races from now, he said. Were pleased with the way ours went (this morning). Theres some rain over at Churchill; thats why we stayed here, to work over a safe track. Were happy with that.
BIG BROWN The Florida Derby winner jogged once around the track under exercise rider Michelle Nevin Saturday morning at Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida.
Big Brown is scheduled to ship to Louisville after training hours Monday morning for trainer Richard Dutrow. The son of Boundary is tentatively slated to work three furlongs over the Churchill Downs track on Thursday in preparation for his highly anticipated start in the Derby. The Kentucky-bred colt, who has won all three of his career races by a combined 29 lengths, will be Dutrows first Derby starter.
Everyone wants to win the Derby, the veteran trainer said. If he wins the Derby its going to be big, no matter what the margin is.
Kent Desormeaux will have the return mount aboard Big Brown.
BIG TRUCK/TALE OF EKATI The Barclay Tagg-trained Derby duo of Big Truck and Tale of Ekati arrived at Churchill Downs around noontime Saturday following a van ride from Keeneland.
Big Truck, who finished 11th in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on Keenelands Polytrack surface after winning the Tampa Bay Derby, and Tale of Ekati, who is coming off a narrow victory over Eclipse Award-winning War Pass in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, settled into their stalls in Barn 48 on the Churchill Downs backstretch.
Eric Feins Big Truck is slated to work over the Churchill track on Monday, while Charles Fipkes Tale of Ekati is expected to work on Tuesday.
Eibar Coa will ride Tale of Ekati, leaving the mount aboard Big Truck open for Javier Castellano.
BOB BLACK JACK Things are looking better these days for the California-based bubble horse owned by Tim Kasparoff and Jeff Harmon, so much so in fact that the son of the Bertrando sire Stormy Jack was on an airplane at 4:30 Saturday morning jetting east with a run in the Kentucky Derby in mind.
The California-bred was accompanied by Kasparoff and his brother James, who also trains the colt, and the three of them were scheduled to arrive at Churchill Downs at 1 p.m and head toward Barn 45.
Bob Black Jack is currently No. 21 on the earnings list that qualifies horses for the Run for the Roses. But with at least one and possibly two defections now likely from the top 20, the $4,500 yearling is looking like theyll save a spot in the starting gate for him.
In his most recent outing, Bob Black Jack finished second to Colonel John in the Santa Anita Derby under veteran Richard Migliore. The Mig has the call back for the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby.
COLONEL JOHN The Santa Anita Derby winner took a mile and one half tour of the wet Churchill Downs oval Saturday morning, heading trackside with exercise rider Karine Lhuillier at 8:45 a.m. following the morning renovation break. The gallop was a good one and the 16.2-hands colt acquitted himself well on a strip the clockers were calling muddy.
He handled it well, agreed trainer Eoin Harty, who handles the homebred Tiznow colt for WinStar Farm.
The Irish-born conditioner was asked about the possibility of a wet track on Kentucky Derby day.
Its going to be what its going to be, Harty noted. He seemed to go fine out there today, so I guess that gives me a bit of confidence (he could handle an off track).
The trainer has his charges final Derby drill planned for Monday at five furlongs following the renovation break. For Sunday, he said his four-time winner would again gallop his mile and a half.
Same routine tomorrow, he said, with maybe a visit to the gate, if climatic conditions cooperate.
COURT VISION/Z HUMOR Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott sent his Kentucky Derby-bound pair for dual paddock walkthroughs and 1 ½- mile gallops. Churchill Downs all-time leader in wins and stakes victories said that while a trainer does everything he or she can to prepare,
Theres nothing that can really prepare for Derby Day. We just do what we can to give the horses the best possible education.
Mott said both runners are doing well in their Derby preparations and that Zayat Stables Z Humor gets a little heated up, but was much better with that today. No decision has been made in regards to when the pair would turn in their final Derby workouts, with Monday or Tuesday still targeted depending on weather.
Mott enters todays opening-day card at the Downs with an all-time best 583 victories and 73 stakes wins. Hell try to notch stakes victory No. 74 with Majestic Warrior, winner of last years Hopeful (GI) in todays Derby Trial. Thats a big one for us today, he admitted. We really want to get Majestic Warrior back on track and get the week off to a good start.
While Mott has won most every important race at Churchill Downs, the Derby has eluded him. But the even-keeled Mott said theres no added pressure this week.
Weve been here before and were just hoping to have a little bit of good fortune this time, he said. I think weve got a chance with two horses that could get the distance; thats important.
IEAH Stables and WinStar Farms Court Vision will be ridden by Garrett Gomez in Kentucky Derby 134. Rene Douglas will pilot Z Humor.
DENIS OF CORK Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warrens Denis of Cork galloped a mile and a half under trainer David Carroll after the renovation break Saturday morning.
A winner of three of four career starts, Denis of Cork is scheduled to work Monday morning after the renovation break with Calvin Borel up. With $165,000 in graded stakes earnings, Denis of Cork would need a defection from the list of Kentucky Derby hopefuls to be among the top 20 in graded earnings upon entry time Wednesday.
He is going to breeze Monday Derby or no Derby, Carroll said.
Denis of Cork won his first three starts, including his maiden score here at Churchill Downs on Nov. 24. His lone setback was a fifth-place finish in the April 5 Illinois Derby (GII).
He should have never run there, said Carroll of Denis of Cork who went to Chicago after an eight-week layoff. Since he has been back here, he has been doing great.
Mondays work would be the second for Denis of Cork since the Illinois Derby. He worked five furlongs in 1:00 under Borel on April 21.
GAYEGO I was very concerned last night; I didnt sleep too well, trainer Paulo Lobo noted, prior to sending out his Kentucky Derby charge Gayego for his final drill Saturday at Churchill Downs. I heard the rain at 2 a.m. and I didnt know how the track was going to take it. But I talked to some trainers (at the track) this morning and they said it would be fine. They said to go ahead and do my work.
Lobo, the Brazilian-born conditioner who now works out of his base in Southern California, told his rider Hall of Famer Mike Smith that he wanted him to go five eighths in 1:01. Its just a maintenance work, he said. He doesnt need much now.
Smith went trackside with the son of Gilded Time at 8:30 just as the track maintenance crew had finished their break, harrowing and sealing the wet track. The rider held tight; Gayego was full of himself and delighted to be able to stretch his nearly black legs.
When Smith and the Cubanacan Stables colt had finished their exercise, Lobo had one word for it: Perfect.
With only a short backtrack, Smith broke his mount off at the five-eighths pole and fired a steady clip all the way around to the finish line. The clockers caught the splits at :12.40, :24.40, :36.60, :48.60 and a final time of 1:01. Perfect, indeed. The out time registered at 1:14.80.
Exactly. Exactly what I wanted, Lobo offered. I think it was an awesome work.
Smith, who has ridden the Kentucky-bred in all five of his lifetime starts, was equally impressed.
He was very relaxed out there today, the California-based rider said. He wanted to please. And when I galloped out with him, he pulled hard on me. He wanted more.
The rider noted that it surely was a good sign that the horse seemed to like the Churchill strip.
I know when I galloped Giacomo (Smiths 2005 Derby winner) here, he loved this track, he said. He felt good going over it; he galloped like a champion. This horse puts me in mind of that. Im hoping that it proves just as good.
Lobo and Smith both spoke briefly with members of the press following the drill, then dash together to catch a 10 oclock plane to California. The trainer was planning to return to Kentucky on Tuesday and stay through the Derby.
HALO NAJIB Trainer Dale Romans continued to play the waiting game Saturday morning as he overlooked his 40-horse stable. Are we going to get in? was the first question from the conditioner of the OBS Championship winner. Meanwhile, the Zayat Stables color-bearer continued to prepare this morning as if a Derby date would be in the works, galloping a mile and a half.
Romans said Halo Najib would work Monday or Tuesday with the surface of the workout in question. If it appears that Halo Najib will make the 20-horse Derby starting gate, he will drill on dirt on one of the two days. Romans said if the likelihood of making the field looked ominous, he instead would consider a Tuesday turf workout in preparation for the Crown Royal American Turf (GIII).
As for naming a potential Derby jockey for Halo Najib, Romans said he is in no rush. Well let it play out and see what happens, he said. Not too many agents have been calling. Thats not the way I do business usually. They know Ill call them if I need them.
Romans looks to get his Derby Week off to a fast start this afternoon when he saddles speedy sprinter Eatons Gift in the Derby Trial. Seven-and-a-half (furlongs) may be stretching him to the limit, but hes awfully fast and talented, he said, adding that he is not thrilled with the rail post position.
KENTUCKY BEAR Bear Stables Kentucky Bear, who ran third in the April 12 Toyota Blue Grass (GI) in only his third career start, worked five furlongs in :59.60 under Jamie Theriot Saturday at Churchill Downs. The work was the fastest of the morning over a muddy track.
Clockers caught the colt galloping out in 1:12.20.
Trained by Reade Baker, Kentucky Bear has only $75,000 in graded stakes earnings and would need a massive number of defections of Kentucky Derby hopefuls to make the field.
PYRO/Z FORTUNE Trainer Steve Asmussens pair of Fair Grounds stakes winners both turned in light, pre-dawn exercise this morning at Churchill Downs. Louisiana Derby (GII) champion Pyro and Lecomte Stakes (GIII) victor Z Fortune each galloped a mile and a quarter. Assistant trainer Scott Blasi supervised in the absence of Asmussen, who will be joining the Kentucky string from his Texas home base in the coming days.
Blasi said both horses remain on schedule for Monday works, though was non-committal about distance or whether Pyro would work solo or with a potential workmate.
Winchell Thoroughbreds Pyro will be ridden by Shaun Bridgmohan in Derby 134. The assignment on Zayat Stables Z Fortune goes to 2007 Preakness-winning jockey Robby Albarado.
RECAPTURETHEGLORY The Illinois Derby (GII) champion received his first of back-to-back easy days around the shed row, one day after drilling five furlongs in 1:01.20 for trainer Louie Roussel III. Recapturetheglory walked for 45 minutes and enjoyed grazing on some of Kentuckys famed bluegrass, and will do the same tomorrow, said Roussels assistant trainer and exercise rider Lara Van Deren.
We typically walk two days after a workout, so hell walk again Sunday and gallop on Monday, Van Deren said. Tuesday morning, well school in the paddock, and well likely also school sometime during the week on raceday in the paddock.
Recapturetheglory is part of a small, 14-horse stable for Roussel, who co-owns the colt with Ronnie Lamarque. The bulk of the stable is training at Crestview Farm in Harvard, Ill. and soon will be headed to Arlington Park.
Leading Chicago-based rider E.T. Baird has the mount on the potential Kentucky Derby pacesetter.
SMOOTH AIR The roller coaster ride that has been 70-year-old trainer Bennie Stutts Jr.s first Kentucky Derby experience remained bumpy for a third day as Smooth Air remained in his stall in Barn 35.
He has a low grade fever and he is being treated with anti-biotics, Stutts said. He has an elevated white cell count that shows infection. His temperature is normal this morning and if it stays down today and I am able to train tomorrow, well be OK. He doesnt need to work. Hes fit.
Stutts first noticed something was amiss Thursday afternoon.
We trained him Thursday morning, but when we came back to the barn at noon, he had left some feed in the tub and he always eats everything, Stutts said. We knew then we had a sick horse.
He had a clean bill of health before leaving Florida (on Sunday). I dont think it came from shipping, because that would show up right away. He didnt go to the track Friday and Dallas Stewarts vet Dr. (Phil) Tripp worked on him and gave him plenty of fluids and got his temperature down. But yesterday afternoon it went back up higher than it was the day before.
If he is not 100 percent, he will not run. It wouldnt be fair to the horse. Hes a horse with a future. Nobody is looking more to run in the Derby than I am, but he has to be 100 percent to run.
TOMCITO Jet Set Racing Stables Tomcito, sixth in the Coolmore Lexington (GII) in his most recent start, galloped two miles after the renovation break under Manfreddy Guzman.
Tomcito, trained by Dante Zanelli, has $151,292 in graded stakes earnings and would need a handful of defections from Kentucky Derby hopefuls to make the field.
VISIONAIRE Team Valor and Vision Racings Gotham (GIII) winner Visionaire was expected to arrive via van from Keeneland Saturday after noon local time. Visionaire had been training over the Polytrack in Lexington for the past three weeks since arriving from Florida for the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (GI).
Trainer Michael Matz, who won the 2006 roses in his Kentucky Derby debut with Barbaro, has indicated that Visionaire will turn in his final pre-Derby workout Monday under the Twin Spires.
Smooth Air's Derby Start in Jeopardy
Updated: April 26, 2008
By Steve Byk and
Steve Haskin
Mount Joy Stables' Smooth Air spiked a slight fever Thursday that prevented his going to the track for a scheduled gallop in preparation for the May 3 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I).
The developing situation could result in his defection from the Derby starting grid, according to trainer Bennie Stutts, who at 70 is looking to run in his first Kentucky Derby. Stutts said the Florida Derby (gr. I) runner-up will not go to the track Saturday, having been treated with antibiotics for what Stutts suspects is a low grade infection.
During a press briefing Saturday morning, Stutts said the colt had improved and that his temperature was a normal 99.9 degrees. He said the colt is now scheduled to go to the track Sunday.
"Right now , he is doing much better," Stutts said. "He is bright and eating. "If he is not 100%, he will not run in the Derby. No one wants to run in the Derby more than me."
Because Smooth Air "is 100% fit" he does not need a breeze Derby week to be able to run in the classic, Stutts said.
"There's going to be a lot of disappointment if this little colt can't run." a concerned Stutts said Friday. "But if he's not right, I won't run him." Stutts added that if he could not get Smooth Air back to the track by Monday, he would likely be forced to not enter the son of Smooth Jazz in the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby.
Calder-based Smooth Air emerged as a viable Derby candidate with a win in the grade II Hutcheson in January. Though a troubled third in his two-turn debut at Tampa in the Sam F. Davis made many question the colt's route aptitude, Stutts persevered toward the Florida Derby with the bay via a series of old-fashioned mile workouts and long gallops. Smooth Air responded to the stamina-building efforts with a strong placement behind likely Derby favorite Big Brown.
By Bill Finley
Big Brown is clearly the fastest, most talented horse among the 30 or so 3-year-olds vying for a spot in the Kentucky Derby field and he's coming off one of the most electrifying Derby preps ever run. Yet, he figures to be 3-1 or higher when the field of 20 breaks from the starting gate at Churchill Downs. Situations like this rarely present themselves: an underlayed Big Brown is absolutely the pick to win the Kentucky Derby.
The reason that he won't be 6-5 or lower is because he has only started three times. That makes him an inexperienced horse and inexperienced horses don't always fare well in the Kentucky Derby, which is a uniquely grueling race. No horse who has started three times or fewer has won the Derby since Regret in 1915. It's a statistic that is going to be repeated over and over again Derby Week, and it's going to scare off a lot of horseplayers and handicappers.
That's the way it is when it comes to the Kentucky Derby. Unlike any other race in America, it's analyzed and scrutinized until every last facet of the race and its starters has been examined. That's not exactly a good thing.
The Kentucky Derby has become the world's most overanalyzed horse race. Handicappers tend to overlook the obvious and instead get caught up in esoterica. Remember the Dosage Index? As a handicapping theory, it turned out to be as credible as Hillary Clinton's Bosnia/sniper stories. What about the premise that no horse could win the Derby off a five-week layoff? Barbaro took care of that one. Coming next: Throw out all horses born on a Thursday because no horse born on a Thursday has won the Kentucky Derby since 1928. (OK, I made that one up).
That's not to say that the experience factor is irrelevant when it comes to the Derby. It is a difficult race and lightly raced horses might be at a disadvantage. But the statistics aren't nearly as overpowering as they have been made out to be. Since 1955, only nine horses that have started three times or fewer prior to the Derby have raced in the Derby. That's hardly the sort of sample size you need to make a definitive judgment about the merits of lightly raced horses.
It's also worth keeping in mind that the game has changed immeasurably over the last 20 years or so. It wasn't that long ago when horses routinely had 12 or 13 lifetime starts coming into the Derby. Now, most have had just a handful. Big Brown won't be competing against a bunch of grizzled veterans but against a lot of horses that aren't that different than him. How much worse off is he than horses like Gayego (5 career starts), Monba (5 career starts) or Recapturetheglory (6 career starts) or Colonel John (6 career starts)?
Does it really make sense to wager on one of those horses instead of Big Brown because they've had a few more starts? That would mean overlooking the fact that Big Brown has the best Beyer numbers in the race by far, has won his three starts by a combined 29 lengths and won the Florida Derby from the 12 post, something that was supposed to be impossible.
"I think that you're looking at something here where talent will make up for the experience," trainer Rick Dutrow said the other day.
Indeed. He's the best horse and he should win. It's really that simple.
***
The prospective field for this year's Belmont Stakes includes what could be one of the more interesting starters ever in the race. A horse named Casino Drive is on his way to New York from Japan to gear up for the third leg of the Triple Crown. He has raced just once, winning a maiden race in Japan by 11 1/2 lengths. What makes him particularly interesting is his breeding. He is by Mineshaft out of the dam Better Than Honour. She is the dam of the last two Belmont winners, Jazil and Rags to Riches. This could be an historic three-peat.
He is expected to prep for the Belmont Stakes in the May 10 Peter Pan at Belmont Park. The same trainer, Kazuo Fujisawa, is also shipping over a potential Belmont starter in Spark Candle. He has won one of five career starts.
WinStar Farms Colonel John, one of the favorites for Saturdays Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), solidified his status with a scintillating five-furlong drill over the main track at Churchill Downs Sunday morning. Under exercise rider Karine Lhuillier, Colonel John got the trip in :57 4/5.
Colonel John, winner of the Santa Anita Derby (gr. I) in his last start, broke off at the three-quarter pole and lowered his body and really picked it up at the five-eighths. He was clocked in splits of :12, :23 1/5, :34 3/5, :46. He galloped out six furlongs in 1:11 1/5. His final quarter was in a snappy :23 1/5.
Looking on was Elliott Walden, a former trainer and vice president of WinStar Farm.
He went very well, Walden said. I dont think it was too fast considering were six days out (from the Derby). We feel very comfortable about it.
The track is very live this morning, Walden continued. We had quite a few horses work fast today. I clocked (Oaks hopeful) Proud Spell in :58 and one. Eight Bells went in :58 and one, too. Good horses work fast. He handled the dirt that was a good indicator. The rider never moved and she felt he handled the surface well.
The main concern with Colonel Johns Derby chances lie in the fact he has not run a race over a dirt track with all six of his previous efforts having come over synthetic surfaces in California. A winner of four of six starts, with two seconds, Colonel John broke his maiden in his second start during the Oak Tree meet at Santa Anita last October, then won the $105,000 Real Quiet Stakes at Hollywood Park, and finished up his 2-year-old campaign with a runner-up effort in the CashCall Futurity (gr. I).
This year, the son of Tiznow, out of the Turkoman mare Sweet Damsel, won the Sham Stakes (gr. III) by a half-length over El Gato Malo, then came from ninth to win the Santa Anita Derby by a half-length over Bob Black Jack.
The way this horse is going, you just hope you can stay together the next six days and we have a chance, Walden said outside Barn 41. Thats all you can ask for.
Colonel John is trained by Eoin Harty. As an assistant, for Bob Baffert, Harty has been to the Derby before with winner Silver Charm and Real Quiet. Real Quiet's bid for the Triple Crown was stopped at the wire of the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) by Victory Gallop, who was trained by....Elliott Walden.
Three days before entries are taken Wednesday for Saturday's 134th Kentucky Derby, the owners of 30 horses remain willing to pay $50,000 in entry fees -- plus probably at least that much for tickets, hotels and bad mint juleps -- for the right to come away with only a $150 keepsake saddle towel if their horse finishes up the track at Churchill Downs.
But the owners -- and even a lot of the trainers -- believe their horses have the ability to wear the garland of roses. Here we help them make their cases why they can win -- tempered with a dose of reality why they can't.
Pyro
Why: He is classy, bred for the distance, has more stalking speed if needed than some think, is 1 for 1 at Churchill and never has run poorly on dirt. Throw out his Polytrack Blue Grass.
Why not: No horse in modern times has finished 10th in his final prep and won the Derby. He has not improved his speed figures at age 3 the way typical Derby winners do.
Proud Spell
Why: She's wonderfully consistent, is by a Derby runner-up (Proud Citizen), and this is not a strong bunch of colts.
Why not: These colts are better than their reputations. No filly has won the Derby without previously racing against the boys. No Derby winner has won without first racing at 11/8 miles since Middleground in 1950. She's most likely running in the Oaks anyway.
Tale of Ekati
Why: How many times have we seen the horse that a jockey doesn't pick (Edgar Prado chose Adriano instead) win the Derby? Barclay Tagg knows a Derby horse when he sees one. His 2- and 3-year-old form is the type that captures the roses.
Why not: He's not fast enough. The Wood finish was dreadfully slow.
Colonel John
Why: His Santa Anita Derby was one of the most impressive preps. No one else has run the last three-eighths of a 11/8-mile race in a sizzling 351/5 seconds. He's never been worse than second, is bred to go 10 furlongs -- on dirt -- and his dappled coat shouts out peak health.
Why not: He's never raced on dirt, and that turns out to make a difference.
Gayego
Why: He might actually prefer the dirt to synthetics: His Arkansas Derby win was his best race to date, and he wasn't slowing at the end. He and Big Brown are the only contenders who have two triple-digit Beyer speed figures this year. Trainer Paulo Lobo is 1 for 1 at Churchill, winning the 2002 Oaks with Farda Amiga.
Why not: He's a good-looking horse, but his sire, Gilded Time, is known primarily for producing sprinters.
Big Brown
Why: He's the fastest horse in the field. He already has bucked history by being the first horse to win the Florida Derby in his third lifetime start. Things are falling into place, starting with the injury of another top speed horse, War Pass.
Why not: The Florida Derby isn't the Kentucky Derby, which no horse has won in his fourth start since 1915. The firm Churchill surface will make him feel those old quarter cracks in his feet. He hasn't faced this caliber of competition.
Z Humor
Why: Sire Distorted Humor already has had one Derby winner (Funny Cide), and he's out of a mare by Belmont winner A.P. Indy. Nobody changed positions much in the Illinois Derby in which he was third, and his stalking style is a good fit here.
Why not: He's a cut below. His lone stakes win was (in a dead heat) the Delta Jackpot, whose field is a cumulative 1 for 26 since.
Monba
Why: His fast-finishing fractions of the Blue Grass show he's on top of his game. He won a mile allowance race at Churchill last fall. Todd Pletcher is too good a trainer to go to 0 for 21 (or 22) in the Derby.
Why not: He's better on synthetic surfaces. He looked better in the Blue Grass because all of the dirt graded-stakes winners faltered. If you throw out his bad Fountain of Youth, then he's had only one prep race all year.
Court Vision
Why: He's never run a bad race and was a rare winner at 11/8 miles at 2. His recent Churchill work (461/5 seconds) shows he loves the track, where he won the Iroquois, and is coming around at the right time. He has similar breeding to Thunder Gulch, the $51 Derby winner in 1995. Jockey Garrett Gomez's agent, Ron Anderson, one of the sport's best handicappers, picked this mount over Colonel John before their last preps.
Why not: His speed figures suggest he's just not fast enough. Derby history is littered with jockey agents who made the wrong call.
Z Fortune
Why: His Arkansas Derby was huge, starting from post 11 and racing wide on both turns, making him one of the rare horses in this field with a triple digit (102) Beyer speed figure.
Why not: He might not want to go that far. If he couldn't run down Gayego to win the Arkansas Derby, he won't win here.
Adriano
Why: He looks the part, has a huge stride and is bred for it. Though it wasn't the toughest competition, his Lane's End performance was impressive. Jockey Edgar Prado picked him over the winners of the Wood and Blue Grass. He was on grass so much only because trainer Graham Motion wanted to race him longer distances last summer than offered in dirt maiden races.
Why not: His trainer said he was a better grass horse after he was ninth in the Fountain of Youth, his only start on real dirt.
Recapturetheglory
Why: Go no further than his name; owners Louie Roussel (the trainer) and Ronnie Lamarque had 1988 3-year-old champion Risen Star. Similar to 2002 Derby winner War Emblem, he came from nowhere with a huge race to win the Illinois Derby in wire-to-wire fashion.
Why not: If Risen Star can't win the Derby, he can? His breeding is distance-challenged.
Smooth Air
Why: He's got the sneaky good form of a horse who could score at a huge price. The Derby often rewards good people who have spent their lives in racing, and that's 70-year-old trainer Bennie Stutts, who has a six-horse stable and quickly became a media favorite with his emotional and homespun ways.
Why not: He's really a miler. The temperature he spiked last week well could force him out.
Cool Coal Man
Why: He's 2 for 2 at 11/8 miles on dirt, and being by Mineshaft he should relish another furlong. Coal is huge in Kentucky.
Why not: He faded from third to ninth in the Blue Grass in a race where the other speed kept going.
Anak Nakal
Why: He loves Churchill, having won last fall's Kentucky Jockey Club and working very well here. Selling the sire (Victory Gallop went to Turkey) is a sure way to ensure his progeny will score big.
Why not: He's lost his three races this year by a total of 29¼ lengths.
Eight Belles
Why: The massive filly is consistent, bred to go long and has a prime stalking style. This isn't a great bunch of colts.
Why not: As with stablemate Proud Spell, no filly has won the Derby without previously racing against colts. No horse has won without racing 11/8 miles since Middleground in 1950. These colts aren't that bad.
Cowboy Cal
Why: He's a true distance horse and is wonderfully consistent.
Why not: He couldn't hold on in the Blue Grass after getting six furlongs in a dawdling 1:13. He's a grass horse.
Behindatthebar
Why: He ran extremely well in winning the Coolmore Lexington. He'll have the karma of all the infield drinkers.
Why not: His only disappointing race was on dirt. He hasn't run 11/8 miles. If he was a good thing in this spot, why would Todd Pletcher be hedging about waiting for the Preakness?
Visionaire
Why: He was the only dirt stakes-winner in the funky Polytrack Blue Grass to close any ground -- and while 10 wide. Michael Matz knows how to train a Derby winner.
Why not: Since 1937, only six winners have finished worse than third in their last race before the Derby. In the past 50 years, only two horses have been worse than third -- and they were both fourth.
Big Truck
Why: His Blue Grass was too bad to be true, so throw it out. Like Big Brown, he's got the positive vibes of running in a major hub of UPS.
Why not: Horses who finish 11th -- beaten almost 12 lengths -- in the final prep do not wear the roses.
Bob Black Jack
Why: He's the the world-record holder for six furlongs but will rate and was three strides from winning the Santa Anita Derby. His 109 Beyer is the best in the field. With that name, it's in the cards.
Why not: No California-bred has won since Decidedly in 1962. He didn't win the Santa Anita Derby and now must go a furlong farther. A trainer with a three-horse stable winning the Derby is the stuff of Hollywood.
Denis of Cork
Why: His April 21 work and monster gallop-out was reminiscent of Street Sense's electrifying pre-Derby work. He resembles his broodmare sire, Derby winner Unbridled.
Why not: The last horse to win the Derby in his fifth lifetime start was Exterminator in 1918. The last horse to be as bad as fifth in his last prep was Iron Liege in 1957. He might not get in.
On April 13, ADRIANO breezed four in :50.00 (29/42) at CD.
On April 20, ADRIANO breezed five in 1:01.80 (18/39) at CD.
On April 27, ADRIANO breezed five in 1:00.80 (21/62) at CD.
Won Grade II Lane's End on March 22.
On April 18, ANAK NAKAL breezed four in :49.40 (20/33) at CD.
On April 25, ANAK NAKAL breezed four in :46.60 (2/26) at CD.
Fifth in Grade I Wood Memorial on April 5.
On April 12, BIG BROWN worked five in 1:00.60 (1/3) at PMM.
On April 18, BIG BROWN breezed five in 1:00.60 (1/2) at PMM.
On April 24, BIG BROWN worked five furlongs in :58.60 (1/1) at PMM
Won Grade I Florida Derby on March 29.
On April 22, BIG TRUCK breezed four in :48.80 (8/43) at KEE.
On April 28, BIG TRUCK breezed five in :59.40 (1/22) at CD.
Eleventh in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 12.
On April 14, BOB BLACK JACK worked four in :48.00 (8/38) at SA. (first time blinkers)
On April 21, BOB BLACK JACK worked six in 1:10.80 (2/19) at SA.
On April 28, BOB BLACK JACK breezed four in :48.60 (15/44) at CD.
Second in Grade I Santa Anita Derby on April 5.
On April 14, COLONEL JOHN worked four in :47.40 (4/38) at SA.
On April 20, COLONEL JOHN breezed five in :59.40 (3/45) at SA.
On April 27, COLONEL JOHN breezed five in :57.80 (1/62) at CD.
Won Grade I Santa Anita Derby on April 5.
On April 24, COOL COAL MAN breezed four in :47.40 (2/35) at CD.
Ninth in Toyota Blue Grass on April 12
On April 17, COURT VISION breezed four in :46.20 (1/25) at CD. (first time blinkers)
On April 27, COURT VISION breezed five in 1:00.80 (21/62) at CD.
Third in Grade I Wood Memorial on April 5.
On April 26, COWBOY CAL breezed five in 1:00 (3/22) at KEE.
Finished second in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass on April 12.
On April 21, DENIS OF CORK breezed five in 1:00.00 (1/23) at CD.
On April 28, DENIS OF CORK breezed four in :48.00 (5/44) at CD.
Fifth in Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5.
On April 20, EIGHT BELLES worked four in :46.60 (2/39) at KEE.
On April 27, EIGHT BELLES breezed five in :58.20 (2/62) at CD.
Won Grade II Fantasy Stakes on April 6.
On April 26, GAYEGO breezed five on a muddy track in 1:01.00 (5/20) at CD.
Won Arkansas Derby on April 12.
On April 22, HALO NAJIB breezed four on firm turf in :50.40 (1/2) at CD.
Seventh in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 12.
On April 26, MONBA breezed five in 1:02.60 (16/22) at KEE in company with Ready's Image.
Won Grade I Toyota Blue Grass on April 12.
On April 21, PYRO worked six at Keeneland in fog in company with Noonmark. The work could not be timed.
On April 28, PYRO breezed four in :49.80 (29/44) at CD.
Tenth in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 12.
On April 17, RECAPTURETHEGLORY breezed five in 1:01.00 (5/16) at CD.
On April 25, RECAPTURETHEGLORY breezed five in 1:01.20 (9/27) at CD.
Won Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5.
On April 13, SMOOTH AIR worked a mile in 1:41.00 (1/3) at CRC.
On April 19, SMOOTH AIR worked seven in 1:25.80 (1/1) at CRC.
Second in Grade I Florida Derby on March 29.
On April 17, TALE OF EKATI breezed four in :49.20 (28/29) at KEE.
On April 23, TALE OF EKATI breezed five in 1:00.20 (2/11) at KEE.
Won Grade I Wood Memorial on April 5.
On April 22, VISIONAIRE breezed four in :49.60 (16/43) at KEE.
On April 28, VISIONAIRE breezed four in :48.40 (11/44) at CD.
Eleventh in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 12.
On April 21, Z FORTUNE breezed four in :50.20 (26/33) at CD.
On April 28, Z FORTUNE breezed four in :51.00 (38/44) at CD.
Second in Grade II Arkansas Derby on April 12.
On April 17, Z HUMOR breezed four in :47.60 (3/25) at CD.
On April 27, Z HUMOR breezed five in 1:01.20 (27/62) at CD.
Third in Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5.
Big Brown revels in racing spotlight
THE PREAKNESS
May 11, 2008Recommend (1)
BY WILL GRAVES
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Big Brown slowed ever so slightly as he made his way to the track at Churchill Downs on Thursday morning.
The big bay colt turned his head to look behind him, only to see the usual batch of trainers, exercise riders and barn workers quietly muddling through the mist, caught up in their daily pre-dawn routines.
Big Brown waited for just a second, then followed good friend Cody -- his stable pony -- out to the track for a jog. Only then did it dawn on exercise rider Michelle Nevin what the big guy was up to.
''He was looking for the cameras, he wanted to pose,'' Nevin said.
But the paparazzi that followed the horse's every move in the days before his dominant 4?226-130?-length victory in the Kentucky Derby are long gone. A sense of normalcy has returned to the backside, though Big Brown certainly won't lack for admirers when he arrives at Pimlico a few days before next Saturday's Preakness, the second leg of thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown.
Until then, Big Brown will have to settle for spending most of his days hanging out inside Barn 22.
Not that he's complaining. Accommodations could be worse.
There's plenty of room in stall 12 for him to take a nap, which is often. When he gets the munchies, there's a sack of hay hanging just outside the door on one side. If he gets bored he can always start batting around the rubber ball that dangles ever so temptingly on the other.
Lonely? He can poke his head out and look over at neighbors Cody and Frost Giant.
If he can't sleep, he can always visit with Manny, the night watchman hired by trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. to make sure nobody tries to sneak into the barn. Two people had to be escorted away during Derby week after attempting to slide in through the back door.
''He's got it pretty good,'' said exercise rider Walter Blum Jr.
We should all be so lucky.
The days after the biggest victory of his young life have been filled with rest, relaxation and all the oats, hay and peppermints he wants.
Dutrow keeps a close eye on his sport's newest superstar, monitoring everything from his eating habits to his temperament.
Yet other than the blanket of roses draped delicately over the wall across from Big Brown's stall -- the equine equivalent of a star on the dressing room door -- there's no sign that he's coming off the most taxing race of his short career.
Dutrow didn't do anything out of the ordinary during Big Brown's post-Derby physical examination, even after the death of filly Eight Belles, who broke both of her front legs while galloping out after finishing second in the race.
''He's ready for anything,'' Dutrow said.
Including a run at history. After spending a few days mostly cooped up in his stall, Nevin said she could feel Big Brown itching to let it loose while jogging around the track Thursday.
''I kinda had to hold him back,'' she said.
Good luck with that. As relaxed as Big Brown appears in his stall, things change when he sees Nevin enter with the saddle in her hands.
''He just kind of blows up,'' Blum said. ''He goes from a size 30 waist to a size 40 waist because he knows it's time to go.''
While many high-profile thoroughbreds are skittish in the crowds, Big Brown seems perfectly at ease in the spotlight. He preened for the fans while being schooled in the paddock a few days before the Derby, and never got caught up in the chaos following his victory.
''He just knows how to handle himself,'' Nevin said. ''He's got an air about him. He's a different kind of horse.''
The only thing that bothers Big Brown, it seems, are flowers. Much like 2006 Derby winner Barbaro, Big Brown got fussy after winning the Florida Derby, shuffling around when organizers tried to hand him the blanket of purple orchids given to the winner.
When it came time to take photos in the winner's circle following the Derby, Dutrow bucked tradition by throwing the blanket of roses at Nevin and Blum rather than lay it over Big Brown's neck.
Nevin and Blum dutifully held the flowers for a moment, then dropped the blanket on the ground to join the party, leaving the most hallowed floral arrangement in sports laying on the infield for a few hours before it was rescued by a state trooper.
The blanket remains in pretty good shape, though Big Brown largely ignores the roses during his daily hot walks around the barn. He's more interested in getting his next treat. The sound of a candy wrapper crinkling is enough to get him to stop what he's doing and look over with his pleading brown eyes.
They're eyes Dutrow has a hard time denying. The trainer -- who lived in a tack room at Aqueduct in New York earlier in his career -- will spend several hours standing outside Big Brown's stall rubbing the horse's nose and handing him the mints he craves.
''I'd rather do that than be over at the hotel,'' Dutrow said. ''He's cool. I like hanging out with him.''
It's an entourage that will only get bigger if Big Brown takes another step toward the Triple Crown by winning the Preakness. If he does, the serenity surrounding his barn at Churchill Downs this week will give way to three weeks of madness at Belmont as he prepares to become the first Triple Crown winner in 30 years.
It'll be no biggie for Big Brown. Horse racing's Next Top Model.
Rick Dutrow, trainer of Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown, continued to reinforce the "root against" sentiment of some fans when he said yesterday that the Preakness "looks like an absolute party" with the absence of Harlem Rocker from the field.
"I wasn't worried about him actually beating us," Dutrow said. "I was concerned about him making our horse run harder than we wanted. This gives us a chance to have an easy race for our horse."
BIG BROWN The unbeaten Kentucky Derby winner owned by IEAH Stables and Paul Pompa Jr. is scheduled to ship from Churchill Downs to Pimlico Wednesday afternoon on a flight with Preakness runners Tres Borrachos and Racecar Rhapsody.
Preakness officials have been told the flight with Big Brown is scheduled to land at Baltimore-Washington International Airport at 5:30 p.m. The van carrying the horses from BWI is expected to arrive at Pimlico approximately one hour later.
Trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. is expected to attend the Preakness post-position draw, to be held at 5 p.m. Wednesday at the ESPN Zone in downtown Baltimore.
Dutrow was born and raised in Maryland, where his father, the late Richard E. Dutrow, was a prominent trainer for many years.
Big Brown will be the younger Dutrows first Preakness runner. His father started one horse in the Preakness, Spartan Cat, who finished sixth in 1998.
Dutrow is scheduled to attend the annual Alibi Breakfast Thursday morning at Pimlico. He has been selected as the Fox News Power Player of the Week and will be interviewed by Fox News anchor Chris Wallace Thursday afternoon for the segment that will air Sunday morning.
If Gayego and Big Brown both run Saturday, it will be the sixth time since Kentucky Derby horses began running in the Preakness in 1918 that only two Derby starters moved on to Baltimore for the Preakness. The last time was in 1980 when Codex defeated the Derby-winning filly Genuine Risk in the Preakness. Codex was Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas first winner in a Triple Crown race. Lukas, who has saddled five Preakness winners, is tied with Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons with a record 13 victories in races in the Triple Crown series.
Big Brown, a son of Boundary, won his first start for Pompa and trainer Patrick Reynolds by 11¼ lengths in a turf race at Saratoga Race Course on Sept. 3. The victory on the closing day of the 2007 Saratoga season quickly produced offers to purchase the colt. Pompa sold 75 percent of Big Brown to the IEAH partnership headed by Michael Iavarone and the colt was transferred to Dutrow, who handles many of IEAHs runners.
Since recovering from hoof problems during the late fall and winter, Big Brown has reeled off three consecutive victories for Dutrow. The colt was entered in a turf race at Gulfstream Park in Florida on March 5 for his 3-year-old season debut. Wet conditions forced the race to be moved from the turf to the main track, where Big Brown romped to a 12¾-length victory. Dutrow brought the colt back in the Florida Derby (G1) 24 days later and he won by five lengths after starting from the outside post in the field of 12. He started from post 20 in the Derby, quickly got into a stalking position under Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux, moved to the lead at the head of the stretch and drew away to a 4 ¾-length victory.
BEHINDATTHEBAR With Eddie King aboard, the Lexington Stakes (G2) winner returned to the track at Belmont Park Tuesday morning and galloped 1¼ miles.
The Forest Wildcat colt trained by Todd Pletcher breezed five furlongs in 1:00.13 Sunday morning and walked the shedrow Monday.
Behindatthebar began his career in California in January with trainer Craig Dollase. He moved to Pletchers barn prior to a fifth-place finish in the El Camino Real Derby at Bay Meadows on March 8. Since then, hes won an allowance race at Santa Anita and the Lexington on April 19 at Keeneland.
Weve obviously been pleased with his progress, Pletcher said by phone from his office at the Oklahoma training track in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. His last two races have been very good. He was able to step up in the Lexington and run a good race. We feel like hes a horse on the improve.
Behindatthebar has mainly trained and competed on synthetic surfaces. The breeze Sunday at Belmont indicated he is comfortable on a dirt track similar to what he will run over in the Preakness.
That was encouraging that he was able to work well on the dirt, Pletcher said. Now well see if he can adapt to having some dirt in his face. Were pleased with the way hes doing.
GAYEGO Trainer Paulo Lobo reported Tuesday that Gayego is a go for Saturdays Preakness Stakes. The son of Gilded Time, who galloped 1¼ miles at Hollywood Park Tuesday morning, is scheduled to arrive at Pimlico Wednesday afternoon following a cross-country flight that he will share with Preakness hopeful Yankee Bravo.
Hes an extremely good shipper, said Lobo, whose colt shipped to Oaklawn Park in April for a victory in the Arkansas Derby and shipped again for a start in the Kentucky Derby on May 3.
Gayego finished a disappointing 17th in the Derby as the sixth betting choice in a field of 20, compromised by a sluggish start and early crowding. Lobo reported that the Kentucky-bred colt didnt overexert himself in the Run for the Roses.
He came back very well, he said. Hes been eating everything. Hes feeling happy.
Mike Smith, who has ridden Gayego in each of his six lifetime starts, has the return mount for the Preakness. Smith rode Prairie Bayou to victory in 1993. Lobo has not started a horse at Pimlico.
GIANT MOON - Under regular exercise rider Caesar Correa, Albert Fried Jr.s homebred colt turned in a bullet half-mile work in :47.77 Tuesday morning at Belmont Park.
Actually it was a little quicker than we had anticipated, said trainer Richard Schosberg. I was looking at somewhere between :48 and :48 2/5, but he seemed to have done it in good order.
He jumped on the bit right away at the beginning of the work, which for him is a bit unusual when hes working by himself. But hes pretty sharp right now and he went the first quarter pretty quick. It was more like a good three-eighths blowout and he galloped out in :47 3/5 for the half.
It looks like hes fine. He cooled out in good order and hes biting and playing and acting like himself after the work. So Im not too worried about him.
Schosberg said Giant Moon completed the first quarter in :22 4/5 and covered three furlongs in :35 4/5.
Giant Moon, a son of Giants Causeway, was named the 2007 champion 2-year-old male at the New York Thoroughbred Breeders annual award dinner Monday night in Saratoga Springs.
Schosberg had said that track conditions would determine whether Giant Moon had his final breeze for the Preakness on Tuesday or Wednesday. He decided the track had dried out sufficiently from the rain that fell on Sunday and Monday and sent the colt out for the work Tuesday.
The track was good and he handled it well, Schosberg said. If he was going a little bit quick, maybe its better that we had an extra day. Certainly, were in good order fitness-wise for the race. We dont have to do a whole lot, just basically keep him happy and get him down there in good order.
HEY BYRN The Eddie Plesa-trained colt arrived by van at Pimlico shortly after 6 a.m. Tuesday, following an uneventful 20-hour journey that originated at Calder Race Course outside Miami.
While Hey Byrn figures to be a long shot in the Preakness, veteran handicappers might give him a longer look, having learned from experience to respect Calder shippers.
Maybe its that the horses appreciate getting out of the hot climate, said Plesa, whose Preakness hopeful was accompanied in the van by Gottcha Gold, a contender for Fridays Maryland Lottery Pimlico Special (G1). People may tend to overlook the quality of horses that are stabled at Calder. Its probably a combination of both.
Beatrice Oxenbergs Hey Byrn was purchased for $160,000 at the 2007 Ocala Breeders 2-year-olds-in-training sale.
I liked his looks. I liked the way he moved, Plesa recalled. I had a lot of respect for the consignor, Barry Eisman, and value his input. The owner and I took a look at him and decided to bid on him.
Hey Byrn is expected to jog over the Pimlico track following stablemate Gottcha Golds introduction to the local racing strip at 6 a.m.
ICABAD CRANE The Federico Tesio Stakes winner galloped 1½ miles over the Tapeta racing surface at Fair Hill Training Center Tuesday morning.
Earl Macks son of Jump Start will remain in the country setting until he is vanned to Pimlico on Preakness morning. Trainer Graham Motion said he prefers to keep Icabad Crane in his daily routine.
Were not restricted by a racetrack environment and training hours. Its a more relaxed environment here and gives us more options, Motion said.
The New York-bred Icabad Cranes development has been a pleasant surprise.
We thought hed do well, but we didnt expect him to perform at this level, Motion said. Hes matured physically and mentally. His development is probably due to his attitude. Hes got a wonderful temperament and is a pleasure to train.
KENTUCKY BEAR The third-place finisher in the Blue Grass (G1) galloped around the Pimlico racetrack twice under exercise rider Cassie Garcia on a picture-perfect May morning that followed more than a day of heavy rains.
He gave me a workout, said Garcia, who has been here with the colt for nearly a week along with assistant trainer Sherri Wickett. Hes had a couple easy days, but the tracks a lot better. Its a little bit nicer to ride him. Ever since the Blue Grass hes improved more and more. Hes matured; hes put on weight; hes put on muscle. He just looks great going into (the Preakness).
Trainer Reade Baker, who was here for Kentucky Bears final workout last Saturday, said the colt has put on somewhere between 50 and 75 pounds since the Blue Grass. The son of Mr. Greeley finished a close third to Monba at Keeneland, beaten only 1 ½ lengths, in only his third career start.
Coming late to me is just a new phenomenon, said the 61-year-old Baker, a Canadian native who will join his horse on Wednesday. I guess if you had a big outfit in New York and you were there everyday, you cant be in two places at once. So it makes it more convenient that youre there all the time, just like Id like to be around this horse all the time. Traditionally, 20 years ago, I think everybody would have come at the same time I did.
Its been inordinately calm and quiet to this point, but the stakes barn will begin filling up Wednesday.
Its been a good environment for him, Garcia said. Its given him time to settle in and thats a bit of an advantage for this horse. I heard it gets pretty exciting down here.
MACHO AGAIN The Derby Trial winner galloped 1-3/8 miles under exercise rider Kenny Bourque at Churchill Downs Tuesday morning.
Macho Again had been scheduled to arrive in Baltimore Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. after sharing a flight with Kentucky Derby hero Big Brown. However, trainer Dallas Stewart has arranged for an earlier flight that is slated to arrive at 1:15 p.m. at BWI airport. He will share that flight with the California Preakness contingent.
The son of Macho Uno has finished worse than second only once in his six races on conventional dirt tracks, that coming in a sixth-place finish in the LeComte Stakes (G3) at Fair Grounds.
We always thought we had a nice horse. Thats why we sent him on the Louisiana Derby trail, but he got banged up in the LeComte, said Stewart, whose colt suffered a minor injury to a hind leg in the Louisiana Derby prep. He ran second going a mile at Churchill Downs in the fall. When you win or finish second, you know youve got a nice horse because the fall meeting at Churchill is real tough.
RACECAR RHAPSODY Trainer Kenny McPeek sent the Tale of the Cat colt out for a routine 1½-mile gallop Tuesday morning at Churchill Downs.
Everything was smooth, McPeek said. Nothing fancy.
Racecar Rhapsody, whose dam is Reflect the Music, is scheduled to be shipped from Kentucky to Baltimore Wednesday on the same plane that will carry Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown to the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. Co-owner Jerry Carroll, who built and operates Kentucky Speedway, frequently gives his horses names connected to automobile racing.
Jockey Robby Albarado is scheduled to ride Racecar Rhapsody in the Preakness. Albarado has been board for all six of the colts races and is very familiar with his off-the-pace running style.
He leaves himself a lot of work to do and hopefully he will give himself a chance early in the race, Albarado said. It seems like he will be able to handle the tighter turns at Pimlico. He will be coming late.
Hopefully, we will get some pace up front to run at, but at the same time, I dont want to be too far out at the back that I cant get to them.
RILEY TUCKER The heavy lifting was done in a workout over the Belmont Park training track Monday for the bay son of Harlans Holiday, who is expected to be vanned to Baltimore Wednesday or Thursday, according to Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. He plans to school the colt in the Pimlico paddock Thursday or Friday.
Everythings good here, said Mott, who timed his colt in 1:04 for five furlongs Monday. He hand-walked today; that was about it.
Riley Tucker wore blinkers in his last start for the first time since his 2-year-old campaign and will wear them again for the Preakness.
Mott has re-enlisted the services of Edgar Prado, the newest riding member of the Hall of Fame, for the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. Prado rode Adriano in the Kentucky Derby, but trainer Graham Motion elected to bypass the Preakness after a 19th-place finish.
It seems like the horse is maturing, said Prado, who finished second with Riley Tucker in the Transylvania (G3) two races back at Keeneland. I dont think Billy would put him in the race if he didnt have a chance to win it. I know its going to be very tough competition, but were looking forward to give it a try.
Prado was Riley Tuckers first jockey when Mott introduced the Zayat Stables $375,000 yearling purchase in a six-length romp in his debut at Belmont Park.
Prado was also aboard in a third-place finish behind Kodiak Kowboy in the Saratoga Special (G2) last year.
STEVIL The roan son of Marias Mon left a solid impression in his final workout at Churchill Downs Tuesday morning, breezing four furlongs in :47.80 under exercise rider Megan Smillie over a fast surface. It was the sixth-fastest work of 61 runners at the distance.
It was pretty nice, and he galloped out real nice, said trainer Nick Zito, who will be saddling his 19th Preakness starter, a number that ties him for second all-time with the legendary Max Hirsch. Only D. Wayne Lukas (32) has run more horses in the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown.
Hes a very consistent horse, and hopefully hell run well Saturday, said Zito, who collected fourth money in last years Preakness with C P West. Zito won the 1996 Preakness with Louis Quatorze, who shares the official record for the 1-3/16-mile stakes with Tanks Prospect and last years winner, Curlin (1:53 2/5).
Stevil, whose best stakes outing this season was a fourth-place finish in the Blue Grass (G1) in his last start, hasnt won since his debut last fall in New York. John Velazquez, the regular rider for trainer Todd Pletcher, has the mount for the first time on the Robert LaPenta-owned colt. Stevil was scheduled to arrive by van later on Tuesday.
Were ready. Hes been running good all winter, Zito said.
LaPenta also owns 2-year-old champion War Pass, who was injured before the Kentucky Derby, and Cool Coal Man, who finished 15th in the Derby field.
TRES BORRACHOS California-based rider Tyler Baze flew in to ride the gelded son of Ecton Park for his final work at Churchill Downs Tuesday morning, a four-furlong breeze that clockers timed at 50.40 seconds, slightly slower than the 49 4/5 that Greely calculated.
It went very well, said Greely, who saddled Borrego for a seventh-place finish in the 2004 Preakness. He went nicely, came home in 11 (seconds) and change, so that was good. Tyler seemed to be happy with it, and he seemed to come back ready.
Tres Borrachos ran on synthetic surfaces in California for his first five career starts, but his speed figures have improved dramatically in his last two outings on dirt tracks.
He was third in the El Camino Real Derby (G3) at Bay Meadows, then third again in the Arkansas Derby (G2) at Oaklawn in his last start after dueling with eventual winner Gayego. Greely had toyed with the idea of trying blinkers for the Preakness, but abandoned the notion Tuesday for the work.
It was just probably the fact that in Arkansas a horse had passed him and then he came back and dug in and beat that horse, said Greely, whose colt will arrive at BWI Airport along with Derby winner Big Brown late Wednesday afternoon. It was just a thought that went through my mind. We tried it one morning, and he actually went no different. After rethinking it, hes got enough speed to where Id just hate to mess it up and put a little too much (speed) into him.
Baze, who will be riding in his first Preakness, was impressed with Tuesdays exercise.
It was so beautiful it was ridiculous, said Baze, who flew back to California after the work. He did it the right way and finished well. He is so impressive, the way he worked today and went over a dirt track like that and not be blowing. Im hoping Saturday is my day. I know this is a good horse now that Ive ridden him in Arkansas and I know him. Im really looking forward to it.
YANKEE BRAVO The Paddy Gallagher-trained colt galloped 1½ miles at Hollywood Park Tuesday morning in preparation for a start in the Preakness Stakes.
Yankee Bravo won his first two starts on turf, including his debut in England, last year before capturing the California Derby on the synthetic surface at Golden Gate Fields in his 3-year-old debut in January. The son of Yankee Gentleman finished third on dirt in the Louisiana Derby (G2), before checking in fourth over a synthetic track in the Santa Anita Derby (G1).
Hes seemed to handle all types of tracks, Gallagher said. Its too early to tell if he likes one of them best.
Yankee Bravo is expected to arrive at BWI Airport at 1:15 p.m. Wednesday.
So far, hes shipped well, said Gallagher, who will name Alex Solis to ride Yankee Bravo when entries are taken for the Preakness Wednesday morning.
The Derby Champion Heads to Pimlico With Enormous Expectations. What Are the Odds?
In the 1950s, a handicapper named Len Ragozin devised a revolutionary system for rating the performance of racehorses that factored in time, weight carried, positioning during a race, track surface conditions and wind. Based on calculations applied to each race, Ragozin assigned horses a number between zero and 40; the lower, the better.
This Story
Big Brown, Speed Racer
HORSE RACING: Harlem Rocker Isn't Entered in Preakness
The 133rd Preakness Stakes
By the late 1960s, Ragozin's "Sheets" had surfaced publicly, and their perceived accuracy became so valued that they cost $5 per race, nearly as much as an entire copy of the Daily Racing Form.
When Ragozin's company calculated the performance by Big Brown on May 3 in the Kentucky Derby, it made a startling discovery: the 3-year-old colt had recorded a - 3/4 , the lowest number in the modern history of the race.
"This is by a quarter of a point better than any other," said Len Friedman, 66, a hardcore Sheets player from Brooklyn and head handicapper at Ragozin's company. "Secretariat ran a 1/2 ."
In 1973, Secretariat won the Triple Crown -- the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes -- and entered racing lore as perhaps the greatest horse of all time. No one has yet come forward and placed Big Brown in such hallowed company, but those involved with him and others who watch him run are captivated by his authority, speed and power.
When the horses line up Saturday for the Preakness at Pimlico, Big Brown is likely to be the shortest-priced favorite in the 133-year history of the race.
"He has that stride," said Big Brown's jockey, Kent Desormeaux. "Every jockey who reads those words knows exactly what I mean. Each stride, each leap forward covers an enormous amount of ground, and it's effortless. They change leads [the lead hoof] so fluidly you almost have to look at their legs to make sure they've done it. They don't exactly quicken their stride; they just add power to it. These are the little things that the freaks of horses, the thoroughbred racers, have -- that stride."
No horse has won the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978, and the list of those considered to be the next sure thing continues to grow like a pile of losing tickets -- Silver Charm, Real Quiet, Charismatic, Fusaichi Pegasus, War Emblem, Funny Cide, Smarty Jones, Barbaro, Street Sense.
Yet, Big Brown has done more than flash potential. His Kentucky Derby victory laughed in the face of history: Besides his record-setting Ragozin number, Big Brown became the first horse to win America's classic race off just three career starts since the filly Regret in 1915. He also became the first runner since the gelding Clyde Van Dusen in 1929 to win from the outside No. 20 post position.
National Racing Museum and Hall of Fame historian Allan Carter only had to look to last year's Kentucky Derby to put Big Brown's performance in perspective.
"The best thing is comparing him to Curlin," Carter said, referring to the 2007 Horse of the Year who finished third in the Kentucky Derby behind Street Sense and Hard Spun. "He had only had three starts and never raced as a 2-year-old. As good as he was in three starts -- and he's the best horse on the planet right now -- he didn't win the Derby, and I think it was because of his lack of experience."
Unless Gayego joins the field, Big Brown will become the first horse since Citation in 1948 to scare off all his Derby rivals from trying the Preakness.
"He was so intimidating," Carter said of Citation. "Only [five] horses ran in the Derby against him, and after that a lot of people said, 'To hell with it.'
The only other time before that was in 1922, when the Derby and Preakness were held on the same day before the advent of the Triple Crown.
Frank Carulli, the linemaker for the Maryland Jockey Club, watched the Kentucky Derby from the Pimlico press box, and marveled at what he saw.
"I was mainly focused on Big Brown because that's who I bet," said Carulli, who sets the morning-line odds for the Preakness and watches close to 10,000 races a year. "The camera angles provided were fabulous. I couldn't believe he was going to overcome the trip, four wide on both turns, and then he made that bid, and it looked for a second like he might hang, and then he went the other way and he exploded. Just an awesome move. Ultra-impressive."
Carulli said he couldn't say for sure how low he would set Big Brown's odds, but they're going to be low.
"He's the obvious favorite; it's just a question of how low do you go," he said. "We don't know the caliber of horses he beat. We may not figure that out for a couple of months. You see [Holy Bull Stakes winner] Hey Byrn show up for the Preakness with good credentials, but the one time he got drilled was by Big Brown. And I don't think Kent has asked him for his best yet."
Trainer Richard Dutrow made bold predictions about Big Brown in the week before the Kentucky Derby, and they came true. Desormeaux, a Hall of Fame rider, who has won the Derby three times, said Big Brown was the best horse he had ever been on, and that was before they had even gotten to Churchill Downs.
Friedman isn't ready just yet to put Big Brown in the pantheon of immortals, not after four races.
"The problem is, he hasn't done enough running yet to decide whether he is among the great horses," he said. "He hasn't done anything more than [2001 Kentucky Derby winner] Monarchos did. He ran about the same Derby that Monarchos ran, and his races before were very similar to those Monarchos ran before the Derby, and after the Derby, Monarchos went back and was never heard from again. He never did anything the rest of his life."
Trainer Carl Nafzger, who won the Derby last year with Street Sense and was recently elected to the Hall of Fame, laughs at the idea of attempting to put Big Brown into historical context so soon.
"You can't judge a horse by history or anything," Nafzger said. "A horse is an individual animal with individual characteristics. Everybody tries to put all these things into human reasoning, and it don't work. I didn't pick Big Brown [in the Derby] because of the same reasons you all didn't pick him. Now the tests will start on him, but he's done every test so far."
In the urgent final months of preparing a talented horse for the
Triple Crown races, trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. decided that completely
healing quarter cracks in Big Brown would be more important than
continued training.
The tough decisionBig Brown lost a month of conditioning in
Januarypaid off as the Boundary colts front feet improved. He registered
a 4¾-length victory in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum!
Brands (G1) on May 3. Tom Curl, an expert on quarter-crack care who
treated Big Brown, said the Derby winner is racing on healthy feet.
Back before the first allowance race in Florida, the one three weeks
before the Florida Derby, that was the end of his quarter-crack problem,
Curl said, referring to a 123⁄4-length win in a one-mile allowance race on
March 5 in his season debut. His cracks have never been an issue again.
All breeds of horses are capable of developing quarter cracks, which
can be caused by concussion, hard surfaces, thin hoof walls, and medial
lateral foot imbalance. Big Browns quarter cracks are atypical in
that they started with a wall
separation.
His type start on the bottom
of the foot. They start with
a bruise. It will kind of get to
an abscess and it can never really
blow out the bottom of the
foot, Curl said. It just sits in
there and kind of stays on a
low boil and goes right up the
wall underneath it.
The whole time its going
up the wall, its separating the
fingernailthe hoof wall
from the laminae. So you
actually have some play under -
neath there. Theyll heat up,
cool down. Youll see a horse thats lame but [the horses handlers]
cant find anything. Theyll back off a few days and it settles right back
down underneath there. But then they put a big breeze in and, bam;
it blows right out the top. When you cut those cracks open, theyre
already full of puss and highly infected. A regular quarter crack does
not get infected in 24 hours.
Big Brown first developed a quarter crack in his inner right front
foot. That quarter crack was treated by Ian McKinlay, who used wire
lacing to pull the crack together. Curl performed the same procedure
to treat a quarter crack that developed in the left inner front foot. When
Curl treated that crack on December 30, it showed significant infection.
So you have all of the tissues in that hoof wall involved, from the
bottom to the top. Most general racetrack horses, we can put them
together in three to five days, but hoof-wall-separation type of quarter
cracks just about guarantee a minimum of three weeks down time,
and with Brown, it was longer, Curl said. I didnt even let him go to
the training track the entire month of January.
That is where Curl credits Dutrow, who decided to completely solve
the problem at the expense of training time and races.
Its hard to get a month out of a trainer, especially when they know
what they got, Curl said. We met with them once or twice a week,
and Rick knew things were tough so he listened well. His staff cooperated.
His grooms did an outstanding job on a daily basis. If you dont
have that, the job becomes twice as hard. He had people in place who
really did a nice job.
Curl is based in Florida and McKinlay is based in New York, where
he has seen an increase in quarter cracks in Thoroughbreds during
the last seven years.
I dont think it has anything to do with the breeding. I think its because
the tracks are getting harder, McKinlay said. These quarter
cracks are fairly common in Standardbreds and those trainers know
that if it happens, their horse is going to miss at least three weeks. Its
been tough for some of the Thoroughbred guys to realize that its
going to take that much time.
In Big Browns instance, Dutrow does not blame the surfaces. He
agrees with Curl that a wall separation developed over time before
finally becoming noticeable.
It was probably something brewing in there, something no one [saw],
and it just came out, Dutrow said of the problem in the right front foot.
It happened again when we went to Palm Meadows [Training Center].
He was training on the best track you can have in the winter time. Hes
always been on good tracks. I cant blame any kind of tracks messing
around with his feet to get him to pop quarters. I cant say that.
While Dutrow is not sure what caused the quarter cracks, he committed
to a solution.
The pride I feel is in Rick, because he listened to what we
were telling him and stayed with the plan, McKinlay said.
A return to training too soon could have resulted in more
problems.
When you have a wall separation that severe from the sole
to the top of the foot, you dont want to move too early or youll
regret it, Curl said. Youll go right back to square one. Cooperation
is what it takes on both sides.
With Big Brown racing in Florida this winter,
Curl continued to monitor the situation
with Dutrow and his staff. After Big
Browns season debut victory, Curl recommended
glue-on Yasha shoes,
which feature a rubber composite that
provides cushion to prevent flare ups.
He won the Florida Derby and Kentucky
Derby in Yasha shoes, which were
developed by McKinlay.
Those shoes were glued on him 21 days before
the Florida Derby. Within 24 hours, his feet went cold, Curl said.
He never has had any more problems with his feet. Everyone keeps
saying this horse has such bad feet, bad feet. Hes got great feet now.
Curl, who has traveled more than 2-million miles to treat horses
and consult with clients, takes pride in the part he played in assisting
the Derby winner, noting that Dutrows staff did the daily work.
When you take a horse that has a history of heat in their feet and
a little bit of pulse every day, and all of a sudden you make a change
just in the shoeing and correct all that, thats a big jump, Curl said.
Thats huge. When you get the feet right, the rest of the horse comes
right with it.
While the glue-on shoes that Big Brown wears cost $550, nail
versions of the shoe are available for as little as $25. McKinlay has
presented Internet videos on Youtube.com on the Yasha shoes and
his lacing technique, which pulls the quarter crack together to allow
healing.
It helps for people to see what Im talking about, McKinlay said.
Both McKinlay and Curl view themselves as part of a team that
helped a great athlete excel.
No matter what sport, whether animals or human sports, theres always
situations where people do what they can to get the athlete to a
basketball court or a football field or a dog track or horse track, Curl
said. Theres all kind of people involved behind the scenes. There
is no athlete that does not have problems. You dont sit around and point
fingers. You work with the problem and find a way to not just patch it
up, but we came up with a deal and the others that have followed with
this shoe, that they have the best days of their lives on it.Frank Angst
May 14, 2008 -- LOUISVILLE - I can't wait to get out of here and head to Baltimore. But I sure am glad I came! It's like Saratoga. You can't wait to get there, then you can't wait to leave.
I see Gayego (17th in the Derby) is running in the Preakness. That's fine with us. They say he had a bad trip. I think he just got outrun - and it's going to happen again. That horse ran terrible in the Derby, flew back to California, now he's flying east again. That's enough for me to know. They're just completely putting him up against it.
They can't beat us now. There is not a horse in that field that's supposed to beat Big Brown. He should like Pimlico. It's a speed-favoring track, always has been. As long as he keeps going the way he is now, he'll be going into the race good, even if it is off just a two-week break. We're just going to have to see how the horse handles it. There's no way of me saying beforehand.
Brown looks like the best horse, and that's what you need to win, as long as he breaks good and gets things his way again. It doesn't look like there's much speed in the race. If that's the truth, maybe we'll just have him come running the first part, so he can get position and save ground. We might use different tactics than we did in the Derby. It depends on his post and all that kind of stuff.
Hopefully, we'll have another good day. He'll gallop this morning, then head for the airport.
Accompanied by two United Parcel Service vehicles, Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown arrived and entered the Preakness stakes barn at Pimlico Race Course Wednesday evening.
Shortly after 8 p.m., a police escort which guided the van carrying Big Brown from the airport dispersed, and the horse calmly took up residence amidst a host of TV cameras and reporters.
Trainer Rick Dutrow, Jr., who rode in the van, said there were "no problems" with the transport from Kentucky. "This was clockwork." The entourage arrived about two hours behind schedule after leaving Louisville late.
Dutrow, who grew up in the racing business around Pimlico while learning from his father, Dick Dutrow, said "We used to be stalled just a few barns away from here and I used to come over here when all the big horses came in. I dreamed a lot about having one here."
He expressed no dissatisfaction with post 7 for Saturday's Preakness run and reported that, weather permitting, Big Brown will gallop after the break Thursday and Friday and will undergo a short "blowout" the day of the race.
Two other Preakness contenders who arrived on the same flight, Tres Borrachos and Racecar Rhapsody, arrived by separate van and were unloaded at the same time without incident.
The Nick Zito-trained Stevil came in by van several hours earlier after a flight from Lexington, along with Macho Again.
"The story is Big Brown, but I think my horse should run good. At least a hope well do okay," Zito said. Dallas Stewart, trainer of Macho Again, said, "He looks like he came in good. He didn't break a sweat."
Riley Tucker trained by Bill Mott, also arrived.
Another van pulled into Pimlico at 3 p.m. with Arkansas Derby winner Gayego, who has shipped three times in five weeks from his California base, and Yankee Bravo. They boarded their flight in California at 5 a.m.
"He's bucking and playing," said Jody Pieper, assistant to Gayego's trainer, Paulo Lobo. "Shipping doesn't seem to bother him at all."
Yankee Bravo walked off the van calmly, then was spirited while walking around the shedrow by trainer Paddy Gallagher. "He was walking me," Gallagher said with a chuckle. "He knows he's here for a reason."
Ten of the 13 starters for Saturdays $1 million Preakness Stakes are now in the Pimlico stakes barn. Giant Moon is scheduled to arrive today from Belmont Park. Behindatthebar and Icabad Crane will ship in the morning of the race, also from New York.
Kentucky Bear has been at Pimlico for one week, while Hey Byrn arrived Tuesday morning
Hedge Fund Stud Big Brown Aims for $100 Million: John Helyar
Commentary by John Helyar
May 8 (Bloomberg) -- The Kentucky Derby hadn't been over for an hour when the offers started coming to the owners of the winner, Big Brown.
Michael Iavarone, co-chief executive officer of International Equine Acquisitions Holdings, which owns 75 percent of the colt, was asked at a post-race party if he'd take $60 million for Big Brown. That would be a huge return on investment for IEAH, which paid $2.5 million for its stake last September.
``No,'' replied Iavarone, who's said the same to six subsequent offers -- but who's open to more.
``There are some figures we couldn't refuse,'' he says, mentioning as a for-instance, $100 million. ``We have all options open.''
Ah, so many options, so few races. Big Brown has only raced four times and may start perhaps five more. Iavarone and partners thus stand to parlay a horse with a nine-race career into a possible nine-figure asset.
Or not.
Here is the risk/reward calculus for IEAH.
If Big Brown wins the Preakness on May 17 and the Belmont Stakes on June 7 to become the first Triple Crown winner in 30 years, the colt's owners are in clover. (Paul Pompa Jr., the trucking magnate who named him, owns the other 25 percent of Big Brown). They would retire an instant legend to stud, and prices for top breeding stallions have doubled in the past three years.
Easy Pickings
As my colleague David Papadopoulos reported last week, this has been driven by aggressive bidders -- principally, of late, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the billionaire ruler of Dubai. He recently bought four of the best young U.S. horses for a reported average of $30 million.
The Preakness looks like easy pickings for Big Brown, with just a nine-horse field at this point. The Belmont will be his sternest test. The longest of the three races at 1 1/2 miles has spoiled the Triple Crown bids of six horses in the past 11 years.
If Big Brown loses, so will his value. Stallions have become volatile stocks, based on performance. Pyro, a much- touted 3-year-old, was valued at $30 million earlier this year. Then he finished 10th in the Blue Grass Stakes, an April tune-up for the Derby, and eighth at Churchill Downs. Now Pyro is worth $5 million-$10 million, estimates Bill Oppenheim, a Thoroughbred Daily News columnist who tracks the market.
There's always injury risk, too, as tragically illustrated by Derby runner-up Eight Belles, who had to be euthanized after the race after breaking both front ankles. IEAH has heavily insured Big Brown, but if he became damaged goods in the Preakness or Belmont, he'd take a valuation hit.
Flawed Argument
Iavarone believes a high floor has been set under Big Brown's value, however the next two races go. (Naturally, he also believes his horse will win them.) He says the ``standing fee'' ((price per coupling) of 2007 Derby winner Street Sense is a top-of-the line $100,000, and that horse won just one leg of the Triple Crown.
Street Sense's fee is actually $75,000, according to the Web site of owner Darley America, and he comes from superior stock. Street Sense was sired by a stallion whose standing fee is $100,000. Big Brown's daddy commanded just $10,000 and produced no other great progeny before being retired due to infertility.
Even if Big Brown wins the Triple Crown, some experts doubt Iavarone & Co. can fetch $100 million for breeding rights. Fewer doubt he's entertained a $60 million offer, given the bull market for stallions and the chances Big Brown will complete the Triple Crown sweep.
$20 Million
Even that best-case scenario presents issues for IEAH. It had been laying plans to create a $100 million investment pool that it's calling a hedge fund. It would require a $1 million minimum ante and allow investors to be part-owners of a portfolio of horses, instead of owning a piece of just one, the common model. IEAH currently has about 30 investors who hold ownership interests on that basis. Iavarone and co-CEO Richard Schiavo would manage the fund.
The portfolio model contemplated IEAH transferring its current stable of approximately 80 horses into the hedge fund. Based on their total estimated value of $20 million, that would comprise 20 percent of the fund's assets, Schiavo said in an interview last week.
Win Rate
If Big Brown's value has really shot to $60 million and IEAH retains ownership, the whole model has to be re-thought. It could keep the champion apart from the hedge fund, as a separately managed asset. It could create in effect a Big Brown fund, giving investors the option of just buying into that horse and his earnings stream. Or it could expand the fund from $100 million to, say, $300 million. Based on the usual 2 percent management fee and 20 percent of returns, that could work nicely for IEAH, too.
IEAH isn't just a one-hit wonder with Big Brown. Another member of its IEAH Stables, Kip Deville, won the Breeders' Cup Mile race last year. The firm reports a 25 percent ``win'' rate by its horses this year.
But anyone who sees the returns Iavarone and Schiavo will reap on Big Brown and considers throwing a $1 million into their hedge fund should consider two questions.
Business Model
-- Does IEAH, in business only since 2003, have enough savvy to scale up its operation like this? It's hard to say whether they've developed a great new business model or whether they've caught lightning in a bottle. It's even harder to say where they come by their investment acumen. Schiavo was a Smith Barney executive vice president, but worked there and at two other firms in administrative rather than investment areas. Iavarone's bio says he has 11 years of investment banking at various firms, but he won't say where.
-- Is there any precedent for sustained returns on these kinds of investments? Don't bet on it, says Cot Campbell, a breeder in South Carolina who first developed the model for horse-ownership partnerships in the 1970s. He stresses three points to potential investors: ``It can be great fun; it can be a good tax deduction; and it might make money, but the chances are it won't.''
Where Exactly on Wall Street Did Iavarone Work? If Iavarone ever worked for a Wall Street firm, no one seems to know what it is. There is one person who could clear this up. If Iavarone has actual Wall Street experience, he should reveal what it is, using specifics. We'll be glad to report on it.
If not, media sources should stop blithely reporting on him as a "former Wall Street investment banker."
Attempts to google Iavarone to connect him to anything Wall Street in the past have come up empty here. Our reliable source, who shall remain confidential, says there is no record of Iavarone ever working for a Wall Street firm
Three days after the Kentucky Derby, Eight Belles' trainer angrily denied that steroids contributed to her gut-wrenching breakdown on the Churchill Downs track.
To prove his claim, Larry Jones said he was voluntarily doing something that officials inside and outside horse racing say should have been made mandatory years ago - testing for performance-enhancing drugs.
Horse racing, unlike major league baseball, basketball and football, doesn't ban steroids. Horsemen such as Rick Dutrow, who trains Preakness favorite Big Brown and other horses, say they legally administer Winstrol - the steroid that former Orioles star Rafael Palmeiro tested positive for - as part of the animals' regimen.
Veterinarians say steroids have therapeutic purposes, such as helping horses recover from injury. But critics say the drugs are used by many to make horses stronger and faster, sometimes at the horses' peril.
"These steroids are an artificial advantage used to bulk up horses," said Rep. Ed Whitfield, a Kentucky Republican who says the drugs contribute to clotting disorders, liver damage and heart attacks and can help build muscles that the animals' legs can't support, leading to breakdowns.
Twenty-seven years after Sen. Charles "Mac" Mathias of Maryland urged a national prohibition on drugs in horse racing, Whitfield and others are wondering why Maryland, which hosts the Preakness tomorrow, and other leading racing states have lagged in banning steroids.
"I remember Sen. Mathias talking to the Jockey Club [in 1981]," Whitfield said. "He said [to states] that either you take action or we'll send the federal cavalry into your barns. But things have not changed that much since then."
The state won't screen for steroids at the Preakness because Maryland doesn't yet have testing procedures in place. Maryland will test for many other drugs, including stimulants and overuse of phenylbutazone, or bute, an anti-inflammatory.
Bute is the most commonly abused drug at Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park, according to Maryland Racing Commission records. Overusing the drug can fetch fines ranging from $500 to $1,500 and lead to suspension or disqualification.
Though there is no evidence Eight Belles was on steroids, Whitfield said the horse's death "has re-ignited the debate over the horse racing industry in general and steroids in particular." Test results on Eight Belles are pending.
The industry, concerned about its image, has been trying to assure fans racing is safe. Maryland and other states say they are committed to approving steroid regulations as some states have done. Still, Whitfield says legislation might be needed. "The general thought is that drug use in horse racing is perhaps the worst it has ever been," he said at a hearing earlier this year.
Members of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which says horses are run too young and injected with unhealthy quantities of drugs, are planning protests at the Preakness. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has also expressed concerns. "Anabolic steroids are for debilitated horses, but it's rare that it's used for that purpose," said Bob Baker, an ASPCA investigator who used to own racehorses.
Dutrow said in interviews this week that he's among those who uses stanozolol, whose trade name is Winstrol, on his horses. "I usually give it to them once a month," Dutrow said.
Asked the purpose of the drug, Dutrow replied, "The vets would know that better than me." He said it would be less complicated for horsemen if there were a uniform steroids rule.
"I wish they would have the same thing in each and every state. But they don't," he said. "Every state is different. ... And it gets very confusing with horsemen. I wish they'd have the same guidelines just like they have in baseball, football and basketball."
The state racing commission says it is particularly eager to halt a practice known as "steroid stacking," in which horses are placed on a number of steroids simultaneously to try to boost their performances.
Whitfield and others say it's hard to know how widespread this practice is. Dr. Rick Arthur, California's equine medical director, told The Sacramento Bee in December that about 60 percent of California racehorses in training have been treated with anabolic steroids.
The topic is generating high emotions in the industry. "The powers that be are the proverbial ostrich with their heads in the sand if they think the lid on this one is going to be kept shut forever," said a recent post on the Web site of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, a trade group. "Get zero tolerance universally at all U.S. racetracks for anabolic steroids and do it now," said the post, whose author identified himself as a horse owner.
Maryland's racing commission says its delay - neighboring Pennsylvania and Delaware have banned steroids - is because the state wants to determine how best to conduct the tests, structure the rules and what sorts of penalties to adopt.
J. Michael Hopkins, the commission's executive director, said Maryland will learn from other states' experiences. "Let's see what works and what doesn't work," Hopkins said.
Whitfield appeared frustrated with the delay. "We know in Great Britain and other jurisdictions they ban anabolic steroids, so it's not that complicated. So I don't think that's a good argument to make," he said.
A Kentucky-based organization, the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium, was created in 2002 to develop uniform policies for states. It lacks authority to require states to act.
The consortium has developed a "model" regulation endorsed by a number of states. The rule isn't a complete ban. It permits trainers to administer Winstrol and several other steroids but regulates their use.
Kentucky has endorsed the rule but, like Maryland, hasn't implemented it. That's why the 20 entries in the world's most famous horse race weren't tested for steroids two weeks ago.
Big Brown glided home to take the second jewel of the Triple Crown (Jim McCue/Maryland Jockey Club)
"Departing here (on Monday) we're going to go straight in (Bobby) Frankel's barn (at Belmont Park). Empire Maker's stall. Bobby has got it all. I'd rather train him at Belmont for the big race. I want to take every advantage, cross every 't', dot every 'i' that we possibly can. I don't want to take anything for granted. I want to get there the right way. "
trainer Richard Dutrow explaining that he'll train Preakness S. (G1) winner BIG BROWN (Boundary) up to the June 7 Belmont S. (G1) at the Elmont, New York, track
"I don't know, and honestly I really don't think it's important. The important thing is the horse came home safe and we get to move into the next town hopefully with -- he's going back to the barn (having) only used half the tank. I hope I helped make Mr. Dutrow's job a little easier over the next three weeks."
jockey Kent Desormeaux when asked what he thought Big Brown would've won by if he hadn't wrapped up on him in the stretch of the Preakness
"It looks like Big Brown might win the Belmont farther than Secretariat."
trainer Paddy Gallagher, whose YANKEE BRAVO (Yankee Gentleman) finished 10th, on Big Brown's Triple Crown chances
"I was just taking every precaution, trying to do everything the right way to get him there the best way, and I thought doing this this morning was the move. I could see he was full of energy. Didn't want to take any energy out of him. I wanted to just kind of let him know he was going to run later on. It usually helps them when you blow them out that morning, usually puts them on their feet when they come out of the gate even though he slipped some."
Dutrow on his decision to breeze Big Brown two furlongs the morning of the Preakness
Big Brown has won all five starts by a combined total of 39 lengths (Joseph DiOrio/Horsephotos.com)
"He's the only one that can even entertain Big Brown's stride. It's going to be exciting. He can run. He's a nice horse. It's another quarter of a mile. You know, there's so many hurdles. Can't wait to find out what happens but that's a cold exacta."
Desormeaux on Casino Drive (Mineshaft), whom he rode to victory in the Peter Pan S. (G2) and will likely now ride against in the Belmont
"Well, I would like to have him, number one. He looks like a nice horse. Number two, I believe that he can't beat our horse. So, all Japanese people are going to think, when they come here, that Godzilla was dead. They're going to find out he's not dead, he's here."
Dutrow on facing the Japanese-based Casino Drive in the Belmont
"He really, really ran great. I knew he was a real nice horse and came home great. He hooked a superstar, you know."
trainer Dallas Stewart on his Preakness runner-up MACHO AGAIN (Macho Uno)
Kent Desormeaux looks around for the competition and finds none (Joseph DiOrio/Horsephotos.com)
"We just got beat by a monster. (Big Brown) might just be a Triple Crown winner. We ran huge and that's very important. This is kind of the best second place I've ever had. I don't like to be second, but it's not bad to be second to this horse."
jockey Julien Leparoux on guiding Macho Again to second in the Preakness
"What can I say? I thought he ran huge. I thought really he was unlucky not to be second. He got stopped pretty bad at the top of the stretch when the front runners started backing up. He really had to get him going again, which I thought was really impressive -- that he got back up to be third."
trainer Graham Motion on Preakness third ICABAD CRANE (Jump Start)
"My trip was good to the quarter-pole. I went after Big Brown, but he just threw dirt on me. My horse ran his heart out, and with a little better trip, I may well have gotten second."
jockey Jeremy Rose on his ride aboard Icabad Crane
Big Brown shows his beleaguered opponents a clean pair of heels (Joseph DiOrio/Horsephotos.com)
"He slipped leaving the gate bad. We gave up two or three lengths right away. I think I was on the second best horse today. But nothing worked out right for us today."
jockey Jamie Theriot on KENTUCKY BEAR (Mr. Greeley), who ran sixth as the third choice in the Preakness
"I saw him stumble and Tyler (Baze) said he went down to his nose. That's part of horse racing. It can happen to any horse. Tyler thought he came home good, and that's the important part. We'll live to fight another day."
trainer Beau Greely on Preakness ninth-placer TRES BORRACHOS (Ecton Park), who stumbled and hit his nose on the ground when the gates opened
"The break was rough. I was lucky to stay on him."
BALTIMORE Its hard to find fault in Big Browns performance here in the Preakness. He was barely asked to run by the jockey Kent Desormeaux and buried an overmatched field.
Still, between now and the Belmont Stakes, were going to hear a great deal about whom Big Brown has beaten, and whether or not he is merely a superior horse in a mediocre crop of 3-year-olds. I ran into Robby Albarado Saturday night hes the regular rider for Curlin, the reigning Horse of the Year, and finished fourth in Saturdays Preakness aboard Racecar Rhapsody.
Albarado laughed when asked if Big Brown was in Curlins league.
Its the difference between men and boys, and hopefully well get to see that in the fall if they meet in the Gold Cup or Breeders Cup, Albarado said. Frankly, there were at least four 3-year-olds last year who were as good as Big Brown if not better. Street Sense, Hard Spun, Any Given Saturday and Curlin.
Comments
by Steve Haskin
Updated: April 17, 2008
With the Derby getting closer, were doubling up this week to take a look at the Coolmore Lexington Stakes (gr. II) and mostly to discuss what may turn out to be one of the most important works on this years Derby trail.
If there is one thing you want to see in a Derby horse this time of the year its a dramatic change that suggests the roses are beginning to blossom overnight. Although we didnt see his work this morning, just knowing the horse and listening to the comments of trainer Bill Mott, Court Vision is going through such a change.
As a result, just as we returned to the first Derby Dozen last week and put Monba back up top, were going to do the same thing next week with Court Vision, despite all the statistical evidence that hes too slow. In a year of mostly slow horses, that is not as much of a deterrent as it might normally be.
Over the deep Payson Park track this winter, Court Vision worked six furlongs in 1:19, a half in :51 2/5, five-eighths in 1:02 4/5, a half in :50, five furlongs in 1:04, and a half in :49 3/5. In his two starts, he came from out of the clouds to finish third in the Fountain of Youth (gr. II) and Wood Memorial (gr. I). In the Wood, he was criticized for not winning after his rabbit forced War Pass into a suicidal pace. Most felt he should have finished stronger through a snaillike closing three-eighths in :40 4/5. But jockey Garrett Gomez said the colt was slipping and sliding over the drying out, greasy track, and he had trouble finding footing he could get hold of.
Mott shipped him to Churchill Downs, put a set of blinkers on him, which he normally doesnt do for a work or a race, and worked him a half-mile Thursday morning. This is when the roses began to burst. Court Vision went a half in :46 1/5 breezing, galloping out five-eighths in about 1:00 3/5 under exercise rider Neil Poznanski. The work was the fastest of 25 at the distance and a full second faster than the second fastest work. Another clocker caught him in :45 and change. When a horse of this quality undergoes such a dramatic change, especially at Churchill Downs, where he has already won a grade II stakes, it is exactly what youre looking for.
Can one half-mile work stamp a horse as a major Derby contender just like that? The answer is yes if hes already shown his class and proved for a second time that he loves Churchill Downs. Remember the determination and tenacity this colt showed last year turning certain defeat to victory in the Iroquois Stakes (gr. III) and Remsen Stakes (gr. II). Right now is when youre looking for your horse to suddenly blossom, and Court Vision showed today thats whats happening with him.
We decided to put the blinkers on him, and (the work) was maybe a bit more than I was anticipating, Mott said. Wed never tested him with the blinkers and it was a big wake-up call. As good as he worked in them Id be foolish not to put them on for the Derby. We just felt he was back a little too far in his races and maybe not responsive enough.
After the work, Neil said thats just what we were looking for. I dont know if he realized he had gone as quickly as he did. I had a horse in front of him and he went after him a little early. But when (Court Vision) came alongside him, Neil gave him a little nudge, and, shooo, he just flew away from the other horse.
There obviously are no personal observations that can be made, but there is more than enough here to suggest Court Vision is now a horse who must be taken seriously, slow speed figures and all.
Another person who was thrilled when he heard about the work was Gomez agent Ron Anderson, who stands by last months decision to ride Court Vision instead of Colonel John.
With Colonel John, youre dealing with a horse coming off synthetic surfaces and who had won the Sham Stakes by a half-length, Anderson said. "With Court Vision, youre dealing with Billy Mott and going to Aqueduct where he had already won a stakes, and then going to Churchill Downs where he had already won a stakes. How could I take off him? And when youre going a mile and a quarter for the first time, you cant count speed figures.
I was at Keeneland this morning and didnt see the work, but the clockers said they were really impressed with him. Its pretty exciting, because Billy normally never works horses that fast, and nobody that works for him works that fast. My whole mindset was that he would handle Churchill Downs and he obviously does that, so Ive been pretty pumped since I heard about it.
Court Vision is scheduled to work again either next Wednesday or Thursday. With Wednesday being our travel day (late this year), it is hoped hell work Thursday, but even if its Wednesday, theres a good chance well see it on a local news feed tape the following morning. Until then, Court Vision will be climbing back up the Derby Dozen list.
Lexington Ave. Express
With a couple of Kentucky Derby berths still open to any horse who can win the Lexington, and either a first- or second-place finish by Tomcito enough to get him in the race, it is not surprising to see a contentious field of 11 entered. Of course, we still have the same Polytrack puzzlement we had in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (gr. II), so talent alone will not get anyone to Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May.
Almost every horse in the field has proven himself at some point on a synthetic surface, with Tomcito and Atoned two who have not, putting them at a disadvantage. Atoned, as of now, is being considered more of a Preakness horse, so Tomcito is the one who needs to show something over a foreign surface in order to make the Derby field. If the son of Street Cry does finish first or second, he is the real goods, and must be taken seriously in the Derby, considering the unprecedented feats hes accomplished in Peru and his excellent U.S. debut in the Florida Derby (gr. I). In that race, he rallied from last in the field of 12 to finish a well-beaten third to Big Brown off a four-month layoff. And he was 3 1/4 lengths ahead of the fourth-place finisher, Hey Byrn, who came back to win the Holy Bull Stakes (gr. III).
Another horse who has Derby credentials is Racecar Rhapsody, a late-closing son of Tale of the Cat who has finished a close third in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (gr. II) and turned in solid fourths in the Lanes End Stakes (gr. II) and Delta Jackpot (gr. III). He seems to handle dirt and Polytrack equally well.
Todd Pletcher could add to his list of Derby starters with Atoned (if they change their mind about running) and Behindatthebar, an impressive allowance winner last out in a a Santa Anita allowance race.
If the Mott-trained Riley Tucker wins, itll be interesting to see if hes wheeled back in the Derby. His owner, Zayat Stables, appears determined to run as many horses as they are allowed to. They already have legitimate Derby horses in Z Fortune andZ Humor, with Halo Najib needing some defections to get into the starting field. Another horse, Massive Drama, is being considered, according to trainer Dale Romans, even though he was just beaten 42 lengths in the UAE Derby and has traveled back and forth half way across the world. And running him as a pacesetter for the Z pair makes no sense considering there are already five brilliant, classy speed horses in the field who will assure a fast pace. They ran J Be K in the Louisiana Derby (gr. II) off one six-furlong race in six months and he stopped to a walk, beating one horse, before dropping back to a sprint in the Bay Shore (gr. III), which he won and where he belonged.
Z Humor also had a good breeze for Mott this morning, going a half in :47 3/5. Tale of Ekati breezed a half in :49 1/5 at Keeneland.
Marc Serota for The New York Times
There is no telling how much Big Browns value would increase if he won the
Triple Crown. By JOE DRAPE
Published: April 21, 2008
BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. Big Brown is lightly raced, has tender feet and is the early favorite to win the 134th Kentucky Derby, which, statistically, has proved to be the kiss of death on the first Saturday in May. Still, his trainer, Richard Dutrow Jr., said he would be all in on Big Brown.
Marc Serota for The New York Times
The trainer Richard Dutrow Jr., left, with Big Brown. Dutrow says there is no comparison with any other 3-year-old.
The last time Dutrow went all in on one of his horses was at the 2005 Breeders Cup Classic: he said he bet $160,000 on Saint Liam and won $384,000 when the horse won by a length. No matter how much he wagers on Big Brown in the Derby, however, it will pale in comparison to what the colts majority owner, International Equine Acquisitions Holdings, will have at stake.
I.E.A.H. is applying the lucrative lessons its founders learned on Wall Street to an industry that has proved inscrutable to many other successful businessmen. It is currently raising $100 million to buy, sell and breed horses, and it will operate like a hedge fund, collecting management and performance fees. The founders want to take the company public before the end of the year.
So far, their fundamentals have been sound; the companys horses have won 25 percent of the time this year and earned more than $3.1 million in purses, putting I.E.A.H. among the top owners in North America. On Sept. 3, when Big Brown rocketed to an 11 1/4-length victory in his debut on the turf at Saratoga, the companys co-president, Michael Iavarone, said he knew he had found a key component of I.E.A.H.s future.
He called Dutrow from his house in Long Island as Big Brown crossed the finish line. I have to own this horse, he told him. We can win the Derby with this one.
A few days and $3 million later, the company owned 75 percent of Big Brown. Now, I.E.A.H. is not only intent on capturing the Kentucky Derby, Americas greatest horse race, but it also wants to remake the economic landscape of a multibillion-dollar industry.
It would show how you can move the blue blood from Kentucky to New York, Iavarone said, referring to both a Big Brown victory and his horse hedge fund.
Neither the racetrack nor Wall Street traffics in sure things, however, and as talented as Big Brown, the undefeated son of Boundary, is, he must defy some compelling historical data.
A chestnut colt, Big Brown has raced only three times. The last Derby winner
so untested was the filly Regret in 1915. Last year, for example, Curlin, the eventual Horse of the Year, arrived at Churchill Downs similarly undefeated after three starts, but he finished third as the second betting choice. Big Brown ran in only two prep races this year, a lack of seasoning that only two Derby champions in the last 60 years have been able to overcome: Sunnys Halo in 1983 and Street Sense last year.
Then there are Big Browns troubled front hooves, which have been responsible for his limited number of starts and his long absences from the racetrack. Shortly after I.E.A.H. purchased him, Big Brown got an abscess in the sole of his left front hoof, which caused a wall separation and kept him idle for 45 days. He had the same injury in his right front hoof in mid-December and did not train in January.
The injury is caused by concussion his feet hitting a hard surface and they take time to heal, said Ian McKinlay, a New York-based hoof specialist who continues to treat Big Brown.
When Big Brown finally returned to racing, at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., in a mile race on March 5, McKinlay fitted him with special glue-on shoes. The shoes had a thick polyurethane bottom to ensure that nothing hard touched the colts sole. Big Brown won effortlessly, by 12 3/4 lengths.
Twenty-four days later, in the Florida Derby, Big Brown led every step of the way as his jockey, Kent Desormeaux, sat atop him like a leisure rider during a five-length victory.
His feet are ice-cold now, and were not going to have any more problems, Dutrow said. I look at everything Big Brown has done and then at every other 3-year-old out there, and there is no comparison. Beat him? Im not sure any of them can run close to him.
Big Browns Stock Is Up, but It Could Really Soar
There is little doubt that Big Brown will be the most accomplished horse in the field of 20 that is expected to line up at the gate in Louisville beneath Churchill Downss famed twin spires. But is he or any other racehorse a valuable enough commodity to build a lucrative hedge fund around?
Marc Serota for The New York Times
Big Brown, the early Kentucky Derby favorite, has raced only three times because of abscesses in each of his front hooves.
In 2007, more than $15.4 billion was bet on horses in North America, more than $1.1 billion in purses was distributed and more than $1.2 billion was spent purchasing thoroughbreds, according to the Jockey Club. Iavarone and his co-president, Richard J. Schiavo both of whom left Wall Street and investment banking say they have a way of offering more people more opportunity to make money at the racetrack.
Since its inception in 2003, I.E.A.H. has raised more than $40 million from more than 80 investors and has formed partnerships to own various horses. The hedge fund model will supplant this arrangement; partners will own a part of all I.E.A.H. assets, from its 80 horses in training to its 15 broodmares and its future stallions, including the 2007 Breeders Cup Mile champion, Kip Deville; Benny the Bull, winner of the $2 million Dubai Golden Shaheen; and Big Brown.
Each financial quarter, an independent auditor will assess the funds value, and investors will be able to decide to buy into the fund or sell their positions. What were offering are liquidity and options that people in the horse business have never had before, Iavarone said.
There is no doubt Big Brown is the component with the greatest upside within the companys portfolio. If he wins the Derby, he will immediately be worth $30 million as a stallion. As a rookie sire, he is certain to command at least the $100,000 per coupling that the 2004 Derby winner, Smarty Jones, commands, and attract 150 or more mares. If Big Brown becomes the first horse since Affirmed in 1978 to win a Triple Crown, there is no telling how valuable he will become.
So just like Dutrow, I.E.A.H. is all in on Big Brown.
The colts minority owner, Paul Pompa Jr., has already experienced a windfall. In April 2007, he bought Big Brown at a 2-year-old-in-training sale for $190,000, and named him because his family-owned trucking company in Brooklyn had just renewed a contract with a longtime client, U.P.S. When Big Browns scintillating debut at Saratoga brought deep-pocketed suitors, Pompa adhered to the golden rule of horse racing: take the money.
I chose I.E.A.H. because they were young, classy, impressive guys, said Pompa, who has owned horses for 15 years. And they were going to let me keep a piece of the horse.
He said he wished them well in their mission to change the face of horse partnerships, but that he was not interested in joining them. He said some things remain priceless.
I want to win the greatest race in the world, he said. I want to make history.
by Steve Haskin
Updated: April 21, 2008
For all those who have written off Denis of Cork, the one-time leading Kentucky Derby contender turned in a sensational work at Churchill Downs Monday.
With trainer David Carroll at home sick, Denis of Cork drilled five furlongs in a bullet 1:00 flat, coming home his final quarter in :22 4/5, before galloping out a powerful six furlongs in 1:12 2/5 and pulling up seven panels in 1:26.
The son of Harlans Holiday was ridden by jockey Calvin Borel, who won last years Derby on Street Sense and who will be aboard Denis of Cork on May 3.
Denis of Cork went in splits of :12 4/5, :25, :37 1/5, and :48 3/5.
After winning his first three career starts, including the Southwest Stakes (gr. III), a decision was made by owner William K. Warren and his advisors to deviate from their original plan and skip the Rebel Stakes (gr. III) and Arkansas Derby (gr. II) and instead run only once in the Illinois Derby (gr. II). Denis of Cork ran a dull fifth after a seven-week layoff and now must wait for one defection before he is assured of a starting berth in the Derby. As of now, that defection appears likely.
Also working at Churchill Monday was Arkansas Derby runner-up Z Fortune, who breezed a half in :50 1/5.
then at every other three-year-old out there, and
there is no comparison. Beat him? Im not sure
any of them can run close to him.
Trainer Richard Dutrow Jr., in the New York
Times, on unbeaten Big Brown, a leading contender
for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) on
May 3 at Churchill Downs
Today, we found a new outline on the site that--maybe--includes gallops. It will be interesting to see if Big Brown does that after he arrives in Louisville on Monday amidst a great deal of public scrutiny.
Friday, April 18: Breezed five furlongs in 1:00 3/5 at Palm Meadows training center
Saturday, April 19: Walk
Sunday, April 20: Jog or gallop
Monday, April 21: Jog or gallop
Tuesday, April 22: Jog or gallop
Wednesday, April 23: Jog or gallop
Thursday, April 24: Tentative breeze date at Palm Meadows training center
Friday, April 25: Walk
Saturday, April 26: Jog or gallop
Sunday, April 27: Jog or gallop
Monday, April 28: Arrival at Churchill Downs
Tuesday, April 29: Walk or jog or gallop
Wednesday, April 30: Jog or gallop
Thursday, May 1: Tentative breeze date at Churchill Downs
Friday, May 2: Walk or jog or gallop
By TIM WILKIN, Staff writer
These were the options Edgar Prado had for the Kentucky Derby:
He could ride Monba, winner of the Blue Grass Stakes or Tale of Ekati, victor of the Wood Memorial. Or, he could take the call on Adriano, who won the Lane's End Stakes.
It came as a surprise to many when Prado picked Adriano.
Monba and Tale of Ekati won bigger Derby preps, so, one could argue, would have better chances to find the winner's circle at Churchill Downs.
Prado, who won the 2006 Derby with Barbaro, made his surprise announcement mostly because he has a longtime relationship with Graham Motion, the trainer of Adriano. The two had success years ago on the Maryland circuit, and, after Prado rode the colt to a win in the Lane's End on March 22, Motion asked the jockey for a commitment. He got it.
"You always want to honor the commitments you make," Prado said Monday, just hours after finding out he had been elected to the Racing Hall of Fame. "It was really hard to make the decision but it was harder to tell the other people. They have good horses."
When Prado agreed to ride Adriano, Monba had yet to win the Blue Grass and Tale of Ekati hadn't won the Wood. Both of those horses were coming off dismal performances. Monba was 12th in the Fountain of Youth and Tale of Ekati was sixth in the Louisiana Derby.
It's not as though there aren't questions with Adriano. In his only start on a dirt track, the Fountain of Youth, he finished ninth.
"At the time, we didn't know how the other horses were going to run," Prado said. "I think (Adriano) has a chance. We'll have to wait and see."
War Pass's ankle fractured
War Pass, declared out of the Derby over the weekend, could be out of action until October, trainer Nick Zito said.
Zito said he talked with equine surgeon Dr. Larry Bramlage on Monday, showing him the X-rays of War Pass's left front ankle, which revealed a small fracture. On Tuesday, Zito said Bramlage said he wanted new X-rays in two months.
"He said the fracture has to fill in," Zito said from Louisville. If that happens, "we'll be OK. If it doesn't, it will take longer."
War Pass had lost his past two Derby prep races, finishing last in the Tampa Bay Derby and then second in the Wood Memorial. Zito said he believes War Pass suffered the injury 20 yards from the wire in the Wood, on a drying out, tiring Aqueduct track.
He won his first five career starts, including last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile to become a legitimate Derby threat.
"I try not to think about it and just go on," Zito said.
War Pass is at Churchill Downs, but will spend the summer resting at Zito's base in Saratoga Springs.
"Maybe I'll take him to Congress Park and let him put the ankle in the water," Zito said.
Barn banter
Zito is pointing Fountain of Youth winner Cool Coal Man and Anak Nakal, who has been off the board in all three starts this year, to the Derby. Zito said Julien Leparoux will ride Cool Coal Man and Rafael Bejarano, who just won the riding title at Santa Anita, will be on Anak Nakal. ... Majestic Warrior, last year's Hopeful winner at Saratoga, is a possible starter in Saturday's Derby Trial at Churchill Downs. ... The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will hold its annual Countdown to the Triple Crown program at 4 p.m. Saturday. Admission is free.
Big Truck, a game winner of the Tampa Bay Derby two back, will attempt to rebound from a disappointing effort over the Polytrack at Keeneland (Joseph DiOrio/Horsephotos.com)
Tampa Bay Derby (G3) winner BIG TRUCK (Hook and Ladder) breezed four furlongs in :48 4/5 on Keeneland's Polytrack on Tuesday in preparation for the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby (G1) on May 3 at Churchill Downs. Trainer Barclay Tagg described the move as a "maintenance work." It ranked eighth out of 43 works at the distance.
"He went a little faster that I wanted, but it's fine," Tagg said. "I generally like their maintenance works to be around :49, but it's no problem."
Big Truck most recently finished 11th in the Blue Grass S. (G1) on April 12 at Keeneland. In his prior start, he defeated Atoned (Repent) in the Tampa Bay Derby. The bay colt currently ranks 20th on the Kentucky Derby graded stakes earnings list with $194,500.
Tagg's other Derby contender, Wood Memorial (G1) hero TALE OF EKATI (Tale of the Cat), is scheduled to work five furlongs at Keeneland on Wednesday.
Javier Castellano has the mount on Big Truck and Eibar Coa is slated to ride Tale of Ekati. Tagg plans to ship both colts to Churchill Downs on Saturday.
Gotham S. (G3) winner VISIONAIRE (Grand Slam), who finished a closing fifth in the Blue Grass, breezed four furlongs in :49 3/5 in company with Scenery Change (Royal Academy), a four-year-old maiden filly who was awarded the same time.
Jockey Jose Lezcano was aboard the Michael Matz trainee, who is scheduled to turn in his final work prior to the Run for the Roses on Monday at Churchill Downs.
"He just did a little maintenance work here, and then he'll do one more at Churchill," Matz said.
Visionaire currently ranks 19th on the graded earnings list with $202,500.
OBS Championship S. winner HALO NAJIB (Halo's Image) breezed four furlongs in :50 2/5 on a firm turf course at Churchill Downs. The Dale Romans trainee most recently finished seventh in the Blue Grass after a good runner-up performance in the Lane's End S. (G2) on March 22 at Turfway Park.
"I wanted to see how he would handle the grass," Romans said. "If you don't get in (the Kentucky Derby), he would go in the Crown Royal (American Turf S. [G3] on May 2). It looked like he handled if fine."
Halo Najib has $157,996 in graded stakes earnings and is on the outside looking in with respect to securing a position in the Kentucky Derby field.
TRES BORRACHOS (Ecton Park), last seen finishing third in the Arkansas Derby (G2) on April 12 at Oaklawn Park, breezed three furlongs on the main track in :35 3/5. The Beau Greeley trainee has only $118,000 in graded stakes earnings and would need many defections in order to make the field for Derby 134.
"It is not really frustrating," co-owner John Greeley said. "If a bunch drop out and we get in, fine. If not, we go on to the Preakness (S. [G1] on May 17 at Pimlico)."
In other Kentucky Derby news:
Blue Grass winner MONBA (Maria's Mon) and runner-up COWBOY CAL (Giant's Causeway) remain on target for their final works on Saturday or Sunday at Keeneland prior to Derby 134, according to trainer Todd Pletcher.
"We'll stay here through the weekend and move to Churchill next week depending on the weather," Pletcher said.
Hey, to each their own on Derby Week.
But if you're looking to seriously analyze next Saturday's "Greatest Two Minutes in Sports," the best tools you can bring to the party don't fit in your carry-on.
It's time to use your eyes and ears, God's gifts.
The paper trail puts you on the path toward the horses that have a puncher's chance in Louisville; but after the horses arrive in Derby City, that all just becomes expensive litter. Horses will either blossom or bust on Derby Week. It happens every year, and 2008 should be no different.
I cannot think of a single horse in my years of scouring Churchill Downs' backstretch on Derby Week that outran his poor looks. And, you'll hear the proverbial, "He couldn't be doing better" line from just about every trainer. But as horseplayers, you need to entrust your own eyes with every bit of workout video you can find -- and read only the handicapping information from analysts whom you trust. Everyone has an opinion Derby Week. If you want to swoon with talk of the Derby Gods and place your hard-earned cash on soft-core angles, enjoy the show.
As a serious handicapper, these are the items I'll be evaluating first-hand once I set foot on the hallowed grounds of Churchill later this week.
Big Brown: Demeanor amongst the throng of media and any starting gate schooling.
The likely favorite has been holed up at tranquil Palm Meadows training center in Florida and has never seen anything like he's about to encounter. He's expected to arrive on Monday of Derby Week, so Tuesday morning should be a real show. I want to see a Bob Baffert or Carl Nafzger-like appearance, where Big Brown is brought to the track after the morning renovation break, able to stand and gawk at the masses around him and soak up the hub-bub before the track is re-opened. That has worked so well for horses like Silver Charm, Real Quiet and Street Sense. Bringing Big Brown out at the crack of dawn may keep his nerves down during the week, but won't do much to simulate Saturday.
Also, Big Brown bucked and hesitated before loading in front of a smallish crowd on Florida Derby Day. In the big one, he'll have to load at the top of the stretch with huge bleachers overlooking and a crush of onlookers surrounding the gate. I want to see him make a gate schooling appearance or two Derby Week to let the local gate crew get acquainted with his habits. Of course, any raceday paddock schooling would be must-see as well -- watch the Churchill Downs' simulcast signal during the week for a host of Derby schoolers. The track typically tries to graphically identify them, or have their paddock hosts mention verbally, when Derby runners are dress rehearsing during the weekday races.
Adriano: Leg action and paddock schooling.
Still photos of turf/Polytrack ace Adriano working at Churchill Downs have been a wee bit of a concern. The Lane's End winner has tons of pedigree for dirt and a wonderfully long stride, but his high leg action captured in the still photos looks awfully turfy. Of course, Barbaro had the same action, a far cry from the daisy-cutter efficiency of a Smarty Jones, though Barbaro was able to be just as effective.
But nothing in Adriano's repertoire yet has hinted to Barbaroan feats. My personal "two eyeball test" will mean a lot when I get to see Adriano in motion, and not relying on still photos. And after his ungluing in the paddock at the Fountain of Youth, it will be interesting to watch master horseman Graham Motion massage Adriano's psyche with paddock schooling all week, in the a.m. and p.m.
Colonel John: Final Derby workout.
With everything on his resume accomplished over synthetic tracks, the Colonel's final drill at Churchill Downs will be our only feel for his ability on natural soil. Trainer Eoin Harty is a disciple of the Baffert camp, and Colonel John's recent, blazing workouts out West are very Baffert-esque in terms of indicating a big effort. Don't be surprised to see a :59-flat workout at five panels on Derby Week from this guy. In fact, if he loafs a 1:01 or 1:02, there's cause for concern.
Pyro: Presence and workmate.
I'll be following the Steve Asmussen barn all week long as part of the official Kentucky Derby Notes Team, an assignment that takes added importance after the mystifying effort by Pyro in the Blue Grass Stakes. The fact that the Louisiana Derby winner's first drill after that non-effort came in company against graded-stakes class sprinter Noonmark tells me that the Asmussen camp knows they have a lot of work to do to tighten Pyro for Derby Day. Will he work solo, or with a barnmate? And, just who will that barnmate be? That could go a long way in helping handicappers gauge Pyro's ability to rebound on the first Saturday in May.
Quick Hitters: Around the Derby horn.
I'll be very interested to see first-hand how Bill Mott responds to Court Vision's final tuneups. Mott never dances into hyperbole, and any visual cues of excitement from him should be a big sign. Court Vision's blazing local drill last week is the kind of move that screws in the light bulb of a horse waiting to break through ... Read very closely any comments you might find online or in your papers where non-Derby trainers remark about Derby horses. Those are especially prudent when a lesser-known horse arrives in Louisville and takes the "name" trainers by surprise. Baffert's effusive praise of Smarty Jones in 2004 is an example. I'd be excited to hear name trainers step up with positive remarks about horses like Smooth Air, Gayego or Bob Black Jack, who hail from lesser-known stables.
Updated: April 23, 2008
(from Churchill Downs)
ADRIANO Lanes End (GII) winner Adriano was one of the last Kentucky Derby hopefuls on the track Wednesday morning, coming on to the track at 9:20 and schooling in the paddock before galloping mile and three-eighths under Xavier Aizpuru.
We have been taking him to the paddock every morning, said Alice Clapham, assistant to trainer Graham Motion. Tomorrow morning we will probably gallop a little more.
Owned by Courtlandt Farm, Adriano is scheduled for his final Kentucky Derby work on Sunday.
Edgar Prado has the Derby riding assignment.
ANAK NAKAL/COOL COAL MAN Two-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Nick Zito is flying under the radar this year with Anak Nakal and Cool Coal Man, and he doesnt seem to mind a bit.
Hey, one of them could be this years Giacomo, Zito said, referring to the 2005 Kentucky Derby winner who scored at 50-1 odds.
Cool Coal Man, who is owned by Robert LaPenta, galloped a mile and a half after the renovation break with Megan Smillie up and is scheduled to work Thursday morning after the break.
The son of Mineshaft is coming off a ninth-place finish in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (GI), which was the colts third mile and an eighth race of the year.
He won two of those races and didnt like the Polytrack, Zito said. Hes got a solid foundation coming into this race.
Cool Coal Man is the only horse among the top-20 Derby contenders to have run three nine-furlong races. Halo Najib, who stands 22nd in graded stakes earnings among Derby hopefuls, has three such races also.
Julien Leparoux has the riding assignment on Cool Coal Man.
Four Roses Thoroughbreds Anak Nakal, who galloped a mile and a half before the break under Heather Stark, won his only start at Churchill Downs and enters the Derby off a fifth-place finish in the Wood Memorial (GI).
We are catching up a little bit with him, but he is improving, Zito said. Look at the chart of the Wood five-wide run second turn. He was moving and had a horse stop right in front of him.
Rafael Bejarano has the call on Anak Nakal.
COLONEL JOHN Santa Anita Derby (GI) winner Colonel John galloped a mile and a half after the renovation break with Karine Lhuillier up.
Trainer Eoin Harty plans to give the WinStar Farm homebred some schooling in the paddock and gate but has not firmed up a date for the colts final work.
Ive got an idea, but it will be determined by Mother Nature, Harty said. Ill be watching the weather.
Corey Nakatani, who has been aboard Colonel John in three of his four victories, has the call for the Derby.
COURT VISION/Z HUMOR Hall of Fame trainer Bill Motts pair of contenders for Kentucky Derby 134 IEAH Stable and WinStar Farms Court Vision and Zayat Stables LLCs Z Humor galloped over the fast surface at Churchill Downs on Wednesday.
Mott said both colts would turn in their final pre-Kentucky Derby works on Monday or Tuesday.
Both horses are doing well, said Mott. Were really happy. Its nice to have two horses that have no flies in the ointment right now. Everything is going very well.
Court Vision has racing experience at Churchill Downs in a stretch-running victory in last falls $150,000-added Iroquois Stakes (GIII). Z Humor, the dead-heat winner of the $1 million Delta Jackpot (GIII), will race over the Louisville track for the first time in the Kentucky Derby on May 3.
Any horse that likes Churchill Downs is at some sort of an advantage, Mott said. I believe there are horses for courses. No matter what track it is, youll get the odd horse that just doesnt handle the surface for whatever reason, then theyll go to the next track and handle it just fine. Fortunately, ours seem to be getting over it very well. Were pleased with that end of it.
Mott is the all-time leading trainer at Churchill Downs with 583 career wins under the Twin Spires and a routine year at the track would take him past the 600 mark sometime in 2008. But he has yet to come close in four attempts at the tracks biggest race, but his hoping for better in Kentucky Derby 134.
Maybe this time next year well still be looking for my first win, but were going to start with this one, said Mott. Weve had a couple of chances at it before and I think maybe were coming in with some of our most legitimate chances this year and well try to make the best of it. Well try not to make any foolish mistakes, get them over there and hope we have some racing luck.
Garrett Gomez, the Eclipse Award winner as Americas top jockey in 2007, will ride Court Vision. Z Humor is scheduled to be ridden by Rene Douglas.
DENIS OF CORK Trainer David Carroll made it back to the track Wednesday after being home sick for two days and his Kentucky Derby hopeful, Denis of Cork, went back to the track, jogging two miles before the renovation break under Paul Griffiths.
Owned by Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr., Denis of Cork had worked five furlongs in 1:00 on Monday and walked the shedrow Tuesday.
Denis of Cork ranks 21st in graded stakes earnings among Kentucky Derby hopefuls with the top 20 earning starting berths. It is a position the Carroll barn is not worried about.
If its meant to be, its meant to be, said Kim Carroll, Davids wife, who ran the barn in her husbands absence. Thats the only way you can look at it.
Calvin Borel will ride if the colt makes the Derby field.
GAYEGO Cubanacan Stables Gayego had the morning off Wednesday, walking the shedrow at Barn 33.
The Paulo Lobo trainee is scheduled to return to the track and gallop in the morning before the break.
Mike Smith has the Derby riding assignment.
HALO NAJIB Trainer Dale Romans reported all was well with Zayat Stables Halo Najib, a day after the Halos Image colt got his first run over the turf with a half-mile work in :50.40.
Halo Najib is 22nd on the graded stakes earnings list among Kentucky Derby hopefuls and would need some defections from the prospective field to get in the starting gate. Romans said he would run Halo Najib in the May 2 Crown Royal American Turf (GIII) if he doesnt go in the Derby.
PYRO/Z FORTUNE Winchell Thoroughbreds Pyro jogged one-mile Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs, his first exercise this spring under the Twin Spires since arriving from Keeneland on Tuesday afternoon.
Trainer Steve Asmussen also sent out Zayat Stables Z Fortune for a mile jog. Both colts are scheduled to gallop Thursday morning, leading up to easy breezes here Monday.
Pyro had worked at Keeneland on Monday and Z Fortune had a half-mile drill at Churchill Downs on Monday.
Shaun Bridgmohan, who has ridden Pyro in all seven of his starts, has the call for the Kentucky Derby. Robby Albarado, who rode Z Fortune for the first time in the April 12 Arkansas Derby (GII), is slated to ride the Siphon colt in the Kentucky Derby.
RECAPTURETHEGLORY Trainer and co-owner Louie Roussel III has called an audible with Illinois Derby (GII) winner Recapturetheglory, postponing a scheduled Thursday work until most likely Saturday.
I think he is fit enough right now and he doesnt need it (to work on Thursday), Roussel said after the colt galloped two miles under Lara Van Deren. It will be Friday or Saturday, but most likely Saturday.
Jockey E.T. Baird, who rode Recapturetheglory for the first time in the Illinois Derby, may come in to handle the work.
SMOOTH AIR Mount Joy Stables Smooth Air jogged two miles with Susie Milne up before the renovation break Wednesday morning.
Trainer Bennie Stutts Jr. calls Smooth Air obviously the best horse Ive ever trained and is living his Derby dream.
I gave up on my Derby dream 25 years ago, Stutts said. I had chances to go to New York and other places, but I wanted to stay in Florida with my family.
Smooth Air is scheduled to work five furlongs on Sunday.
TALE OF EKATI/BIG TRUCK Charles Fipkes Tale of Ekati worked five furlongs in 1:00.20 at Keeneland over the Polytrack on Wednesday morning. The move was the second fastest of 11 at the distance.
It was the colts second work at Keeneland since winning the April 5 Wood Memorial (GI). Tale of Ekati worked a half-mile in :49.20 on April 17.
Trainer Barclay Tagg plans to ship Tale of Ekati and Eric Feins Big Truck, who worked a half-mile in :48.80 at Keeneland on Tuesday, to Churchill Downs on Saturday with final works for the duo slated next Tuesday.
Updated: April 24, 2008
(from Churchill Downs)
ADRIANO Courtlandt Farms Adriano visited the Churchill Downs paddock Thursday morning and then galloped 1 ½ miles under Xavier Aizpuru in preparation for the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands on Saturday, May, 3.
Winner of the Lanes End Stakes (GII) in his most recent start, Adriano is scheduled to work Sunday morning with Aizpuru handling the work, according to Alice Clapham, assistant to trainer Graham Motion.
Motion is scheduled to return to Louisville on Saturday night. Edgar Prado has the mount.
ANAK NAKAL/COOL COAL MAN Robert LaPentas Cool Coal Man put in his final Kentucky Derby work Thursday morning, breezing a half-mile in :47.40 in company with stablemate Chris Got Even, who was clocked in the same time, which was the second fastest of 35 at the distance.
Megan Smillie was aboard Cool Coal Man and Julien Leparoux, who will ride Cool Coal Man in the Derby, was on Chris Got Even. The duo did their work over a fast track after the renovation break. Fractions for the work were :11.60, :23.40, :35 and out in 1:02.60.
I was very happy. He was galloping along the right way, trainer Nick Zito said. You always worry about the breeze before the Derby, but they were really comfortable. I worked him with a really nice maiden, Chris Got Even, and he wont be a maiden for long. He is going to run Derby Day. Hes a pretty nice colt.
I just wanted Julien to see his horse, which is why I had him work the other horse. Basically, I just wanted him to get alongside him and see what kind of horse hes got instead of being on top of him. Plus, Megan gets on him all the time and I didnt want to change anything.
Cool Coal Man followed a similar work pattern before his Fountain of Youth (GII) victory in February with a :47.20 work nine days before the race.
Hes not a big, giant horse. Hes perfectly built, but not really big, Zito said. I dont think many horses can boast his record as far as conditioning goes. Nobdoy has three mile-and-an-eighth races, so I dont want to overdo it. I dont want to underdo it. Id rather have him gallop all week into the Derby.
Anak Nakal, who galloped 1 ½ miles under Heather Stark before the renovation break, is scheduled to work Friday morning in what would be his final pre-Derby work.
Hes not a really big horse either and this will be his last work, Zito said. I am not training anybody elses horses, but I have seen a few that are running in the Derby and if I had those, maybe I would do it differently. Obviously I have a sixth sense for some reason and Gods been good to me and I have to do what I am told to do. I go by feel.
BIG BROWN IEAH Stables and Paul Pompa Jr.s Big Brown worked five furlongs in :58.60 over a fast track Thursday morning at Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida with Michelle Nevin up.
Its exactly what he wanted and thats fine with me, trainer Rick Dutrow said. He did it the right way, looked real good, and did it in racehorse time while well within himself. He went about his business in a smooth and ordinary way.
We needed to turn his head loose a little in the lane, because weve kept him covered up in his last couple of breezes. I told Michelle to let him out just a little notch in the stretch, she did just that, the colt took the bit, and just carried her to the wire. With the race 10 days away, this is what we needed and wanted.
Undefeated in three starts, Big Brown is scheduled to ship to Churchill Downs on Monday (estimated arrival is 5 p.m.) and is tentatively scheduled for a three-furlong work next Thursday.
Two-time Kentucky Derby-winning rider Kent Desormeaux has the mount.
COLONEL JOHN WinStar Farms Colonel John galloped 1 ½ miles after the renovation break Thursday morning with Karine Lhuillier aboard.
Trainer Eoin Harty is anxiously watching the weather with a slight chance of rain forecast to move into the Louisville area beginning Thursday night.
There is no one day that I have to work, but I have a day that I would prefer, Harty said. But, what can you do?
Corey Nakatani has the Derby mount, but Harty said that Lhuillier would handle the work.
COURT VISION/Z HUMOR Trainer Bill Motts two Kentucky Derby hopefuls galloped before the renovation break Thursday morning.
IEAH Stables and WinStar Farms Court Vision was partnered by Joanna Trout and is scheduled to work Monday or Tuesday.
Court Vision would represent the second prospective starter in the Derby 134 field owned by WinStar Farm and high times for Elliott Walden, vice president and racing manager for WinStar.
So, Elliott, how would you feel if Colonel John and Court Vision are sweeping to the lead at the sixteenth pole?
Id probably be jumping off the grandstand, Walden said with a grin.
Zayat Stables Z Humor had Keith Allen aboard Thursday morning and is scheduled to work Monday or Tuesday.
Rene Douglas has the Derby call on Z Humor and Garrett Gomez will be on Court Vision.
DENIS OF CORK Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.s Denis of Cork galloped 1 ½ miles with trainer David Carroll back in the saddle Thursday morning after the renovation break.
Carroll had been home sick the first part of the week and Thursday was the first day he was able to be a full participant in the morning activity this week.
I think all the traveling got to me, going to Illinois and Arkansas and back and forth to Keeneland, Carroll said. You get used to do doing the day-to-day stuff and you dont realize how much you miss it.
One thing Carroll may miss is the Kentucky Derby, as Denis of Cork with $165,000 in graded stakes earnings, may not make the field of the top 20 earners when entries close next Wednesday.
I am hearing now that Behindatthebar may run and I am resigned to not getting in, Carroll said. Hes a good horse and I would be proud to lead him over. But if we dont get in, its nobodys fault but our own. We had our chance and didnt get it done.
GAYEGO Cubanacan Stables Gayego jogged a mile and galloped a mile shortly after the track opened Thursday morning under Jody Pieper.
Hes feeling so good, maybe they should do with him like they did with Afleet Alex and take him out twice in the morning, said Pieper, referring to the training regimen used by Tim Ritchey in 2005 with Afleet Alex.
Pieper said the Paulo Lobo trainee may go to the starting gate in the morning before galloping. Gayego is scheduled to work Saturday.
Pieper began getting on Gayego in the mornings prior to the colts victory in the Arkansas Derby (GII).
I have known (jockey) Mike Smith for 30 years and he asked me if I would get on him and if Id go to Louisville, said Pieper, who galloped Steppenwolfer prior to the 2006 Derby.
Pieper was asked his first impression of Gayego.
Hes so thick. I was surprised a horse that carries that much weight can run so fast, Pieper said. Same way with Tiago (who won the Oaklawn Handicap), who I got on, and Zenyatta (who won the Apple Blossom).
HALO NAJIB Zayat Stables Halo Najib jogged two miles under exercise rider Gennero Garcia on Thursday morning, his first day back at the track after working a half-mile on the turf on Tuesday in :50.40.
He came out of his work fine, trainer Dale Romans said.
The turf work came as a backup plan for Halo Najib in case he does not make the Derby field because of a lack of graded stakes earnings. Romans said if it looked like the colt would not make the Derby, Halo Najib probably would have another grass work Tuesday in preparation for the May 2 Crown Royal American Turf (GIII).
PYRO/Z FORTUNE Trainer Steve Asmussens two Kentucky Derby hopefuls galloped a mile Thursday morning, according to assistant trainer Scott Blasi.
Pyro is owned by Winchell Thoroughbreds and Z Fortune is owned by Zayat Stables and both are scheduled to work Monday.
Shaun Bridgmohan has the call on Pyro and Robby Albarado the mount on Z Fortune.
RECAPTURETHEGLORY Ronnie Lamarque and Louie Roussel IIIs Recapturetheglory jogged a mile and then galloped two miles after the renovation break with Lara Van Deren up.
Roussell, who trains the son of Cherokee Run, said the colt would work Saturday or Sunday, depending on the weather, and would go in the Derby no matter what the weather.
Hes not like Kandaly, said Roussel, referring to the colt he scratched on the afternoon of the 1994 Derby because of sloppy conditions. He will go. If its sloppy, hes going.
E.T. Baird has the mount.
SMOOTH AIR Mount Joy Stables Smooth Air jogged a mile and galloped a mile before the renovation break with Susie Milne up.
He goes twice around every morning and tomorrow it will be less jog and more gallop, trainer Bennie Stutts Jr. said.
Stutts said the Florida-bred son of Smooth Jazz is scheduled to school in the paddock Saturday afternoon, but that the colt would not visit the starting gate.
He has always been good at the gate and if I thought he needed it, Id do it, Stutts said.
Smooth Air is scheduled to work Sunday, but Stutts said he could wait a day should the weather turn bad.
Manoel Cruz has the mount in the Derby.
TOMCITO Jet Set Racing Stables Tomcito, sixth in the Coolmore Lexington (GII) in his most recent start and sitting in 25th place on the graded stakes earnings list of Kentucky Derby hopefuls with $151,292, galloped 1 ¾ miles Thursday morning with Manfreddy Guzman aboard.
He is doing very well and we are here, trainer Dante Zanelli said.
And if Tomcito does not get in the Derby . . .
We will wait for the Belmont or maybe go in the Peter Pan (May 10), Zanelli said.
VISIONAIRE Vision Racing and Team Valors Visionaire, winner of the Gotham (GIII) at Aqueduct, is scheduled to depart trainer Michael Matzs Keeneland Stable on Friday for the trip to Churchill Downs for Kentucky Derby 134.
Visionaire will be stabled in Barn 42.
Its a horse race, and I have the best horse in the race. Its that simple, he told a group of reporters assembled outside his office. Were going to Kentucky to win, anything less than that is not going to be OK with us. Theres such good karma going around the stable now that I dont see how he can get beat.
Dutrow watched Big Brown work from the top of the stretch and after his colt finished in a straight line, tight against the rail, he told exercise rider Michele Nevin I cant believe he went that fast. He looked like he was just galloping along when he went past me.
Big Brown, who is owned by IEAH Stable and Paul Pompa Jr., will be Dutrows first Kentucky Derby starter, and his famously laid-back trainer is not getting caught up in the hype.
Ive never been in this kind of spot before but I dont feel any pressure, not as long as my horse is going good. Im having fun. This is what I was born to do.
The son of a successful New York-based trainer, the younger Dutrow, 47, has already trained a Horse of the Year in Saint Liam, who took the 2005 title after winning that years Breeders Cup Classic. Most horsemen will tell you that Breeders Cup pressure is immense, and that Kentucky Derby pressure is somewhere beyond that. Most horsemen feel it differently from Big Browns trainer.
I love the spot Im in. I cant see anyone going into this race nearly as well as we are, he said.
Big Brown has won all three of his starts, the first two by a combined 24 lengths and his last, the $1 million Florida Derby, by five lengths while competing against South Floridas best 3-year-olds in training.
He ran on turf in his first race, at Saratoga Sept. 3, when owned solely by Pompa and trained by Patrick Reynolds; on a drying-out track at Gulfstream on March 5 well after IEAH Stable had bought in and Dutrow had taken over the colts training; and on a fast track in the Florida Derby March 29, from which he broke from Post 12 in the 1 1/8-mile race.
(The Saratoga race) was amazing, Dutrow said of the bay colts 11¼-length victory, and he took our breath away the first time he ran at Gulfstream, winning by 12¾ lengths.
Much was made of Big Browns post position in the Florida Derby, but Dutrow said it was never a concern.
I thought the only way he could get beat in the Florida Derby was if he ran into trouble, and the outside post assured us that he wouldnt get into trouble, he said.
We thought about the (April 12) Blue Grass, but the spacing from the Florida Derby to the Kentucky Derby (five weeks later) better suited us. We wanted a lot of time after the Florida Derby, and I think a lot of time is best for a race like (the Kentucky Derby).
Big Brown suffered from quarter cracks earlier in his career, but Dutrow said the colts one-time brittle feet are no longer a concern.
His feet have been cold the last three or four weeks, he said. Im not worried about his feet at all.
Big Brown is expected to depart Palm Meadows winter headquarters for Street Sense and Barbaro, the last two Kentucky Derby winners Monday.
I have about 80 horses up in New York, and I talk to my people up there every day, Dutrow said, but Id rather be here with this horse because its so much fun. He wants to be here at Palm Meadows.
Getting off his seat long enough to give his colt a peppermint, he said, We spoil him he probably gets away with murder but hes the one who told us he wants to be here.
Big Brown closed at 3-1, the favorite, after Pool 3 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.
Its an honor to be the favorite now, and hell be the favorite on Derby Day, I can guarantee that, Dutrow said. Were a betting stable, and well make sure hes the favorite.
Recapturetheglory worked today at Churchill Downs, breezing five furlongs in 1:01.20 (9/27), a day earlier than planned. Actually, it was a day later than originally planned, with trainer and co-owner Louis Roussell III calling a few audibles this week. After a strong gallop on Wednesday, Roussel postponed a Thursday work until Saturday.
Recapturetheglory's splits were :12.20, 24.40, 35.80, and :48.40. He galloped out in 1:15.
Roussell said it was a maintenance work. If you can look at an individual and you can see, in your mind, that hes fit and you can see some ribs showing, then you know hes not carrying any excess fat. Youre going do something with him thats going to keep him at that level, but not hurt him," Roussell said.
Roussell implied that Recapturetheglory has gone off his feed, or that he's worried that it will happen.
I did a little bit too much with him, Roussel said. The van trip down from Chicago was supposed to be six hours; it was eight. And I was worried because I wanted to get his major work done Thursday and I kind of overdid it a little bit with him. Instead of him getting right into it, it knocked him back a little bit, so this last week has been kind of like a time to try to build him back up again.
The real secret, I think, in these works is to keep them happy so they stay in the feed tub. If hes eating up everything afterward, then its been great. If he backs out of the feed tub, then I did too much and Ill have to take the responsibility for it.
It was Recapturetheglory's second work since winning the Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5.
On April 17, RECAPTURETHEGLORY breezed five furlongs in 1:01.00 (5/16) at Churchill Downs.
Roussell said Recapturetheglory would gallop into the Kentucky Derby.
Updated: April 26, 2008
(from Churchill Downs)
ADRIANO Lanes End Stakes (GII) winner Adriano galloped 1 ½ miles under exercise rider Xavier Azipuru at Churchill Downs Saturday morning. The Graham Motion-trained colt is scheduled to breeze shortly after the renovation break Sunday in preparation for a start in the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (GI) on May 3.
Thats the plan, as long as we get some nice weather, said assistant trainer Alice Clapham, looking up at the clearing skies with obvious approval. Well find out when Graham gets here what hes going to do.
Motion was scheduled to arrive in Louisville Saturday afternoon.
The son of A.P. Indy appeared to have settled well into to his surroundings at Barn 42 on the Churchill Downs backstretch.
Hes gotten so relaxed and laid back, Clapham said. He loves it.
Edgar Prado, who rode Barbaro to victory in the 2006 Derby, has the mount aboard Adriano.
ANAK NAKAL/COOL COAL MAN Anak Nakal walked under tack Saturday morning, 24 hours after breezing four furlongs in :46.60 at Churchill Downs, where he won the Kentucky Jockey Club (GII) last fall.
Stablemate Cool Coal Man galloped 1 ¼ miles under Megan Smillie after the renovation break. The Fountain of Youth winner, who captured an allowance race at Churchill last fall, is looking to rebound from a ninth-place finish in the Blue Grass Stakes over Keenelands Polytrack surface.
Theyve both won here, so thats something in their favor, said trainer Nick Zito. Wherever weve gone before, at least weve done well on the track. Im hoping the form (Anak Nakal) had in the Kentucky Jockey Club is something he has in the Kentucky Derby a week from today. Cool Coal Man also won on the track, so hopefully thats a good sign, too.
Julien Leparoux will ride Robert LaPentas Cool Coal Man for the first time in the Derby, while Rafael Bejarano will be aboard Four Roses Thoroughbreds Anak Nakal, also for the first time.
BEHINDATTHEBAR/COWBOY CAL/MONBA At Keeneland, Monba and Cowboy Cal worked for the first time since they finished first and second, respectively, in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (G1) on April 12.
Monba, with exercise rider Patti Krotenko aboard, was on the track by 6:45 a.m. and after jogging once the wrong way around the oval worked five furlongs over the Polytrack in 1:02.60 in company with Readys Echo. Monba was clocked galloping out in 1:14.60.
I thought he went well, trainer Todd Pletcher said about the son of Marias Mon. It was kind of in the norm for him in terms of what he does. Hes not an overzealous work horse. I thought he did fine.
We normally work him in company, Pletcher added. He wont do much on his own.
Less than 45 minutes later, Krotenko was aboard Cowboy Cal, who also jogged around the track the wrong way before he worked five furlongs by himself. The Giant's Causeway colt was clocked in 1:00 and galloped out in 1:12.
I thought he worked extremely well, said Pletcher.
Pletcher, who won 14 races during Keenelands spring meet that ended on Friday to earn his second training title at the track, said he has not decided when Monba and Cowboy Cal will ship to Churchill Downs and might stay at Keeneland as late as Wednesday. Asked if he would work Behindatthebar, who won the Coolmore Lexington (G2) a week ago, again before a possible start in the Kentucky Derby, Pletcher also said he had not decided.
He galloped well this morning, and were just kind of playing it by ear, he said about Behindatthebar. The son of Forest Wildcat galloped 1 ¼ miles with exercise rider Valerie Buck aboard.
With a week until the Derby, Pletcher said the race appears to be wide open.
A lot of times you learn more about the quality of the three-year-old crop a couple of races from now, he said. Were pleased with the way ours went (this morning). Theres some rain over at Churchill; thats why we stayed here, to work over a safe track. Were happy with that.
BIG BROWN The Florida Derby winner jogged once around the track under exercise rider Michelle Nevin Saturday morning at Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida.
Big Brown is scheduled to ship to Louisville after training hours Monday morning for trainer Richard Dutrow. The son of Boundary is tentatively slated to work three furlongs over the Churchill Downs track on Thursday in preparation for his highly anticipated start in the Derby. The Kentucky-bred colt, who has won all three of his career races by a combined 29 lengths, will be Dutrows first Derby starter.
Everyone wants to win the Derby, the veteran trainer said. If he wins the Derby its going to be big, no matter what the margin is.
Kent Desormeaux will have the return mount aboard Big Brown.
BIG TRUCK/TALE OF EKATI The Barclay Tagg-trained Derby duo of Big Truck and Tale of Ekati arrived at Churchill Downs around noontime Saturday following a van ride from Keeneland.
Big Truck, who finished 11th in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on Keenelands Polytrack surface after winning the Tampa Bay Derby, and Tale of Ekati, who is coming off a narrow victory over Eclipse Award-winning War Pass in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, settled into their stalls in Barn 48 on the Churchill Downs backstretch.
Eric Feins Big Truck is slated to work over the Churchill track on Monday, while Charles Fipkes Tale of Ekati is expected to work on Tuesday.
Eibar Coa will ride Tale of Ekati, leaving the mount aboard Big Truck open for Javier Castellano.
BOB BLACK JACK Things are looking better these days for the California-based bubble horse owned by Tim Kasparoff and Jeff Harmon, so much so in fact that the son of the Bertrando sire Stormy Jack was on an airplane at 4:30 Saturday morning jetting east with a run in the Kentucky Derby in mind.
The California-bred was accompanied by Kasparoff and his brother James, who also trains the colt, and the three of them were scheduled to arrive at Churchill Downs at 1 p.m and head toward Barn 45.
Bob Black Jack is currently No. 21 on the earnings list that qualifies horses for the Run for the Roses. But with at least one and possibly two defections now likely from the top 20, the $4,500 yearling is looking like theyll save a spot in the starting gate for him.
In his most recent outing, Bob Black Jack finished second to Colonel John in the Santa Anita Derby under veteran Richard Migliore. The Mig has the call back for the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby.
COLONEL JOHN The Santa Anita Derby winner took a mile and one half tour of the wet Churchill Downs oval Saturday morning, heading trackside with exercise rider Karine Lhuillier at 8:45 a.m. following the morning renovation break. The gallop was a good one and the 16.2-hands colt acquitted himself well on a strip the clockers were calling muddy.
He handled it well, agreed trainer Eoin Harty, who handles the homebred Tiznow colt for WinStar Farm.
The Irish-born conditioner was asked about the possibility of a wet track on Kentucky Derby day.
Its going to be what its going to be, Harty noted. He seemed to go fine out there today, so I guess that gives me a bit of confidence (he could handle an off track).
The trainer has his charges final Derby drill planned for Monday at five furlongs following the renovation break. For Sunday, he said his four-time winner would again gallop his mile and a half.
Same routine tomorrow, he said, with maybe a visit to the gate, if climatic conditions cooperate.
COURT VISION/Z HUMOR Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott sent his Kentucky Derby-bound pair for dual paddock walkthroughs and 1 ½- mile gallops. Churchill Downs all-time leader in wins and stakes victories said that while a trainer does everything he or she can to prepare,
Theres nothing that can really prepare for Derby Day. We just do what we can to give the horses the best possible education.
Mott said both runners are doing well in their Derby preparations and that Zayat Stables Z Humor gets a little heated up, but was much better with that today. No decision has been made in regards to when the pair would turn in their final Derby workouts, with Monday or Tuesday still targeted depending on weather.
Mott enters todays opening-day card at the Downs with an all-time best 583 victories and 73 stakes wins. Hell try to notch stakes victory No. 74 with Majestic Warrior, winner of last years Hopeful (GI) in todays Derby Trial. Thats a big one for us today, he admitted. We really want to get Majestic Warrior back on track and get the week off to a good start.
While Mott has won most every important race at Churchill Downs, the Derby has eluded him. But the even-keeled Mott said theres no added pressure this week.
Weve been here before and were just hoping to have a little bit of good fortune this time, he said. I think weve got a chance with two horses that could get the distance; thats important.
IEAH Stables and WinStar Farms Court Vision will be ridden by Garrett Gomez in Kentucky Derby 134. Rene Douglas will pilot Z Humor.
DENIS OF CORK Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warrens Denis of Cork galloped a mile and a half under trainer David Carroll after the renovation break Saturday morning.
A winner of three of four career starts, Denis of Cork is scheduled to work Monday morning after the renovation break with Calvin Borel up. With $165,000 in graded stakes earnings, Denis of Cork would need a defection from the list of Kentucky Derby hopefuls to be among the top 20 in graded earnings upon entry time Wednesday.
He is going to breeze Monday Derby or no Derby, Carroll said.
Denis of Cork won his first three starts, including his maiden score here at Churchill Downs on Nov. 24. His lone setback was a fifth-place finish in the April 5 Illinois Derby (GII).
He should have never run there, said Carroll of Denis of Cork who went to Chicago after an eight-week layoff. Since he has been back here, he has been doing great.
Mondays work would be the second for Denis of Cork since the Illinois Derby. He worked five furlongs in 1:00 under Borel on April 21.
GAYEGO I was very concerned last night; I didnt sleep too well, trainer Paulo Lobo noted, prior to sending out his Kentucky Derby charge Gayego for his final drill Saturday at Churchill Downs. I heard the rain at 2 a.m. and I didnt know how the track was going to take it. But I talked to some trainers (at the track) this morning and they said it would be fine. They said to go ahead and do my work.
Lobo, the Brazilian-born conditioner who now works out of his base in Southern California, told his rider Hall of Famer Mike Smith that he wanted him to go five eighths in 1:01. Its just a maintenance work, he said. He doesnt need much now.
Smith went trackside with the son of Gilded Time at 8:30 just as the track maintenance crew had finished their break, harrowing and sealing the wet track. The rider held tight; Gayego was full of himself and delighted to be able to stretch his nearly black legs.
When Smith and the Cubanacan Stables colt had finished their exercise, Lobo had one word for it: Perfect.
With only a short backtrack, Smith broke his mount off at the five-eighths pole and fired a steady clip all the way around to the finish line. The clockers caught the splits at :12.40, :24.40, :36.60, :48.60 and a final time of 1:01. Perfect, indeed. The out time registered at 1:14.80.
Exactly. Exactly what I wanted, Lobo offered. I think it was an awesome work.
Smith, who has ridden the Kentucky-bred in all five of his lifetime starts, was equally impressed.
He was very relaxed out there today, the California-based rider said. He wanted to please. And when I galloped out with him, he pulled hard on me. He wanted more.
The rider noted that it surely was a good sign that the horse seemed to like the Churchill strip.
I know when I galloped Giacomo (Smiths 2005 Derby winner) here, he loved this track, he said. He felt good going over it; he galloped like a champion. This horse puts me in mind of that. Im hoping that it proves just as good.
Lobo and Smith both spoke briefly with members of the press following the drill, then dash together to catch a 10 oclock plane to California. The trainer was planning to return to Kentucky on Tuesday and stay through the Derby.
HALO NAJIB Trainer Dale Romans continued to play the waiting game Saturday morning as he overlooked his 40-horse stable. Are we going to get in? was the first question from the conditioner of the OBS Championship winner. Meanwhile, the Zayat Stables color-bearer continued to prepare this morning as if a Derby date would be in the works, galloping a mile and a half.
Romans said Halo Najib would work Monday or Tuesday with the surface of the workout in question. If it appears that Halo Najib will make the 20-horse Derby starting gate, he will drill on dirt on one of the two days. Romans said if the likelihood of making the field looked ominous, he instead would consider a Tuesday turf workout in preparation for the Crown Royal American Turf (GIII).
As for naming a potential Derby jockey for Halo Najib, Romans said he is in no rush. Well let it play out and see what happens, he said. Not too many agents have been calling. Thats not the way I do business usually. They know Ill call them if I need them.
Romans looks to get his Derby Week off to a fast start this afternoon when he saddles speedy sprinter Eatons Gift in the Derby Trial. Seven-and-a-half (furlongs) may be stretching him to the limit, but hes awfully fast and talented, he said, adding that he is not thrilled with the rail post position.
KENTUCKY BEAR Bear Stables Kentucky Bear, who ran third in the April 12 Toyota Blue Grass (GI) in only his third career start, worked five furlongs in :59.60 under Jamie Theriot Saturday at Churchill Downs. The work was the fastest of the morning over a muddy track.
Clockers caught the colt galloping out in 1:12.20.
Trained by Reade Baker, Kentucky Bear has only $75,000 in graded stakes earnings and would need a massive number of defections of Kentucky Derby hopefuls to make the field.
PYRO/Z FORTUNE Trainer Steve Asmussens pair of Fair Grounds stakes winners both turned in light, pre-dawn exercise this morning at Churchill Downs. Louisiana Derby (GII) champion Pyro and Lecomte Stakes (GIII) victor Z Fortune each galloped a mile and a quarter. Assistant trainer Scott Blasi supervised in the absence of Asmussen, who will be joining the Kentucky string from his Texas home base in the coming days.
Blasi said both horses remain on schedule for Monday works, though was non-committal about distance or whether Pyro would work solo or with a potential workmate.
Winchell Thoroughbreds Pyro will be ridden by Shaun Bridgmohan in Derby 134. The assignment on Zayat Stables Z Fortune goes to 2007 Preakness-winning jockey Robby Albarado.
RECAPTURETHEGLORY The Illinois Derby (GII) champion received his first of back-to-back easy days around the shed row, one day after drilling five furlongs in 1:01.20 for trainer Louie Roussel III. Recapturetheglory walked for 45 minutes and enjoyed grazing on some of Kentuckys famed bluegrass, and will do the same tomorrow, said Roussels assistant trainer and exercise rider Lara Van Deren.
We typically walk two days after a workout, so hell walk again Sunday and gallop on Monday, Van Deren said. Tuesday morning, well school in the paddock, and well likely also school sometime during the week on raceday in the paddock.
Recapturetheglory is part of a small, 14-horse stable for Roussel, who co-owns the colt with Ronnie Lamarque. The bulk of the stable is training at Crestview Farm in Harvard, Ill. and soon will be headed to Arlington Park.
Leading Chicago-based rider E.T. Baird has the mount on the potential Kentucky Derby pacesetter.
SMOOTH AIR The roller coaster ride that has been 70-year-old trainer Bennie Stutts Jr.s first Kentucky Derby experience remained bumpy for a third day as Smooth Air remained in his stall in Barn 35.
He has a low grade fever and he is being treated with anti-biotics, Stutts said. He has an elevated white cell count that shows infection. His temperature is normal this morning and if it stays down today and I am able to train tomorrow, well be OK. He doesnt need to work. Hes fit.
Stutts first noticed something was amiss Thursday afternoon.
We trained him Thursday morning, but when we came back to the barn at noon, he had left some feed in the tub and he always eats everything, Stutts said. We knew then we had a sick horse.
He had a clean bill of health before leaving Florida (on Sunday). I dont think it came from shipping, because that would show up right away. He didnt go to the track Friday and Dallas Stewarts vet Dr. (Phil) Tripp worked on him and gave him plenty of fluids and got his temperature down. But yesterday afternoon it went back up higher than it was the day before.
If he is not 100 percent, he will not run. It wouldnt be fair to the horse. Hes a horse with a future. Nobody is looking more to run in the Derby than I am, but he has to be 100 percent to run.
TOMCITO Jet Set Racing Stables Tomcito, sixth in the Coolmore Lexington (GII) in his most recent start, galloped two miles after the renovation break under Manfreddy Guzman.
Tomcito, trained by Dante Zanelli, has $151,292 in graded stakes earnings and would need a handful of defections from Kentucky Derby hopefuls to make the field.
VISIONAIRE Team Valor and Vision Racings Gotham (GIII) winner Visionaire was expected to arrive via van from Keeneland Saturday after noon local time. Visionaire had been training over the Polytrack in Lexington for the past three weeks since arriving from Florida for the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (GI).
Trainer Michael Matz, who won the 2006 roses in his Kentucky Derby debut with Barbaro, has indicated that Visionaire will turn in his final pre-Derby workout Monday under the Twin Spires.
Updated: April 26, 2008
By Steve Byk and
Steve Haskin
Mount Joy Stables' Smooth Air spiked a slight fever Thursday that prevented his going to the track for a scheduled gallop in preparation for the May 3 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I).
The developing situation could result in his defection from the Derby starting grid, according to trainer Bennie Stutts, who at 70 is looking to run in his first Kentucky Derby. Stutts said the Florida Derby (gr. I) runner-up will not go to the track Saturday, having been treated with antibiotics for what Stutts suspects is a low grade infection.
During a press briefing Saturday morning, Stutts said the colt had improved and that his temperature was a normal 99.9 degrees. He said the colt is now scheduled to go to the track Sunday.
"Right now , he is doing much better," Stutts said. "He is bright and eating. "If he is not 100%, he will not run in the Derby. No one wants to run in the Derby more than me."
Because Smooth Air "is 100% fit" he does not need a breeze Derby week to be able to run in the classic, Stutts said.
"There's going to be a lot of disappointment if this little colt can't run." a concerned Stutts said Friday. "But if he's not right, I won't run him." Stutts added that if he could not get Smooth Air back to the track by Monday, he would likely be forced to not enter the son of Smooth Jazz in the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby.
Calder-based Smooth Air emerged as a viable Derby candidate with a win in the grade II Hutcheson in January. Though a troubled third in his two-turn debut at Tampa in the Sam F. Davis made many question the colt's route aptitude, Stutts persevered toward the Florida Derby with the bay via a series of old-fashioned mile workouts and long gallops. Smooth Air responded to the stamina-building efforts with a strong placement behind likely Derby favorite Big Brown.
By Bill Finley
Big Brown is clearly the fastest, most talented horse among the 30 or so 3-year-olds vying for a spot in the Kentucky Derby field and he's coming off one of the most electrifying Derby preps ever run. Yet, he figures to be 3-1 or higher when the field of 20 breaks from the starting gate at Churchill Downs. Situations like this rarely present themselves: an underlayed Big Brown is absolutely the pick to win the Kentucky Derby.
The reason that he won't be 6-5 or lower is because he has only started three times. That makes him an inexperienced horse and inexperienced horses don't always fare well in the Kentucky Derby, which is a uniquely grueling race. No horse who has started three times or fewer has won the Derby since Regret in 1915. It's a statistic that is going to be repeated over and over again Derby Week, and it's going to scare off a lot of horseplayers and handicappers.
That's the way it is when it comes to the Kentucky Derby. Unlike any other race in America, it's analyzed and scrutinized until every last facet of the race and its starters has been examined. That's not exactly a good thing.
The Kentucky Derby has become the world's most overanalyzed horse race. Handicappers tend to overlook the obvious and instead get caught up in esoterica. Remember the Dosage Index? As a handicapping theory, it turned out to be as credible as Hillary Clinton's Bosnia/sniper stories. What about the premise that no horse could win the Derby off a five-week layoff? Barbaro took care of that one. Coming next: Throw out all horses born on a Thursday because no horse born on a Thursday has won the Kentucky Derby since 1928. (OK, I made that one up).
That's not to say that the experience factor is irrelevant when it comes to the Derby. It is a difficult race and lightly raced horses might be at a disadvantage. But the statistics aren't nearly as overpowering as they have been made out to be. Since 1955, only nine horses that have started three times or fewer prior to the Derby have raced in the Derby. That's hardly the sort of sample size you need to make a definitive judgment about the merits of lightly raced horses.
It's also worth keeping in mind that the game has changed immeasurably over the last 20 years or so. It wasn't that long ago when horses routinely had 12 or 13 lifetime starts coming into the Derby. Now, most have had just a handful. Big Brown won't be competing against a bunch of grizzled veterans but against a lot of horses that aren't that different than him. How much worse off is he than horses like Gayego (5 career starts), Monba (5 career starts) or Recapturetheglory (6 career starts) or Colonel John (6 career starts)?
Does it really make sense to wager on one of those horses instead of Big Brown because they've had a few more starts? That would mean overlooking the fact that Big Brown has the best Beyer numbers in the race by far, has won his three starts by a combined 29 lengths and won the Florida Derby from the 12 post, something that was supposed to be impossible.
"I think that you're looking at something here where talent will make up for the experience," trainer Rick Dutrow said the other day.
Indeed. He's the best horse and he should win. It's really that simple.
***
The prospective field for this year's Belmont Stakes includes what could be one of the more interesting starters ever in the race. A horse named Casino Drive is on his way to New York from Japan to gear up for the third leg of the Triple Crown. He has raced just once, winning a maiden race in Japan by 11 1/2 lengths. What makes him particularly interesting is his breeding. He is by Mineshaft out of the dam Better Than Honour. She is the dam of the last two Belmont winners, Jazil and Rags to Riches. This could be an historic three-peat.
He is expected to prep for the Belmont Stakes in the May 10 Peter Pan at Belmont Park. The same trainer, Kazuo Fujisawa, is also shipping over a potential Belmont starter in Spark Candle. He has won one of five career starts.
by Evan Hammonds
Updated: April 27, 2008
WinStar Farms Colonel John, one of the favorites for Saturdays Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), solidified his status with a scintillating five-furlong drill over the main track at Churchill Downs Sunday morning. Under exercise rider Karine Lhuillier, Colonel John got the trip in :57 4/5.
Colonel John, winner of the Santa Anita Derby (gr. I) in his last start, broke off at the three-quarter pole and lowered his body and really picked it up at the five-eighths. He was clocked in splits of :12, :23 1/5, :34 3/5, :46. He galloped out six furlongs in 1:11 1/5. His final quarter was in a snappy :23 1/5.
Looking on was Elliott Walden, a former trainer and vice president of WinStar Farm.
He went very well, Walden said. I dont think it was too fast considering were six days out (from the Derby). We feel very comfortable about it.
The track is very live this morning, Walden continued. We had quite a few horses work fast today. I clocked (Oaks hopeful) Proud Spell in :58 and one. Eight Bells went in :58 and one, too. Good horses work fast. He handled the dirt that was a good indicator. The rider never moved and she felt he handled the surface well.
The main concern with Colonel Johns Derby chances lie in the fact he has not run a race over a dirt track with all six of his previous efforts having come over synthetic surfaces in California. A winner of four of six starts, with two seconds, Colonel John broke his maiden in his second start during the Oak Tree meet at Santa Anita last October, then won the $105,000 Real Quiet Stakes at Hollywood Park, and finished up his 2-year-old campaign with a runner-up effort in the CashCall Futurity (gr. I).
This year, the son of Tiznow, out of the Turkoman mare Sweet Damsel, won the Sham Stakes (gr. III) by a half-length over El Gato Malo, then came from ninth to win the Santa Anita Derby by a half-length over Bob Black Jack.
The way this horse is going, you just hope you can stay together the next six days and we have a chance, Walden said outside Barn 41. Thats all you can ask for.
Colonel John is trained by Eoin Harty. As an assistant, for Bob Baffert, Harty has been to the Derby before with winner Silver Charm and Real Quiet. Real Quiet's bid for the Triple Crown was stopped at the wire of the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) by Victory Gallop, who was trained by....Elliott Walden.
Why they can win and why they can't
By Jennie Rees jrees@courier-journal.com April 27, 2008
Three days before entries are taken Wednesday for Saturday's 134th Kentucky Derby, the owners of 30 horses remain willing to pay $50,000 in entry fees -- plus probably at least that much for tickets, hotels and bad mint juleps -- for the right to come away with only a $150 keepsake saddle towel if their horse finishes up the track at Churchill Downs.
But the owners -- and even a lot of the trainers -- believe their horses have the ability to wear the garland of roses. Here we help them make their cases why they can win -- tempered with a dose of reality why they can't.
Pyro
Why: He is classy, bred for the distance, has more stalking speed if needed than some think, is 1 for 1 at Churchill and never has run poorly on dirt. Throw out his Polytrack Blue Grass.
Why not: No horse in modern times has finished 10th in his final prep and won the Derby. He has not improved his speed figures at age 3 the way typical Derby winners do.
Proud Spell
Why: She's wonderfully consistent, is by a Derby runner-up (Proud Citizen), and this is not a strong bunch of colts.
Why not: These colts are better than their reputations. No filly has won the Derby without previously racing against the boys. No Derby winner has won without first racing at 11/8 miles since Middleground in 1950. She's most likely running in the Oaks anyway.
Tale of Ekati
Why: How many times have we seen the horse that a jockey doesn't pick (Edgar Prado chose Adriano instead) win the Derby? Barclay Tagg knows a Derby horse when he sees one. His 2- and 3-year-old form is the type that captures the roses.
Why not: He's not fast enough. The Wood finish was dreadfully slow.
Colonel John
Why: His Santa Anita Derby was one of the most impressive preps. No one else has run the last three-eighths of a 11/8-mile race in a sizzling 351/5 seconds. He's never been worse than second, is bred to go 10 furlongs -- on dirt -- and his dappled coat shouts out peak health.
Why not: He's never raced on dirt, and that turns out to make a difference.
Gayego
Why: He might actually prefer the dirt to synthetics: His Arkansas Derby win was his best race to date, and he wasn't slowing at the end. He and Big Brown are the only contenders who have two triple-digit Beyer speed figures this year. Trainer Paulo Lobo is 1 for 1 at Churchill, winning the 2002 Oaks with Farda Amiga.
Why not: He's a good-looking horse, but his sire, Gilded Time, is known primarily for producing sprinters.
Big Brown
Why: He's the fastest horse in the field. He already has bucked history by being the first horse to win the Florida Derby in his third lifetime start. Things are falling into place, starting with the injury of another top speed horse, War Pass.
Why not: The Florida Derby isn't the Kentucky Derby, which no horse has won in his fourth start since 1915. The firm Churchill surface will make him feel those old quarter cracks in his feet. He hasn't faced this caliber of competition.
Z Humor
Why: Sire Distorted Humor already has had one Derby winner (Funny Cide), and he's out of a mare by Belmont winner A.P. Indy. Nobody changed positions much in the Illinois Derby in which he was third, and his stalking style is a good fit here.
Why not: He's a cut below. His lone stakes win was (in a dead heat) the Delta Jackpot, whose field is a cumulative 1 for 26 since.
Monba
Why: His fast-finishing fractions of the Blue Grass show he's on top of his game. He won a mile allowance race at Churchill last fall. Todd Pletcher is too good a trainer to go to 0 for 21 (or 22) in the Derby.
Why not: He's better on synthetic surfaces. He looked better in the Blue Grass because all of the dirt graded-stakes winners faltered. If you throw out his bad Fountain of Youth, then he's had only one prep race all year.
Court Vision
Why: He's never run a bad race and was a rare winner at 11/8 miles at 2. His recent Churchill work (461/5 seconds) shows he loves the track, where he won the Iroquois, and is coming around at the right time. He has similar breeding to Thunder Gulch, the $51 Derby winner in 1995. Jockey Garrett Gomez's agent, Ron Anderson, one of the sport's best handicappers, picked this mount over Colonel John before their last preps.
Why not: His speed figures suggest he's just not fast enough. Derby history is littered with jockey agents who made the wrong call.
Z Fortune
Why: His Arkansas Derby was huge, starting from post 11 and racing wide on both turns, making him one of the rare horses in this field with a triple digit (102) Beyer speed figure.
Why not: He might not want to go that far. If he couldn't run down Gayego to win the Arkansas Derby, he won't win here.
Adriano
Why: He looks the part, has a huge stride and is bred for it. Though it wasn't the toughest competition, his Lane's End performance was impressive. Jockey Edgar Prado picked him over the winners of the Wood and Blue Grass. He was on grass so much only because trainer Graham Motion wanted to race him longer distances last summer than offered in dirt maiden races.
Why not: His trainer said he was a better grass horse after he was ninth in the Fountain of Youth, his only start on real dirt.
Recapturetheglory
Why: Go no further than his name; owners Louie Roussel (the trainer) and Ronnie Lamarque had 1988 3-year-old champion Risen Star. Similar to 2002 Derby winner War Emblem, he came from nowhere with a huge race to win the Illinois Derby in wire-to-wire fashion.
Why not: If Risen Star can't win the Derby, he can? His breeding is distance-challenged.
Smooth Air
Why: He's got the sneaky good form of a horse who could score at a huge price. The Derby often rewards good people who have spent their lives in racing, and that's 70-year-old trainer Bennie Stutts, who has a six-horse stable and quickly became a media favorite with his emotional and homespun ways.
Why not: He's really a miler. The temperature he spiked last week well could force him out.
Cool Coal Man
Why: He's 2 for 2 at 11/8 miles on dirt, and being by Mineshaft he should relish another furlong. Coal is huge in Kentucky.
Why not: He faded from third to ninth in the Blue Grass in a race where the other speed kept going.
Anak Nakal
Why: He loves Churchill, having won last fall's Kentucky Jockey Club and working very well here. Selling the sire (Victory Gallop went to Turkey) is a sure way to ensure his progeny will score big.
Why not: He's lost his three races this year by a total of 29¼ lengths.
Eight Belles
Why: The massive filly is consistent, bred to go long and has a prime stalking style. This isn't a great bunch of colts.
Why not: As with stablemate Proud Spell, no filly has won the Derby without previously racing against colts. No horse has won without racing 11/8 miles since Middleground in 1950. These colts aren't that bad.
Cowboy Cal
Why: He's a true distance horse and is wonderfully consistent.
Why not: He couldn't hold on in the Blue Grass after getting six furlongs in a dawdling 1:13. He's a grass horse.
Behindatthebar
Why: He ran extremely well in winning the Coolmore Lexington. He'll have the karma of all the infield drinkers.
Why not: His only disappointing race was on dirt. He hasn't run 11/8 miles. If he was a good thing in this spot, why would Todd Pletcher be hedging about waiting for the Preakness?
Visionaire
Why: He was the only dirt stakes-winner in the funky Polytrack Blue Grass to close any ground -- and while 10 wide. Michael Matz knows how to train a Derby winner.
Why not: Since 1937, only six winners have finished worse than third in their last race before the Derby. In the past 50 years, only two horses have been worse than third -- and they were both fourth.
Big Truck
Why: His Blue Grass was too bad to be true, so throw it out. Like Big Brown, he's got the positive vibes of running in a major hub of UPS.
Why not: Horses who finish 11th -- beaten almost 12 lengths -- in the final prep do not wear the roses.
Bob Black Jack
Why: He's the the world-record holder for six furlongs but will rate and was three strides from winning the Santa Anita Derby. His 109 Beyer is the best in the field. With that name, it's in the cards.
Why not: No California-bred has won since Decidedly in 1962. He didn't win the Santa Anita Derby and now must go a furlong farther. A trainer with a three-horse stable winning the Derby is the stuff of Hollywood.
Denis of Cork
Why: His April 21 work and monster gallop-out was reminiscent of Street Sense's electrifying pre-Derby work. He resembles his broodmare sire, Derby winner Unbridled.
Why not: The last horse to win the Derby in his fifth lifetime start was Exterminator in 1918. The last horse to be as bad as fifth in his last prep was Iron Liege in 1957. He might not get in.
On April 13, ADRIANO breezed four in :50.00 (29/42) at CD.
On April 20, ADRIANO breezed five in 1:01.80 (18/39) at CD.
On April 27, ADRIANO breezed five in 1:00.80 (21/62) at CD.
Won Grade II Lane's End on March 22.
On April 18, ANAK NAKAL breezed four in :49.40 (20/33) at CD.
On April 25, ANAK NAKAL breezed four in :46.60 (2/26) at CD.
Fifth in Grade I Wood Memorial on April 5.
On April 12, BIG BROWN worked five in 1:00.60 (1/3) at PMM.
On April 18, BIG BROWN breezed five in 1:00.60 (1/2) at PMM.
On April 24, BIG BROWN worked five furlongs in :58.60 (1/1) at PMM
Won Grade I Florida Derby on March 29.
On April 22, BIG TRUCK breezed four in :48.80 (8/43) at KEE.
On April 28, BIG TRUCK breezed five in :59.40 (1/22) at CD.
Eleventh in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 12.
On April 14, BOB BLACK JACK worked four in :48.00 (8/38) at SA. (first time blinkers)
On April 21, BOB BLACK JACK worked six in 1:10.80 (2/19) at SA.
On April 28, BOB BLACK JACK breezed four in :48.60 (15/44) at CD.
Second in Grade I Santa Anita Derby on April 5.
On April 14, COLONEL JOHN worked four in :47.40 (4/38) at SA.
On April 20, COLONEL JOHN breezed five in :59.40 (3/45) at SA.
On April 27, COLONEL JOHN breezed five in :57.80 (1/62) at CD.
Won Grade I Santa Anita Derby on April 5.
On April 24, COOL COAL MAN breezed four in :47.40 (2/35) at CD.
Ninth in Toyota Blue Grass on April 12
On April 17, COURT VISION breezed four in :46.20 (1/25) at CD. (first time blinkers)
On April 27, COURT VISION breezed five in 1:00.80 (21/62) at CD.
Third in Grade I Wood Memorial on April 5.
On April 26, COWBOY CAL breezed five in 1:00 (3/22) at KEE.
Finished second in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass on April 12.
On April 21, DENIS OF CORK breezed five in 1:00.00 (1/23) at CD.
On April 28, DENIS OF CORK breezed four in :48.00 (5/44) at CD.
Fifth in Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5.
On April 20, EIGHT BELLES worked four in :46.60 (2/39) at KEE.
On April 27, EIGHT BELLES breezed five in :58.20 (2/62) at CD.
Won Grade II Fantasy Stakes on April 6.
On April 26, GAYEGO breezed five on a muddy track in 1:01.00 (5/20) at CD.
Won Arkansas Derby on April 12.
On April 22, HALO NAJIB breezed four on firm turf in :50.40 (1/2) at CD.
Seventh in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 12.
On April 26, MONBA breezed five in 1:02.60 (16/22) at KEE in company with Ready's Image.
Won Grade I Toyota Blue Grass on April 12.
On April 21, PYRO worked six at Keeneland in fog in company with Noonmark. The work could not be timed.
On April 28, PYRO breezed four in :49.80 (29/44) at CD.
Tenth in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 12.
On April 17, RECAPTURETHEGLORY breezed five in 1:01.00 (5/16) at CD.
On April 25, RECAPTURETHEGLORY breezed five in 1:01.20 (9/27) at CD.
Won Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5.
On April 13, SMOOTH AIR worked a mile in 1:41.00 (1/3) at CRC.
On April 19, SMOOTH AIR worked seven in 1:25.80 (1/1) at CRC.
Second in Grade I Florida Derby on March 29.
On April 17, TALE OF EKATI breezed four in :49.20 (28/29) at KEE.
On April 23, TALE OF EKATI breezed five in 1:00.20 (2/11) at KEE.
Won Grade I Wood Memorial on April 5.
On April 22, VISIONAIRE breezed four in :49.60 (16/43) at KEE.
On April 28, VISIONAIRE breezed four in :48.40 (11/44) at CD.
Eleventh in Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes on April 12.
On April 21, Z FORTUNE breezed four in :50.20 (26/33) at CD.
On April 28, Z FORTUNE breezed four in :51.00 (38/44) at CD.
Second in Grade II Arkansas Derby on April 12.
On April 17, Z HUMOR breezed four in :47.60 (3/25) at CD.
On April 27, Z HUMOR breezed five in 1:01.20 (27/62) at CD.
Third in Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5.
THE PREAKNESS
May 11, 2008Recommend (1)
BY WILL GRAVES
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Big Brown slowed ever so slightly as he made his way to the track at Churchill Downs on Thursday morning.
The big bay colt turned his head to look behind him, only to see the usual batch of trainers, exercise riders and barn workers quietly muddling through the mist, caught up in their daily pre-dawn routines.
Big Brown waited for just a second, then followed good friend Cody -- his stable pony -- out to the track for a jog. Only then did it dawn on exercise rider Michelle Nevin what the big guy was up to.
''He was looking for the cameras, he wanted to pose,'' Nevin said.
But the paparazzi that followed the horse's every move in the days before his dominant 4?226-130?-length victory in the Kentucky Derby are long gone. A sense of normalcy has returned to the backside, though Big Brown certainly won't lack for admirers when he arrives at Pimlico a few days before next Saturday's Preakness, the second leg of thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown.
Until then, Big Brown will have to settle for spending most of his days hanging out inside Barn 22.
Not that he's complaining. Accommodations could be worse.
There's plenty of room in stall 12 for him to take a nap, which is often. When he gets the munchies, there's a sack of hay hanging just outside the door on one side. If he gets bored he can always start batting around the rubber ball that dangles ever so temptingly on the other.
Lonely? He can poke his head out and look over at neighbors Cody and Frost Giant.
If he can't sleep, he can always visit with Manny, the night watchman hired by trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. to make sure nobody tries to sneak into the barn. Two people had to be escorted away during Derby week after attempting to slide in through the back door.
''He's got it pretty good,'' said exercise rider Walter Blum Jr.
We should all be so lucky.
The days after the biggest victory of his young life have been filled with rest, relaxation and all the oats, hay and peppermints he wants.
Dutrow keeps a close eye on his sport's newest superstar, monitoring everything from his eating habits to his temperament.
Yet other than the blanket of roses draped delicately over the wall across from Big Brown's stall -- the equine equivalent of a star on the dressing room door -- there's no sign that he's coming off the most taxing race of his short career.
Dutrow didn't do anything out of the ordinary during Big Brown's post-Derby physical examination, even after the death of filly Eight Belles, who broke both of her front legs while galloping out after finishing second in the race.
''He's ready for anything,'' Dutrow said.
Including a run at history. After spending a few days mostly cooped up in his stall, Nevin said she could feel Big Brown itching to let it loose while jogging around the track Thursday.
''I kinda had to hold him back,'' she said.
Good luck with that. As relaxed as Big Brown appears in his stall, things change when he sees Nevin enter with the saddle in her hands.
''He just kind of blows up,'' Blum said. ''He goes from a size 30 waist to a size 40 waist because he knows it's time to go.''
While many high-profile thoroughbreds are skittish in the crowds, Big Brown seems perfectly at ease in the spotlight. He preened for the fans while being schooled in the paddock a few days before the Derby, and never got caught up in the chaos following his victory.
''He just knows how to handle himself,'' Nevin said. ''He's got an air about him. He's a different kind of horse.''
The only thing that bothers Big Brown, it seems, are flowers. Much like 2006 Derby winner Barbaro, Big Brown got fussy after winning the Florida Derby, shuffling around when organizers tried to hand him the blanket of purple orchids given to the winner.
When it came time to take photos in the winner's circle following the Derby, Dutrow bucked tradition by throwing the blanket of roses at Nevin and Blum rather than lay it over Big Brown's neck.
Nevin and Blum dutifully held the flowers for a moment, then dropped the blanket on the ground to join the party, leaving the most hallowed floral arrangement in sports laying on the infield for a few hours before it was rescued by a state trooper.
The blanket remains in pretty good shape, though Big Brown largely ignores the roses during his daily hot walks around the barn. He's more interested in getting his next treat. The sound of a candy wrapper crinkling is enough to get him to stop what he's doing and look over with his pleading brown eyes.
They're eyes Dutrow has a hard time denying. The trainer -- who lived in a tack room at Aqueduct in New York earlier in his career -- will spend several hours standing outside Big Brown's stall rubbing the horse's nose and handing him the mints he craves.
''I'd rather do that than be over at the hotel,'' Dutrow said. ''He's cool. I like hanging out with him.''
It's an entourage that will only get bigger if Big Brown takes another step toward the Triple Crown by winning the Preakness. If he does, the serenity surrounding his barn at Churchill Downs this week will give way to three weeks of madness at Belmont as he prepares to become the first Triple Crown winner in 30 years.
It'll be no biggie for Big Brown. Horse racing's Next Top Model.
Rick Dutrow, trainer of Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown, continued to reinforce the "root against" sentiment of some fans when he said yesterday that the Preakness "looks like an absolute party" with the absence of Harlem Rocker from the field.
"I wasn't worried about him actually beating us," Dutrow said. "I was concerned about him making our horse run harder than we wanted. This gives us a chance to have an easy race for our horse."
Preakness officials have been told the flight with Big Brown is scheduled to land at Baltimore-Washington International Airport at 5:30 p.m. The van carrying the horses from BWI is expected to arrive at Pimlico approximately one hour later.
Trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. is expected to attend the Preakness post-position draw, to be held at 5 p.m. Wednesday at the ESPN Zone in downtown Baltimore.
Dutrow was born and raised in Maryland, where his father, the late Richard E. Dutrow, was a prominent trainer for many years.
Big Brown will be the younger Dutrows first Preakness runner. His father started one horse in the Preakness, Spartan Cat, who finished sixth in 1998.
Dutrow is scheduled to attend the annual Alibi Breakfast Thursday morning at Pimlico. He has been selected as the Fox News Power Player of the Week and will be interviewed by Fox News anchor Chris Wallace Thursday afternoon for the segment that will air Sunday morning.
If Gayego and Big Brown both run Saturday, it will be the sixth time since Kentucky Derby horses began running in the Preakness in 1918 that only two Derby starters moved on to Baltimore for the Preakness. The last time was in 1980 when Codex defeated the Derby-winning filly Genuine Risk in the Preakness. Codex was Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas first winner in a Triple Crown race. Lukas, who has saddled five Preakness winners, is tied with Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons with a record 13 victories in races in the Triple Crown series.
Big Brown, a son of Boundary, won his first start for Pompa and trainer Patrick Reynolds by 11¼ lengths in a turf race at Saratoga Race Course on Sept. 3. The victory on the closing day of the 2007 Saratoga season quickly produced offers to purchase the colt. Pompa sold 75 percent of Big Brown to the IEAH partnership headed by Michael Iavarone and the colt was transferred to Dutrow, who handles many of IEAHs runners.
Since recovering from hoof problems during the late fall and winter, Big Brown has reeled off three consecutive victories for Dutrow. The colt was entered in a turf race at Gulfstream Park in Florida on March 5 for his 3-year-old season debut. Wet conditions forced the race to be moved from the turf to the main track, where Big Brown romped to a 12¾-length victory. Dutrow brought the colt back in the Florida Derby (G1) 24 days later and he won by five lengths after starting from the outside post in the field of 12. He started from post 20 in the Derby, quickly got into a stalking position under Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux, moved to the lead at the head of the stretch and drew away to a 4 ¾-length victory.
BEHINDATTHEBAR With Eddie King aboard, the Lexington Stakes (G2) winner returned to the track at Belmont Park Tuesday morning and galloped 1¼ miles.
The Forest Wildcat colt trained by Todd Pletcher breezed five furlongs in 1:00.13 Sunday morning and walked the shedrow Monday.
Behindatthebar began his career in California in January with trainer Craig Dollase. He moved to Pletchers barn prior to a fifth-place finish in the El Camino Real Derby at Bay Meadows on March 8. Since then, hes won an allowance race at Santa Anita and the Lexington on April 19 at Keeneland.
Weve obviously been pleased with his progress, Pletcher said by phone from his office at the Oklahoma training track in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. His last two races have been very good. He was able to step up in the Lexington and run a good race. We feel like hes a horse on the improve.
Behindatthebar has mainly trained and competed on synthetic surfaces. The breeze Sunday at Belmont indicated he is comfortable on a dirt track similar to what he will run over in the Preakness.
That was encouraging that he was able to work well on the dirt, Pletcher said. Now well see if he can adapt to having some dirt in his face. Were pleased with the way hes doing.
GAYEGO Trainer Paulo Lobo reported Tuesday that Gayego is a go for Saturdays Preakness Stakes. The son of Gilded Time, who galloped 1¼ miles at Hollywood Park Tuesday morning, is scheduled to arrive at Pimlico Wednesday afternoon following a cross-country flight that he will share with Preakness hopeful Yankee Bravo.
Hes an extremely good shipper, said Lobo, whose colt shipped to Oaklawn Park in April for a victory in the Arkansas Derby and shipped again for a start in the Kentucky Derby on May 3.
Gayego finished a disappointing 17th in the Derby as the sixth betting choice in a field of 20, compromised by a sluggish start and early crowding. Lobo reported that the Kentucky-bred colt didnt overexert himself in the Run for the Roses.
He came back very well, he said. Hes been eating everything. Hes feeling happy.
Mike Smith, who has ridden Gayego in each of his six lifetime starts, has the return mount for the Preakness. Smith rode Prairie Bayou to victory in 1993. Lobo has not started a horse at Pimlico.
GIANT MOON - Under regular exercise rider Caesar Correa, Albert Fried Jr.s homebred colt turned in a bullet half-mile work in :47.77 Tuesday morning at Belmont Park.
Actually it was a little quicker than we had anticipated, said trainer Richard Schosberg. I was looking at somewhere between :48 and :48 2/5, but he seemed to have done it in good order.
He jumped on the bit right away at the beginning of the work, which for him is a bit unusual when hes working by himself. But hes pretty sharp right now and he went the first quarter pretty quick. It was more like a good three-eighths blowout and he galloped out in :47 3/5 for the half.
It looks like hes fine. He cooled out in good order and hes biting and playing and acting like himself after the work. So Im not too worried about him.
Schosberg said Giant Moon completed the first quarter in :22 4/5 and covered three furlongs in :35 4/5.
Giant Moon, a son of Giants Causeway, was named the 2007 champion 2-year-old male at the New York Thoroughbred Breeders annual award dinner Monday night in Saratoga Springs.
Schosberg had said that track conditions would determine whether Giant Moon had his final breeze for the Preakness on Tuesday or Wednesday. He decided the track had dried out sufficiently from the rain that fell on Sunday and Monday and sent the colt out for the work Tuesday.
The track was good and he handled it well, Schosberg said. If he was going a little bit quick, maybe its better that we had an extra day. Certainly, were in good order fitness-wise for the race. We dont have to do a whole lot, just basically keep him happy and get him down there in good order.
HEY BYRN The Eddie Plesa-trained colt arrived by van at Pimlico shortly after 6 a.m. Tuesday, following an uneventful 20-hour journey that originated at Calder Race Course outside Miami.
While Hey Byrn figures to be a long shot in the Preakness, veteran handicappers might give him a longer look, having learned from experience to respect Calder shippers.
Maybe its that the horses appreciate getting out of the hot climate, said Plesa, whose Preakness hopeful was accompanied in the van by Gottcha Gold, a contender for Fridays Maryland Lottery Pimlico Special (G1). People may tend to overlook the quality of horses that are stabled at Calder. Its probably a combination of both.
Beatrice Oxenbergs Hey Byrn was purchased for $160,000 at the 2007 Ocala Breeders 2-year-olds-in-training sale.
I liked his looks. I liked the way he moved, Plesa recalled. I had a lot of respect for the consignor, Barry Eisman, and value his input. The owner and I took a look at him and decided to bid on him.
Hey Byrn is expected to jog over the Pimlico track following stablemate Gottcha Golds introduction to the local racing strip at 6 a.m.
ICABAD CRANE The Federico Tesio Stakes winner galloped 1½ miles over the Tapeta racing surface at Fair Hill Training Center Tuesday morning.
Earl Macks son of Jump Start will remain in the country setting until he is vanned to Pimlico on Preakness morning. Trainer Graham Motion said he prefers to keep Icabad Crane in his daily routine.
Were not restricted by a racetrack environment and training hours. Its a more relaxed environment here and gives us more options, Motion said.
The New York-bred Icabad Cranes development has been a pleasant surprise.
We thought hed do well, but we didnt expect him to perform at this level, Motion said. Hes matured physically and mentally. His development is probably due to his attitude. Hes got a wonderful temperament and is a pleasure to train.
KENTUCKY BEAR The third-place finisher in the Blue Grass (G1) galloped around the Pimlico racetrack twice under exercise rider Cassie Garcia on a picture-perfect May morning that followed more than a day of heavy rains.
He gave me a workout, said Garcia, who has been here with the colt for nearly a week along with assistant trainer Sherri Wickett. Hes had a couple easy days, but the tracks a lot better. Its a little bit nicer to ride him. Ever since the Blue Grass hes improved more and more. Hes matured; hes put on weight; hes put on muscle. He just looks great going into (the Preakness).
Trainer Reade Baker, who was here for Kentucky Bears final workout last Saturday, said the colt has put on somewhere between 50 and 75 pounds since the Blue Grass. The son of Mr. Greeley finished a close third to Monba at Keeneland, beaten only 1 ½ lengths, in only his third career start.
Coming late to me is just a new phenomenon, said the 61-year-old Baker, a Canadian native who will join his horse on Wednesday. I guess if you had a big outfit in New York and you were there everyday, you cant be in two places at once. So it makes it more convenient that youre there all the time, just like Id like to be around this horse all the time. Traditionally, 20 years ago, I think everybody would have come at the same time I did.
Its been inordinately calm and quiet to this point, but the stakes barn will begin filling up Wednesday.
Its been a good environment for him, Garcia said. Its given him time to settle in and thats a bit of an advantage for this horse. I heard it gets pretty exciting down here.
MACHO AGAIN The Derby Trial winner galloped 1-3/8 miles under exercise rider Kenny Bourque at Churchill Downs Tuesday morning.
Macho Again had been scheduled to arrive in Baltimore Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. after sharing a flight with Kentucky Derby hero Big Brown. However, trainer Dallas Stewart has arranged for an earlier flight that is slated to arrive at 1:15 p.m. at BWI airport. He will share that flight with the California Preakness contingent.
The son of Macho Uno has finished worse than second only once in his six races on conventional dirt tracks, that coming in a sixth-place finish in the LeComte Stakes (G3) at Fair Grounds.
We always thought we had a nice horse. Thats why we sent him on the Louisiana Derby trail, but he got banged up in the LeComte, said Stewart, whose colt suffered a minor injury to a hind leg in the Louisiana Derby prep. He ran second going a mile at Churchill Downs in the fall. When you win or finish second, you know youve got a nice horse because the fall meeting at Churchill is real tough.
RACECAR RHAPSODY Trainer Kenny McPeek sent the Tale of the Cat colt out for a routine 1½-mile gallop Tuesday morning at Churchill Downs.
Everything was smooth, McPeek said. Nothing fancy.
Racecar Rhapsody, whose dam is Reflect the Music, is scheduled to be shipped from Kentucky to Baltimore Wednesday on the same plane that will carry Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown to the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. Co-owner Jerry Carroll, who built and operates Kentucky Speedway, frequently gives his horses names connected to automobile racing.
Jockey Robby Albarado is scheduled to ride Racecar Rhapsody in the Preakness. Albarado has been board for all six of the colts races and is very familiar with his off-the-pace running style.
He leaves himself a lot of work to do and hopefully he will give himself a chance early in the race, Albarado said. It seems like he will be able to handle the tighter turns at Pimlico. He will be coming late.
Hopefully, we will get some pace up front to run at, but at the same time, I dont want to be too far out at the back that I cant get to them.
RILEY TUCKER The heavy lifting was done in a workout over the Belmont Park training track Monday for the bay son of Harlans Holiday, who is expected to be vanned to Baltimore Wednesday or Thursday, according to Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott. He plans to school the colt in the Pimlico paddock Thursday or Friday.
Everythings good here, said Mott, who timed his colt in 1:04 for five furlongs Monday. He hand-walked today; that was about it.
Riley Tucker wore blinkers in his last start for the first time since his 2-year-old campaign and will wear them again for the Preakness.
Mott has re-enlisted the services of Edgar Prado, the newest riding member of the Hall of Fame, for the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. Prado rode Adriano in the Kentucky Derby, but trainer Graham Motion elected to bypass the Preakness after a 19th-place finish.
It seems like the horse is maturing, said Prado, who finished second with Riley Tucker in the Transylvania (G3) two races back at Keeneland. I dont think Billy would put him in the race if he didnt have a chance to win it. I know its going to be very tough competition, but were looking forward to give it a try.
Prado was Riley Tuckers first jockey when Mott introduced the Zayat Stables $375,000 yearling purchase in a six-length romp in his debut at Belmont Park.
Prado was also aboard in a third-place finish behind Kodiak Kowboy in the Saratoga Special (G2) last year.
STEVIL The roan son of Marias Mon left a solid impression in his final workout at Churchill Downs Tuesday morning, breezing four furlongs in :47.80 under exercise rider Megan Smillie over a fast surface. It was the sixth-fastest work of 61 runners at the distance.
It was pretty nice, and he galloped out real nice, said trainer Nick Zito, who will be saddling his 19th Preakness starter, a number that ties him for second all-time with the legendary Max Hirsch. Only D. Wayne Lukas (32) has run more horses in the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown.
Hes a very consistent horse, and hopefully hell run well Saturday, said Zito, who collected fourth money in last years Preakness with C P West. Zito won the 1996 Preakness with Louis Quatorze, who shares the official record for the 1-3/16-mile stakes with Tanks Prospect and last years winner, Curlin (1:53 2/5).
Stevil, whose best stakes outing this season was a fourth-place finish in the Blue Grass (G1) in his last start, hasnt won since his debut last fall in New York. John Velazquez, the regular rider for trainer Todd Pletcher, has the mount for the first time on the Robert LaPenta-owned colt. Stevil was scheduled to arrive by van later on Tuesday.
Were ready. Hes been running good all winter, Zito said.
LaPenta also owns 2-year-old champion War Pass, who was injured before the Kentucky Derby, and Cool Coal Man, who finished 15th in the Derby field.
TRES BORRACHOS California-based rider Tyler Baze flew in to ride the gelded son of Ecton Park for his final work at Churchill Downs Tuesday morning, a four-furlong breeze that clockers timed at 50.40 seconds, slightly slower than the 49 4/5 that Greely calculated.
It went very well, said Greely, who saddled Borrego for a seventh-place finish in the 2004 Preakness. He went nicely, came home in 11 (seconds) and change, so that was good. Tyler seemed to be happy with it, and he seemed to come back ready.
Tres Borrachos ran on synthetic surfaces in California for his first five career starts, but his speed figures have improved dramatically in his last two outings on dirt tracks.
He was third in the El Camino Real Derby (G3) at Bay Meadows, then third again in the Arkansas Derby (G2) at Oaklawn in his last start after dueling with eventual winner Gayego. Greely had toyed with the idea of trying blinkers for the Preakness, but abandoned the notion Tuesday for the work.
It was just probably the fact that in Arkansas a horse had passed him and then he came back and dug in and beat that horse, said Greely, whose colt will arrive at BWI Airport along with Derby winner Big Brown late Wednesday afternoon. It was just a thought that went through my mind. We tried it one morning, and he actually went no different. After rethinking it, hes got enough speed to where Id just hate to mess it up and put a little too much (speed) into him.
Baze, who will be riding in his first Preakness, was impressed with Tuesdays exercise.
It was so beautiful it was ridiculous, said Baze, who flew back to California after the work. He did it the right way and finished well. He is so impressive, the way he worked today and went over a dirt track like that and not be blowing. Im hoping Saturday is my day. I know this is a good horse now that Ive ridden him in Arkansas and I know him. Im really looking forward to it.
YANKEE BRAVO The Paddy Gallagher-trained colt galloped 1½ miles at Hollywood Park Tuesday morning in preparation for a start in the Preakness Stakes.
Yankee Bravo won his first two starts on turf, including his debut in England, last year before capturing the California Derby on the synthetic surface at Golden Gate Fields in his 3-year-old debut in January. The son of Yankee Gentleman finished third on dirt in the Louisiana Derby (G2), before checking in fourth over a synthetic track in the Santa Anita Derby (G1).
Hes seemed to handle all types of tracks, Gallagher said. Its too early to tell if he likes one of them best.
Yankee Bravo is expected to arrive at BWI Airport at 1:15 p.m. Wednesday.
So far, hes shipped well, said Gallagher, who will name Alex Solis to ride Yankee Bravo when entries are taken for the Preakness Wednesday morning.
The Derby Champion Heads to Pimlico With Enormous Expectations. What Are the Odds?
In the 1950s, a handicapper named Len Ragozin devised a revolutionary system for rating the performance of racehorses that factored in time, weight carried, positioning during a race, track surface conditions and wind. Based on calculations applied to each race, Ragozin assigned horses a number between zero and 40; the lower, the better.
This Story
Big Brown, Speed Racer
HORSE RACING: Harlem Rocker Isn't Entered in Preakness
The 133rd Preakness Stakes
By the late 1960s, Ragozin's "Sheets" had surfaced publicly, and their perceived accuracy became so valued that they cost $5 per race, nearly as much as an entire copy of the Daily Racing Form.
When Ragozin's company calculated the performance by Big Brown on May 3 in the Kentucky Derby, it made a startling discovery: the 3-year-old colt had recorded a - 3/4 , the lowest number in the modern history of the race.
"This is by a quarter of a point better than any other," said Len Friedman, 66, a hardcore Sheets player from Brooklyn and head handicapper at Ragozin's company. "Secretariat ran a 1/2 ."
In 1973, Secretariat won the Triple Crown -- the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes -- and entered racing lore as perhaps the greatest horse of all time. No one has yet come forward and placed Big Brown in such hallowed company, but those involved with him and others who watch him run are captivated by his authority, speed and power.
When the horses line up Saturday for the Preakness at Pimlico, Big Brown is likely to be the shortest-priced favorite in the 133-year history of the race.
"He has that stride," said Big Brown's jockey, Kent Desormeaux. "Every jockey who reads those words knows exactly what I mean. Each stride, each leap forward covers an enormous amount of ground, and it's effortless. They change leads [the lead hoof] so fluidly you almost have to look at their legs to make sure they've done it. They don't exactly quicken their stride; they just add power to it. These are the little things that the freaks of horses, the thoroughbred racers, have -- that stride."
No horse has won the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978, and the list of those considered to be the next sure thing continues to grow like a pile of losing tickets -- Silver Charm, Real Quiet, Charismatic, Fusaichi Pegasus, War Emblem, Funny Cide, Smarty Jones, Barbaro, Street Sense.
Yet, Big Brown has done more than flash potential. His Kentucky Derby victory laughed in the face of history: Besides his record-setting Ragozin number, Big Brown became the first horse to win America's classic race off just three career starts since the filly Regret in 1915. He also became the first runner since the gelding Clyde Van Dusen in 1929 to win from the outside No. 20 post position.
National Racing Museum and Hall of Fame historian Allan Carter only had to look to last year's Kentucky Derby to put Big Brown's performance in perspective.
"The best thing is comparing him to Curlin," Carter said, referring to the 2007 Horse of the Year who finished third in the Kentucky Derby behind Street Sense and Hard Spun. "He had only had three starts and never raced as a 2-year-old. As good as he was in three starts -- and he's the best horse on the planet right now -- he didn't win the Derby, and I think it was because of his lack of experience."
Unless Gayego joins the field, Big Brown will become the first horse since Citation in 1948 to scare off all his Derby rivals from trying the Preakness.
"He was so intimidating," Carter said of Citation. "Only [five] horses ran in the Derby against him, and after that a lot of people said, 'To hell with it.'
The only other time before that was in 1922, when the Derby and Preakness were held on the same day before the advent of the Triple Crown.
Frank Carulli, the linemaker for the Maryland Jockey Club, watched the Kentucky Derby from the Pimlico press box, and marveled at what he saw.
"I was mainly focused on Big Brown because that's who I bet," said Carulli, who sets the morning-line odds for the Preakness and watches close to 10,000 races a year. "The camera angles provided were fabulous. I couldn't believe he was going to overcome the trip, four wide on both turns, and then he made that bid, and it looked for a second like he might hang, and then he went the other way and he exploded. Just an awesome move. Ultra-impressive."
Carulli said he couldn't say for sure how low he would set Big Brown's odds, but they're going to be low.
"He's the obvious favorite; it's just a question of how low do you go," he said. "We don't know the caliber of horses he beat. We may not figure that out for a couple of months. You see [Holy Bull Stakes winner] Hey Byrn show up for the Preakness with good credentials, but the one time he got drilled was by Big Brown. And I don't think Kent has asked him for his best yet."
Trainer Richard Dutrow made bold predictions about Big Brown in the week before the Kentucky Derby, and they came true. Desormeaux, a Hall of Fame rider, who has won the Derby three times, said Big Brown was the best horse he had ever been on, and that was before they had even gotten to Churchill Downs.
Friedman isn't ready just yet to put Big Brown in the pantheon of immortals, not after four races.
"The problem is, he hasn't done enough running yet to decide whether he is among the great horses," he said. "He hasn't done anything more than [2001 Kentucky Derby winner] Monarchos did. He ran about the same Derby that Monarchos ran, and his races before were very similar to those Monarchos ran before the Derby, and after the Derby, Monarchos went back and was never heard from again. He never did anything the rest of his life."
Trainer Carl Nafzger, who won the Derby last year with Street Sense and was recently elected to the Hall of Fame, laughs at the idea of attempting to put Big Brown into historical context so soon.
"You can't judge a horse by history or anything," Nafzger said. "A horse is an individual animal with individual characteristics. Everybody tries to put all these things into human reasoning, and it don't work. I didn't pick Big Brown [in the Derby] because of the same reasons you all didn't pick him. Now the tests will start on him, but he's done every test so far."
In the urgent final months of preparing a talented horse for the
Triple Crown races, trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. decided that completely
healing quarter cracks in Big Brown would be more important than
continued training.
The tough decisionBig Brown lost a month of conditioning in
Januarypaid off as the Boundary colts front feet improved. He registered
a 4¾-length victory in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum!
Brands (G1) on May 3. Tom Curl, an expert on quarter-crack care who
treated Big Brown, said the Derby winner is racing on healthy feet.
Back before the first allowance race in Florida, the one three weeks
before the Florida Derby, that was the end of his quarter-crack problem,
Curl said, referring to a 123⁄4-length win in a one-mile allowance race on
March 5 in his season debut. His cracks have never been an issue again.
All breeds of horses are capable of developing quarter cracks, which
can be caused by concussion, hard surfaces, thin hoof walls, and medial
lateral foot imbalance. Big Browns quarter cracks are atypical in
that they started with a wall
separation.
His type start on the bottom
of the foot. They start with
a bruise. It will kind of get to
an abscess and it can never really
blow out the bottom of the
foot, Curl said. It just sits in
there and kind of stays on a
low boil and goes right up the
wall underneath it.
The whole time its going
up the wall, its separating the
fingernailthe hoof wall
from the laminae. So you
actually have some play under -
neath there. Theyll heat up,
cool down. Youll see a horse thats lame but [the horses handlers]
cant find anything. Theyll back off a few days and it settles right back
down underneath there. But then they put a big breeze in and, bam;
it blows right out the top. When you cut those cracks open, theyre
already full of puss and highly infected. A regular quarter crack does
not get infected in 24 hours.
Big Brown first developed a quarter crack in his inner right front
foot. That quarter crack was treated by Ian McKinlay, who used wire
lacing to pull the crack together. Curl performed the same procedure
to treat a quarter crack that developed in the left inner front foot. When
Curl treated that crack on December 30, it showed significant infection.
So you have all of the tissues in that hoof wall involved, from the
bottom to the top. Most general racetrack horses, we can put them
together in three to five days, but hoof-wall-separation type of quarter
cracks just about guarantee a minimum of three weeks down time,
and with Brown, it was longer, Curl said. I didnt even let him go to
the training track the entire month of January.
That is where Curl credits Dutrow, who decided to completely solve
the problem at the expense of training time and races.
Its hard to get a month out of a trainer, especially when they know
what they got, Curl said. We met with them once or twice a week,
and Rick knew things were tough so he listened well. His staff cooperated.
His grooms did an outstanding job on a daily basis. If you dont
have that, the job becomes twice as hard. He had people in place who
really did a nice job.
Curl is based in Florida and McKinlay is based in New York, where
he has seen an increase in quarter cracks in Thoroughbreds during
the last seven years.
I dont think it has anything to do with the breeding. I think its because
the tracks are getting harder, McKinlay said. These quarter
cracks are fairly common in Standardbreds and those trainers know
that if it happens, their horse is going to miss at least three weeks. Its
been tough for some of the Thoroughbred guys to realize that its
going to take that much time.
In Big Browns instance, Dutrow does not blame the surfaces. He
agrees with Curl that a wall separation developed over time before
finally becoming noticeable.
It was probably something brewing in there, something no one [saw],
and it just came out, Dutrow said of the problem in the right front foot.
It happened again when we went to Palm Meadows [Training Center].
He was training on the best track you can have in the winter time. Hes
always been on good tracks. I cant blame any kind of tracks messing
around with his feet to get him to pop quarters. I cant say that.
While Dutrow is not sure what caused the quarter cracks, he committed
to a solution.
The pride I feel is in Rick, because he listened to what we
were telling him and stayed with the plan, McKinlay said.
A return to training too soon could have resulted in more
problems.
When you have a wall separation that severe from the sole
to the top of the foot, you dont want to move too early or youll
regret it, Curl said. Youll go right back to square one. Cooperation
is what it takes on both sides.
With Big Brown racing in Florida this winter,
Curl continued to monitor the situation
with Dutrow and his staff. After Big
Browns season debut victory, Curl recommended
glue-on Yasha shoes,
which feature a rubber composite that
provides cushion to prevent flare ups.
He won the Florida Derby and Kentucky
Derby in Yasha shoes, which were
developed by McKinlay.
Those shoes were glued on him 21 days before
the Florida Derby. Within 24 hours, his feet went cold, Curl said.
He never has had any more problems with his feet. Everyone keeps
saying this horse has such bad feet, bad feet. Hes got great feet now.
Curl, who has traveled more than 2-million miles to treat horses
and consult with clients, takes pride in the part he played in assisting
the Derby winner, noting that Dutrows staff did the daily work.
When you take a horse that has a history of heat in their feet and
a little bit of pulse every day, and all of a sudden you make a change
just in the shoeing and correct all that, thats a big jump, Curl said.
Thats huge. When you get the feet right, the rest of the horse comes
right with it.
While the glue-on shoes that Big Brown wears cost $550, nail
versions of the shoe are available for as little as $25. McKinlay has
presented Internet videos on Youtube.com on the Yasha shoes and
his lacing technique, which pulls the quarter crack together to allow
healing.
It helps for people to see what Im talking about, McKinlay said.
Both McKinlay and Curl view themselves as part of a team that
helped a great athlete excel.
No matter what sport, whether animals or human sports, theres always
situations where people do what they can to get the athlete to a
basketball court or a football field or a dog track or horse track, Curl
said. Theres all kind of people involved behind the scenes. There
is no athlete that does not have problems. You dont sit around and point
fingers. You work with the problem and find a way to not just patch it
up, but we came up with a deal and the others that have followed with
this shoe, that they have the best days of their lives on it.Frank Angst
May 14, 2008 -- LOUISVILLE - I can't wait to get out of here and head to Baltimore. But I sure am glad I came! It's like Saratoga. You can't wait to get there, then you can't wait to leave.
I see Gayego (17th in the Derby) is running in the Preakness. That's fine with us. They say he had a bad trip. I think he just got outrun - and it's going to happen again. That horse ran terrible in the Derby, flew back to California, now he's flying east again. That's enough for me to know. They're just completely putting him up against it.
They can't beat us now. There is not a horse in that field that's supposed to beat Big Brown. He should like Pimlico. It's a speed-favoring track, always has been. As long as he keeps going the way he is now, he'll be going into the race good, even if it is off just a two-week break. We're just going to have to see how the horse handles it. There's no way of me saying beforehand.
Brown looks like the best horse, and that's what you need to win, as long as he breaks good and gets things his way again. It doesn't look like there's much speed in the race. If that's the truth, maybe we'll just have him come running the first part, so he can get position and save ground. We might use different tactics than we did in the Derby. It depends on his post and all that kind of stuff.
Hopefully, we'll have another good day. He'll gallop this morning, then head for the airport.
Accompanied by two United Parcel Service vehicles, Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown arrived and entered the Preakness stakes barn at Pimlico Race Course Wednesday evening.
Shortly after 8 p.m., a police escort which guided the van carrying Big Brown from the airport dispersed, and the horse calmly took up residence amidst a host of TV cameras and reporters.
Trainer Rick Dutrow, Jr., who rode in the van, said there were "no problems" with the transport from Kentucky. "This was clockwork." The entourage arrived about two hours behind schedule after leaving Louisville late.
Dutrow, who grew up in the racing business around Pimlico while learning from his father, Dick Dutrow, said "We used to be stalled just a few barns away from here and I used to come over here when all the big horses came in. I dreamed a lot about having one here."
He expressed no dissatisfaction with post 7 for Saturday's Preakness run and reported that, weather permitting, Big Brown will gallop after the break Thursday and Friday and will undergo a short "blowout" the day of the race.
Two other Preakness contenders who arrived on the same flight, Tres Borrachos and Racecar Rhapsody, arrived by separate van and were unloaded at the same time without incident.
The Nick Zito-trained Stevil came in by van several hours earlier after a flight from Lexington, along with Macho Again.
"The story is Big Brown, but I think my horse should run good. At least a hope well do okay," Zito said. Dallas Stewart, trainer of Macho Again, said, "He looks like he came in good. He didn't break a sweat."
Riley Tucker trained by Bill Mott, also arrived.
Another van pulled into Pimlico at 3 p.m. with Arkansas Derby winner Gayego, who has shipped three times in five weeks from his California base, and Yankee Bravo. They boarded their flight in California at 5 a.m.
"He's bucking and playing," said Jody Pieper, assistant to Gayego's trainer, Paulo Lobo. "Shipping doesn't seem to bother him at all."
Yankee Bravo walked off the van calmly, then was spirited while walking around the shedrow by trainer Paddy Gallagher. "He was walking me," Gallagher said with a chuckle. "He knows he's here for a reason."
Ten of the 13 starters for Saturdays $1 million Preakness Stakes are now in the Pimlico stakes barn. Giant Moon is scheduled to arrive today from Belmont Park. Behindatthebar and Icabad Crane will ship in the morning of the race, also from New York.
Kentucky Bear has been at Pimlico for one week, while Hey Byrn arrived Tuesday morning
Commentary by John Helyar
May 8 (Bloomberg) -- The Kentucky Derby hadn't been over for an hour when the offers started coming to the owners of the winner, Big Brown.
Michael Iavarone, co-chief executive officer of International Equine Acquisitions Holdings, which owns 75 percent of the colt, was asked at a post-race party if he'd take $60 million for Big Brown. That would be a huge return on investment for IEAH, which paid $2.5 million for its stake last September.
``No,'' replied Iavarone, who's said the same to six subsequent offers -- but who's open to more.
``There are some figures we couldn't refuse,'' he says, mentioning as a for-instance, $100 million. ``We have all options open.''
Ah, so many options, so few races. Big Brown has only raced four times and may start perhaps five more. Iavarone and partners thus stand to parlay a horse with a nine-race career into a possible nine-figure asset.
Or not.
Here is the risk/reward calculus for IEAH.
If Big Brown wins the Preakness on May 17 and the Belmont Stakes on June 7 to become the first Triple Crown winner in 30 years, the colt's owners are in clover. (Paul Pompa Jr., the trucking magnate who named him, owns the other 25 percent of Big Brown). They would retire an instant legend to stud, and prices for top breeding stallions have doubled in the past three years.
Easy Pickings
As my colleague David Papadopoulos reported last week, this has been driven by aggressive bidders -- principally, of late, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the billionaire ruler of Dubai. He recently bought four of the best young U.S. horses for a reported average of $30 million.
The Preakness looks like easy pickings for Big Brown, with just a nine-horse field at this point. The Belmont will be his sternest test. The longest of the three races at 1 1/2 miles has spoiled the Triple Crown bids of six horses in the past 11 years.
If Big Brown loses, so will his value. Stallions have become volatile stocks, based on performance. Pyro, a much- touted 3-year-old, was valued at $30 million earlier this year. Then he finished 10th in the Blue Grass Stakes, an April tune-up for the Derby, and eighth at Churchill Downs. Now Pyro is worth $5 million-$10 million, estimates Bill Oppenheim, a Thoroughbred Daily News columnist who tracks the market.
There's always injury risk, too, as tragically illustrated by Derby runner-up Eight Belles, who had to be euthanized after the race after breaking both front ankles. IEAH has heavily insured Big Brown, but if he became damaged goods in the Preakness or Belmont, he'd take a valuation hit.
Flawed Argument
Iavarone believes a high floor has been set under Big Brown's value, however the next two races go. (Naturally, he also believes his horse will win them.) He says the ``standing fee'' ((price per coupling) of 2007 Derby winner Street Sense is a top-of-the line $100,000, and that horse won just one leg of the Triple Crown.
Street Sense's fee is actually $75,000, according to the Web site of owner Darley America, and he comes from superior stock. Street Sense was sired by a stallion whose standing fee is $100,000. Big Brown's daddy commanded just $10,000 and produced no other great progeny before being retired due to infertility.
Even if Big Brown wins the Triple Crown, some experts doubt Iavarone & Co. can fetch $100 million for breeding rights. Fewer doubt he's entertained a $60 million offer, given the bull market for stallions and the chances Big Brown will complete the Triple Crown sweep.
$20 Million
Even that best-case scenario presents issues for IEAH. It had been laying plans to create a $100 million investment pool that it's calling a hedge fund. It would require a $1 million minimum ante and allow investors to be part-owners of a portfolio of horses, instead of owning a piece of just one, the common model. IEAH currently has about 30 investors who hold ownership interests on that basis. Iavarone and co-CEO Richard Schiavo would manage the fund.
The portfolio model contemplated IEAH transferring its current stable of approximately 80 horses into the hedge fund. Based on their total estimated value of $20 million, that would comprise 20 percent of the fund's assets, Schiavo said in an interview last week.
Win Rate
If Big Brown's value has really shot to $60 million and IEAH retains ownership, the whole model has to be re-thought. It could keep the champion apart from the hedge fund, as a separately managed asset. It could create in effect a Big Brown fund, giving investors the option of just buying into that horse and his earnings stream. Or it could expand the fund from $100 million to, say, $300 million. Based on the usual 2 percent management fee and 20 percent of returns, that could work nicely for IEAH, too.
IEAH isn't just a one-hit wonder with Big Brown. Another member of its IEAH Stables, Kip Deville, won the Breeders' Cup Mile race last year. The firm reports a 25 percent ``win'' rate by its horses this year.
But anyone who sees the returns Iavarone and Schiavo will reap on Big Brown and considers throwing a $1 million into their hedge fund should consider two questions.
Business Model
-- Does IEAH, in business only since 2003, have enough savvy to scale up its operation like this? It's hard to say whether they've developed a great new business model or whether they've caught lightning in a bottle. It's even harder to say where they come by their investment acumen. Schiavo was a Smith Barney executive vice president, but worked there and at two other firms in administrative rather than investment areas. Iavarone's bio says he has 11 years of investment banking at various firms, but he won't say where.
-- Is there any precedent for sustained returns on these kinds of investments? Don't bet on it, says Cot Campbell, a breeder in South Carolina who first developed the model for horse-ownership partnerships in the 1970s. He stresses three points to potential investors: ``It can be great fun; it can be a good tax deduction; and it might make money, but the chances are it won't.''
If not, media sources should stop blithely reporting on him as a "former Wall Street investment banker."
Attempts to google Iavarone to connect him to anything Wall Street in the past have come up empty here. Our reliable source, who shall remain confidential, says there is no record of Iavarone ever working for a Wall Street firm
To prove his claim, Larry Jones said he was voluntarily doing something that officials inside and outside horse racing say should have been made mandatory years ago - testing for performance-enhancing drugs.
Horse racing, unlike major league baseball, basketball and football, doesn't ban steroids. Horsemen such as Rick Dutrow, who trains Preakness favorite Big Brown and other horses, say they legally administer Winstrol - the steroid that former Orioles star Rafael Palmeiro tested positive for - as part of the animals' regimen.
Veterinarians say steroids have therapeutic purposes, such as helping horses recover from injury. But critics say the drugs are used by many to make horses stronger and faster, sometimes at the horses' peril.
"These steroids are an artificial advantage used to bulk up horses," said Rep. Ed Whitfield, a Kentucky Republican who says the drugs contribute to clotting disorders, liver damage and heart attacks and can help build muscles that the animals' legs can't support, leading to breakdowns.
Twenty-seven years after Sen. Charles "Mac" Mathias of Maryland urged a national prohibition on drugs in horse racing, Whitfield and others are wondering why Maryland, which hosts the Preakness tomorrow, and other leading racing states have lagged in banning steroids.
"I remember Sen. Mathias talking to the Jockey Club [in 1981]," Whitfield said. "He said [to states] that either you take action or we'll send the federal cavalry into your barns. But things have not changed that much since then."
The state won't screen for steroids at the Preakness because Maryland doesn't yet have testing procedures in place. Maryland will test for many other drugs, including stimulants and overuse of phenylbutazone, or bute, an anti-inflammatory.
Bute is the most commonly abused drug at Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park, according to Maryland Racing Commission records. Overusing the drug can fetch fines ranging from $500 to $1,500 and lead to suspension or disqualification.
Though there is no evidence Eight Belles was on steroids, Whitfield said the horse's death "has re-ignited the debate over the horse racing industry in general and steroids in particular." Test results on Eight Belles are pending.
The industry, concerned about its image, has been trying to assure fans racing is safe. Maryland and other states say they are committed to approving steroid regulations as some states have done. Still, Whitfield says legislation might be needed. "The general thought is that drug use in horse racing is perhaps the worst it has ever been," he said at a hearing earlier this year.
Members of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which says horses are run too young and injected with unhealthy quantities of drugs, are planning protests at the Preakness. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has also expressed concerns. "Anabolic steroids are for debilitated horses, but it's rare that it's used for that purpose," said Bob Baker, an ASPCA investigator who used to own racehorses.
Dutrow said in interviews this week that he's among those who uses stanozolol, whose trade name is Winstrol, on his horses. "I usually give it to them once a month," Dutrow said.
Asked the purpose of the drug, Dutrow replied, "The vets would know that better than me." He said it would be less complicated for horsemen if there were a uniform steroids rule.
"I wish they would have the same thing in each and every state. But they don't," he said. "Every state is different. ... And it gets very confusing with horsemen. I wish they'd have the same guidelines just like they have in baseball, football and basketball."
The state racing commission says it is particularly eager to halt a practice known as "steroid stacking," in which horses are placed on a number of steroids simultaneously to try to boost their performances.
Whitfield and others say it's hard to know how widespread this practice is. Dr. Rick Arthur, California's equine medical director, told The Sacramento Bee in December that about 60 percent of California racehorses in training have been treated with anabolic steroids.
The topic is generating high emotions in the industry. "The powers that be are the proverbial ostrich with their heads in the sand if they think the lid on this one is going to be kept shut forever," said a recent post on the Web site of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, a trade group. "Get zero tolerance universally at all U.S. racetracks for anabolic steroids and do it now," said the post, whose author identified himself as a horse owner.
Maryland's racing commission says its delay - neighboring Pennsylvania and Delaware have banned steroids - is because the state wants to determine how best to conduct the tests, structure the rules and what sorts of penalties to adopt.
J. Michael Hopkins, the commission's executive director, said Maryland will learn from other states' experiences. "Let's see what works and what doesn't work," Hopkins said.
Whitfield appeared frustrated with the delay. "We know in Great Britain and other jurisdictions they ban anabolic steroids, so it's not that complicated. So I don't think that's a good argument to make," he said.
A Kentucky-based organization, the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium, was created in 2002 to develop uniform policies for states. It lacks authority to require states to act.
The consortium has developed a "model" regulation endorsed by a number of states. The rule isn't a complete ban. It permits trainers to administer Winstrol and several other steroids but regulates their use.
Kentucky has endorsed the rule but, like Maryland, hasn't implemented it. That's why the 20 entries in the world's most famous horse race weren't tested for steroids two weeks ago.
MAY 17, 2008
Big Brown glided home to take the second jewel of the Triple Crown (Jim McCue/Maryland Jockey Club)
"Departing here (on Monday) we're going to go straight in (Bobby) Frankel's barn (at Belmont Park). Empire Maker's stall. Bobby has got it all. I'd rather train him at Belmont for the big race. I want to take every advantage, cross every 't', dot every 'i' that we possibly can. I don't want to take anything for granted. I want to get there the right way. "
trainer Richard Dutrow explaining that he'll train Preakness S. (G1) winner BIG BROWN (Boundary) up to the June 7 Belmont S. (G1) at the Elmont, New York, track
"I don't know, and honestly I really don't think it's important. The important thing is the horse came home safe and we get to move into the next town hopefully with -- he's going back to the barn (having) only used half the tank. I hope I helped make Mr. Dutrow's job a little easier over the next three weeks."
jockey Kent Desormeaux when asked what he thought Big Brown would've won by if he hadn't wrapped up on him in the stretch of the Preakness
"It looks like Big Brown might win the Belmont farther than Secretariat."
trainer Paddy Gallagher, whose YANKEE BRAVO (Yankee Gentleman) finished 10th, on Big Brown's Triple Crown chances
"I was just taking every precaution, trying to do everything the right way to get him there the best way, and I thought doing this this morning was the move. I could see he was full of energy. Didn't want to take any energy out of him. I wanted to just kind of let him know he was going to run later on. It usually helps them when you blow them out that morning, usually puts them on their feet when they come out of the gate even though he slipped some."
Dutrow on his decision to breeze Big Brown two furlongs the morning of the Preakness
Big Brown has won all five starts by a combined total of 39 lengths (Joseph DiOrio/Horsephotos.com)
"He's the only one that can even entertain Big Brown's stride. It's going to be exciting. He can run. He's a nice horse. It's another quarter of a mile. You know, there's so many hurdles. Can't wait to find out what happens but that's a cold exacta."
Desormeaux on Casino Drive (Mineshaft), whom he rode to victory in the Peter Pan S. (G2) and will likely now ride against in the Belmont
"Well, I would like to have him, number one. He looks like a nice horse. Number two, I believe that he can't beat our horse. So, all Japanese people are going to think, when they come here, that Godzilla was dead. They're going to find out he's not dead, he's here."
Dutrow on facing the Japanese-based Casino Drive in the Belmont
"He really, really ran great. I knew he was a real nice horse and came home great. He hooked a superstar, you know."
trainer Dallas Stewart on his Preakness runner-up MACHO AGAIN (Macho Uno)
Kent Desormeaux looks around for the competition and finds none (Joseph DiOrio/Horsephotos.com)
"We just got beat by a monster. (Big Brown) might just be a Triple Crown winner. We ran huge and that's very important. This is kind of the best second place I've ever had. I don't like to be second, but it's not bad to be second to this horse."
jockey Julien Leparoux on guiding Macho Again to second in the Preakness
"What can I say? I thought he ran huge. I thought really he was unlucky not to be second. He got stopped pretty bad at the top of the stretch when the front runners started backing up. He really had to get him going again, which I thought was really impressive -- that he got back up to be third."
trainer Graham Motion on Preakness third ICABAD CRANE (Jump Start)
"My trip was good to the quarter-pole. I went after Big Brown, but he just threw dirt on me. My horse ran his heart out, and with a little better trip, I may well have gotten second."
jockey Jeremy Rose on his ride aboard Icabad Crane
Big Brown shows his beleaguered opponents a clean pair of heels (Joseph DiOrio/Horsephotos.com)
"He slipped leaving the gate bad. We gave up two or three lengths right away. I think I was on the second best horse today. But nothing worked out right for us today."
jockey Jamie Theriot on KENTUCKY BEAR (Mr. Greeley), who ran sixth as the third choice in the Preakness
"I saw him stumble and Tyler (Baze) said he went down to his nose. That's part of horse racing. It can happen to any horse. Tyler thought he came home good, and that's the important part. We'll live to fight another day."
trainer Beau Greely on Preakness ninth-placer TRES BORRACHOS (Ecton Park), who stumbled and hit his nose on the ground when the gates opened
"The break was rough. I was lucky to stay on him."
jockey Tyler Baze on Tres Borrachos
By Joe Drape
BALTIMORE Its hard to find fault in Big Browns performance here in the Preakness. He was barely asked to run by the jockey Kent Desormeaux and buried an overmatched field.
Still, between now and the Belmont Stakes, were going to hear a great deal about whom Big Brown has beaten, and whether or not he is merely a superior horse in a mediocre crop of 3-year-olds. I ran into Robby Albarado Saturday night hes the regular rider for Curlin, the reigning Horse of the Year, and finished fourth in Saturdays Preakness aboard Racecar Rhapsody.
Albarado laughed when asked if Big Brown was in Curlins league.
Its the difference between men and boys, and hopefully well get to see that in the fall if they meet in the Gold Cup or Breeders Cup, Albarado said. Frankly, there were at least four 3-year-olds last year who were as good as Big Brown if not better. Street Sense, Hard Spun, Any Given Saturday and Curlin.