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Decision on Interactif put off for another day
In the matter of INTERACTIF (Broken Vow), the dual Grade 3 turf winner who has enough money ($307,950) to enter the Derby, but perhaps not the owner-trainer inclination to do so, the thought of possible entry was put off to the last moment, which would be Wednesday morning prior to Derby entry time at Churchill Downs. "I talked with the owners (Alain and Gerard Wertheimer) and they want to wait until the last moment," Pletcher said. "Things happen and can happen between now and entry time. Maybe another horse or two comes out of the race and that could affect the way we think about entering. We'll make a call in the morning." Pletcher noted that he did not have a rider for the horse at this point, but that "there are several riders out there that are available." Interactif jogged 1 1/16 miles early Tuesday morning with exercise rider Patti Barry in the irons. Alain and Gerard Wertheimer also own Santa Anita Derby runner-up SETSUKO (Pleasantly Perfect), who needs a few defections to get into the Derby. The Richard Mandella pupil galloped two miles under exercise rider Nestor Capitaine during the 15-minute "Derby/Oaks horses only" session Tuesday. "Distance is no problem with this one," Mandella said. "The farther the better. He likes to gallop long and run long." Mandella and the Wertheimers appear resigned to Setsuko's fate of not being able to run in the Kentucky Derby because of lack of graded stakes earnings, but to go instead in Friday's American Turf (G2) at 1 1/16 miles. Rafael Bejarano will ride the colt on Friday. "I'll talk some stuff if I win that race on Friday," Mandella said, with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek. "I'll be telling everyone that it was a darn good thing that they didn't let us into the Derby. We would have won that one, for sure."
"The swelling is down some," Pletcher noted. "I spoke to Mr. Zayat (owner Ahmed Zayat) and he said he knew we were busy with our Derby horses and that he understood that. He said after the Derby is done that we would talk and figure out then what we were going to do with the horse; what clinic we might take him to." Trainer Rick Dutrow postponed a scheduled workout for HOMEBOYKRIS (Roman Ruler) Tuesday morning because of the muddy track conditions. The gelding, who galloped once around the Churchill oval under exercise rider Joe Deegan, is set to breeze four furlongs on Wednesday. In a change of plans, Dutrow will name Ramon Dominguez to ride Homeboykris when entries for the Derby are taken Wednesday morning. Joel Rosario had previously been announced as the jockey on Homeboykris, but that offer was revoked by Dutrow when Dominguez became available because of the defection of Rule (Roman Ruler). "I think Ramon's best game is his hands," said Dutrow, who saddled Big Brown to the Kentucky Derby victory in 2008. "He gets horses to just relax so well, and that's what we need 'Homeboy' to do the first part of the race. We're very happy to have Ramon's hands on him in the Derby. We're very happy with that. "I think that's why he gets along so well with the horses."
Rosario, a 22-year-old native of the Dominican Republic, was last year's leading rider at Del Mar and the Hollywood Park spring/summer meet. He won the Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) in November aboard Dancing in Silks (Black Minnaloushe). Maker reported from his Trackside Training Center base a few miles from Churchill Downs that both of his Derby contenders, Dean's Kitten and Blue Grass S. (G1) upsetter STATELY VICTOR (Ghostzapper), galloped 1 3/8 miles Tuesday morning and that "everything's good with us." Maker said he would attend Wednesday's Kentucky Derby post position draw.
"But if you're going to run 4,000 screaming marathon runners out of the tunnel, he's going to take a look at that. My pony shied from that. The horse in front of him shied from that. He was the only one who got the publicity, but that's ridiculous. That's not a problem at all. I have no concern with that at all." Lukas, by far, the all-time leader in Derby starters with 43, said there is a lot to like about Dublin. "His strength and his ability," Lukas said. "He's got a long stride; he's a stayer. I don't think he'll have a bit of trouble with the mile and a quarter. He's a big, powerful horse who has got tactical speed. He fits all of my parameters for the good ones. "He's the best-looking horse I've ever led over there. This is a hell of a horse." Lukas described the colt as a grinder, but noted that he had not won any of his three starts this year. Dublin hit the board all three of those races at Oaklawn Park. "We'd like to win this one," he said. "Grindstone got beat in the Arkansas Derby. Thunder Gulch got beat in the Blue Grass. We're after this one." Lukas said the colt is making a progression and might be peaking at the right time. "I think he is," Lukas said. "I feel very comfortable, probably more so than I have in a long time." Lukas said that Dublin is the best horse he has started in the Derby since Charismatic, the longshot winner in 1999 at odds of 31-1.
A former jockey, Ritter attended her first Kentucky Derby in 1998 as the exercise rider for Victory Gallop, who finished second that year to Real Quiet. "I did the walkover (to the paddock) with Victory Gallop and it was awesome," Ritter said. "What made it special was the horse. I remember all the people lined up on both sides (leaving the barn area) and he was on his toes." Ritter will make the walk again Saturday with Endorsement, who will be ridden in Derby 136 by Robby Albarado. "My dream was to ride in the Kentucky Derby," Ritter said. "This will be the next best thing." Ritter was asked about the first time she really paid attention to the Kentucky Derby. "Winning Colors; she just really made a big impression," Ritter said. "I remember the big gray and (jockey) Gary Stevens was one of my favorites." Uh, Shannon, there is theme here with Devil May Care and Winning Colors. "That's just coincidence, really," Ritter said with a laugh. "Devil May Care, I thought that she really looked good, and then Winning Colors. Just coincidence."
As for the Derby's pace scenario, Romans said he envisioned Paddy O'Prado racing in the "second shelf" of contenders down the backstretch. "But that could mean he's about 12th with as much speed as the race looks to have on paper," he said. "Kent (Desormeaux) will decide if they're going too slow or too fast up front and put him where he needs to be. Kent has won three more Derbies than me. You let a guy like that do his thing." The Hall of Fame rider Desormeaux has won the Derby in 2008 (Big Brown), 2000 (Fusaichi Pegasus) and 1998 (Real Quiet). The Nick Zito duo of ICE BOX (Pulpit) and JACKSON BEND (Hear No Evil) both schooled in the starting gate Tuesday morning before galloping 1 1/2 miles under Dennis Chavez and Carlos Correa, respectively. Zito has saddled two Kentucky Derby winners, Strike the Gold in 1991 and Go for Gin in 1994, has fond memories of the Run for the Roses. "They fade to a point, because we're getting older, but I remember like it was yesterday; I still remember all the hoopla before and after it," the Hall of Fame trainer said. "We'll just keep going. We're lucky and blessed just to have horses in the Derby. If we ever win a third Derby -- it's been a long time between drinks, as they say -- we'll take it and thank God and get down on our hands and knees. This game will humble kings, no matter how you look at it." Zito regards Ice Box, a fast-closing winner of the Florida Derby (G1), and Jackson Bend, runner-up to Eskendereya in both the Fountain of Youth (G2) and Wood Memorial (G1), as legitimate contenders with a solid chance to get back to the Churchill Downs winner's circle on the first Saturday in May. Yet, he makes sure that he doesn't expect too much from his colts. "Hopefully, we get in the gate. Then, once you get in the gate, you hope you hit the board, and if by some miraculous reason you win, forget it," Zito said. "It's horse racing. Unless you got the goods, unless you have Secretariat, something special, you can't boast about anything." Jose Lezcano will ride Ice Box, while Mike Smith will be up on Jackson Bend.
Trainer Ken McPeek reported all is well the day after that :48 4/5 half-mile move. McPeek remains firm that an entry decision doesn't need to be made until Wednesday's entry deadline, as is the case for all Derby 136 hopefuls, but that Noble's Promise looks most likely headed to the entry box. McPeek's most recent Kentucky Derby starter was 2002, when Harlan's Holiday finished seventh as the highest-priced post-time favorite of all time (6.00-to-1 odds). "I'm very excited to be back in the Derby mix with this kind of horse," McPeek said. "This is the fourth time down this road for me, the Derby, and I never, ever take it for granted. It's exciting for everyone involved, as it should be. We have a lot of exciting days during the racing year, not just the Derby. It was great to have a big hand at the Breeders' Cup last fall, too." Journeyman rider Willie Martinez will have the Derby mount on Saturday. This year's Derby also will be a welcome back for the rider, who has not heard "My Old Kentucky Home" from the saddle since guiding longshot Valhol in 1999. "It means the world to ride the Derby," Martinez said. "You can't put it into words." Noble's Promise will return to the racetrack Wednesday as he continues his final Derby preparations, McPeek said. Illinois Derby (G3) victor AMERICAN LION (Tiznow) also had a quiet morning on Tuesday, the day after he worked five furlongs in 1:02 3/5 for trainer Eoin Harty. "He walked for about 45 minutes," Harty said. "I was going to graze him, but due to inclement weather, those plans were put on hold." It rained throughout the training hours at Churchill Downs Tuesday. Harty said American Lion was fine after the breeze and will return to the track Wednesday for some light exercise. "I'll play it by ear," Harty said. "If he's jumping around, I'll gallop him. If he's behaving himself, I'll just jog him." Now that the final breeze is over, Harty said his duties with American Lion are pretty simple as they wait for Kentucky Derby 136. "It's keep him happy and stay away from him, leave him alone," Harty said. "That is what I'm going to do."
"Slop is something he likes and he's already won on it going a route of ground in a stakes race (the February 26 Sportsman's Paradise at Delta Downs)." Amoss concedes that Backtalk has been more impressive sprinting -- his two graded stakes wins were at six furlongs – but he also feels that the son of 2004 Kentucky Derby winner Smarty Jones continues to relax well and has the advantage of coming back to a track he has proven success on. "In the races that he's run in at three, although he's won at a route I would not say they've been as impressive as his sprints," Amoss said. "Our job is to bring him to the Kentucky Derby and show that he's a good horse at this distance. We want to show that we're competitive. "Backtalk is a horse that we've taught to relax in his longer races. He's done a very good job of that. He's smart, pays attention to the rider. We think he's got his lessons right for this. "He's a horse that really likes Churchill Downs. He's two-for-two here, albeit in sprints, and the Derby's a mile-and-a-quarter -- which is a totally different race." MAKE MUSIC FOR ME (Bernstein) jogged once around the track under Andy Durnin Tuesday morning, while his trainer continued the wait to learn whether her colt will run in the Derby on Saturday or the American Turf at Churchill Downs on Friday. "I'm fine with the grass. Like we said there's only one Derby, but the grass is very suitable for him," said Alexis Barba, a former assistant to Eddie Gregson, the trainer of 1982 Derby winner Gato Del Sol. Make Music for Me, who broke his maiden in the Pasadena S. over the Santa Anita turf course on March 6, finished second twice and third once behind likely Derby favorite Lookin at Lucky (Smart Strike) on synthetic tracks in Southern California. Barba isn't surprised that so many Southern California horses have excelled on traditional dirt tracks in Derby preps this year. "When you have a horse that comes from the farm and you first put him on synthetics, they get really tired. So I think they get a lot more out of the synthetic physically," Barba said.
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