LOOKING FORWARD TO THE PREAKNESS
HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY THE DERBY!
It looks to be a field of 10 horses for the Preakness Stakes as of this writing with a possibility of a full field of 14 when it all said and done.
With the possible exception of American Promise, the D. Wayne Lukas trainee who finished 16th in the Derby, it is unlikely that any of the horses who finished eighth-through-19th in the Derby would run in Baltimore.
Yes, that is right: American Promise is going to the Preakness.
Music to my ears!
I don't have an excuse as to why American Promise ran as poorly as he did in the Derby -- but perhaps the horse probably didn't feel like running his best that day and that's what I'm basing him on -- he was not at his best.
If you recall what I said about American Promise getting a low Beyer Speed Figure for winning the Virginia Derby and I said that American Promise will prove the Beyer Speed Figure calculators wrong in the next couple of races -- meaning that 'the couple of races' are the Derby and the Preakness.
At this point, the Beyer Speed Figure calculator is one and I'm zero.
But I'm not discouraged in any way at all as I have one more round to prove my belief that American Promise is for real.
So I can't wait for the next round.
Bring it on!
Horses who did not run in the Kentucky Derby that are pointing to the Preakness are Clever Again, winner of the Hot Springs Stakes, Heart of Honor, runner-up to Admire Daytona in the UAE Derby, Gosger, winner of the Lexington Stakes, Pay Billy, winner of the Federico Tesio Stakes, Rodriguez, the Wood Memorial winner who scratched out of the Derby with a foot issue, and River Thames, the third-place finisher in the Blue Grass Stakes.
Caldera, runner-up in the Bathhouse Row, is under consideration. Caldera is owned by My Racehorse Stables and trained by Lukas, who won last year's Preakness with Seize the Grey.
As for the Derby, surprisingly, it was a very clean race, meaning, everybody got the trip they wanted with only minor trip-issues like going wide on the turn and having to alter the pathway -- nothing of significance considering the Derby is always encounters significance traffic issues.
With that said, the best horse won the race and congratulation to Sovereignty (the winner) and Journalism (2nd), the two best horses probably prior to and after the Derby.
Here is the full order of the finish:
1st Sovereignty.
The trainer said Sovereignty suffered "a small scrape, about four inches" on his right front pastern during the running, likely when he clipped heels with Chunk of Gold right out of the gate.
He said it was nothing serious but that anything to do with a horse's legs always is a concern.
"When I got back to the barn last night after the race," Mott said, "he'd already eaten up. His tub was empty. Probably did it in 20 minutes. That's unusual for a horse that had to run a race as hard as he did."
2nd Journalism.
"We've got no complaints." Trainer Michael McCarthy was reflecting on his Kentucky Derby experience Sunday morning at barn 35 following his colt Journalism's gallant effort in which he finished second behind Sovereignty.
His Curlin colt had a tough beginning in the 1 1/4-mile race because of traffic and wasn't able to obtain the close-up stalking position his connections had hoped for until well along on the backside.
Then he turned in a stout run around the turn and into the lane only to be outdone by the winner. "With a field this size in a race like this, it's all about the trip," McCarthy said.
"It didn't quite work out the way we hoped, but he ran a good race against a good horse."
The main thing, the conditioner said, was that his horse was "in good order this morning, and everything going forward is now in play."
That would indicate the possibility that Journalism's next start could be in two weeks in Baltimore in the Preakness Stakes and a possible second go-round with the Derby winner.
3rd Baeza.
The Kentucky Derby third-place finisher was doing fine back at barn 41 Sunday morning following his stellar effort.
After nearly not getting to compete in the race after being hung out on the Derby also-eligible list right up until Thursday evening, the good-looking son of young stallion McKinzie took rider Flavien Prat for an adventuresome trip on a sloppy strip in which he closed through the lane with every stride.
"Quite a trip for him this whole week," trainer John Shirreffs said.
"He's never been on a wet surface before, so there was that.
Then that big field and the bumping that went on. But in the end he ran well and we're proud of him."
The conditioner said the Preakness was not a consideration for the bay youngster.
"Too much for a West Coast horse to work with," he said. "We'll go back west, then look at the Belmont."
The third jewel of the Triple Crown will be run this year on June 7 at Saratoga as Belmont Park continues to undergo its massive renovation.
The Belmont will be run for the second year in a row at 1 1/4 miles instead of its usual 1 1/2 miles.
As for Shirreffs's personal westward journey, that was to happen Sunday morning at 10 a.m. EDT on the private jet of owner Lee Searing.
"Only way to fly," Shirreffs said.
4th Final Gambit.
Juddmonte's Final Gambit was back at trainer Brad Cox's barn 22, resting after his fourth-place finish in Kentucky Derby 151.
"We're really proud of his effort, especially this being his first start on dirt," Cox said.
"Maybe if the pace was a little bit faster, it could've benefited him even more.
Overall it was a good effort. He's a good horse.
We'll see how it goes from here."
5th Owen Almighty.
Flying Dutchmen Breeding and Racing's Owen Almighty, who led the Derby field into the homestretch, "seems to have come out of the race in good order," trainer Brian Lynch said.
"We will let the dust or mud settle and talk with the team but possibly the Woody Stephens (G1) next."
That seven-furlong race is June 7 at Saratoga.
6th Burnham Square.
Whitham Thoroughbreds' Burnham Square came out of his troubled sixth-place finish in the Derby in good order.
"I jogged him, and he looks good," trainer Ian Wilkes said. Burnham Square was put in tight quarters at the half-mile pole when Admire Daytona came in on him.
"In a 20-horse field, somebody is going to have trouble, and I guess it was my turn," Wilkes said.
"I thought he ran a terrific race. He got stopped at the half-mile pole when everybody else was making their move, and then he got going again to get sixth.
Without the trouble, I think he would have been in the top three." Plans going forward for Burnham Square are to be determined.
7th Sandman.
D. J. Stable, St. Elias Stable, West Point Thoroughbreds and CJ Stables' Sandman was doing well Sunday morning following his Kentucky Derby run.
"He is good this morning," said Allen Hardy, assistant to Mark Casse.
"He ate up last night and jogged early this morning (at the barn)."
Casse indicated that the Belmont Stakes (G1) likely would be next for Sandman.
8th East Avenue.
Godolphin's East Avenue was back at trainer Brendan Walsh's barn 10 Sunday morning following his eighth-place finish in Kentucky Derby 151.
"This was my second time running in the Derby, and I was able to take it in a little more this time," Walsh said.
"The atmosphere is unbelievable. I've been in lots of places all over the world, and this is second to none."
9th Chunk of Gold.
Terry Stephens's Chunk of Gold exited his Kentucky Derby run in good order, according to trainer Ethan West.
"The horse is OK," West said. Chunk of Gold was scheduled to leave Churchill Downs around 10 a.m. EDT to return to Turfway Park.
"I think the mile-and-a-quarter probably got to him. He will get a couple weeks off, and there are plenty of 3-year-old races across the summer for him."
10th Tiztastic and 14th Publisher.
Although things did not go as planned for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen in Saturday's Kentucky Derby, the veteran horseman still had reason to celebrate.
He earned his record-extending 14th trainer title at Oaklawn. The Asmussen family was represented Saturday at both tracks with sons Erik and Keith accepting the trophy at Oaklawn while Steve, his wife Julie, and their other son Darren were at Churchill Downs.
11th Coal Battle.
Norman Stables' Coal Battle was doing well Sunday morning, according to assistant and exercise rider Bethany Taylor, who added, "he's probably a little mad and grouchy this morning because he's not used to being that far back."
Trainer Lonnie Briley said he is going to let the horse tell us where to take him next. He wants to watch and see how much the race took out of him. He thinks the track condition did not play a factor into how Coal Battle ran the rough trip.
12th Luxor Café and 19th Admire Daytona. From Kate Hunter, Japan's Kentucky Derby liaison: "Both Japanese horses came back from the race in good condition.
Junko Kondo's Admire Daytona was not a fan of the slop. He was well positioned, but it wore him out.
Traffic ultimately thwarted Koichi Nishikawa's Luxor Café, who was unable to get a good spot early.
Both could come back for the Breeders' Cup Classic on Nov. 1 at Del Mar. No rain in Southern California."
15th Citizen Bull and scratched Rodríguez.
The morning after the Derby was fairly quiet at Bob Baffert's barn 33.
Right-hand man Jimmy Barnes reported Saturday's pacesetter Citizen Bull bounced back well.
"He's fine," Barnes said. "He'll walk for a couple of days, and then we'll see what's up from there."
Citizen Bull set quick early splits after breaking from post 1 under Martín García, going 22.81, 46.23 and 1:10.78 for the first six furlongs.
He ran out of gas from there and fell back to finish 15th in the 19-horse field.
Baffert said Rodríguez, the Authentic colt who was scratched Thursday because of a bruised foot, will be his only Preakness runner.
That means Citizen Bull was likely to be on a plane back to California along with the dozen other runners Baffert shipped east to compete during the week.
16th American Promise.
BC Stables' American Promise came out of his Derby effort in good order, according to Bas Nicholl, assistant to trainer D. Wayne Lukas.
"Magnificent," Nicholl said.
American Promise was part of the pace before beginning to retreat entering the far turn.
18th Flying Mohawk.
It was a disappointing Saturday evening for the connections of Flying Mohawk, who finished 18th after he experienced trouble in the first quarter-mile of the race.
"The sun still rose at Churchill, and Mohawk is still the man," co-owner Jeff Berry said.
"Thanks to Flying Mohawk and the entire team for an incredible life experience for the Berry family."
SEE YOU ALL IN THE PREAKNESS IN TWO WEEKS!
