American Pharaoh back at Churchill, to parade Stephen Foster night

Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, seen here with Jimmy Barnes, has returned to Churchill Downs (NYRA/Susie Raisher/Adam Coglianese Photography)

Fewer than 24 hours after his tour de force triumph in the
147th running of the Belmont S. (G1) that made him racing’s first Triple Crown winner since 1978, Zayat Stables LLC’s American Pharoah
(Pioneerof the Nile) was back at Churchill Downs and resting in
his familiar stall at Barn 33.

The winner of the Kentucky Derby (G1), the
Preakness S. (G1) and Belmont Stakes will get a few days rest — along with
plenty of treats and good wishes from visitors — following his 5 1/2-length
victory in Saturday’s “Test of the Champion.” That victory placed American Pharoah in
the company of 11 other three-year-old Thoroughbreds who previously captured the
coveted three-race series of American classic races.

An H.E. “Tex” Sutton Forwarding Company flight carrying American Pharoah,
and several other horses that had competed in weekend races in New York, arrived
at Louisville International Airport early Sunday afternoon.

A large group of admirers and media members had gathered outside trainer
Bob Baffert’s barn to greet the Triple Crown winner, and the
entire group broke into applause when a van carrying the bay colt arrived on the
Churchill Downs backside. Assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes led the three-year-old
off the van around 1:15 p.m. (EDT).

“I went into this whole thing fairly confident,” Barnes said of the Triple
Crown after giving American Pharoah a post-flight bath. “I knew he just needed
to get a decent break, come out of the gate and get a fair chance to win it, and
that’s absolutely what happened.”

American Pharoah stepped off the van at Churchill Downs to the cheers of his fans (Churchill Downs/Reed Palmer Photography)

“The feelings just go on and on; they just don’t stop,” Barnes said of
his experience following American Pharoah’s Belmont Stakes victory. “Just coming
here with the police escort and there were fans on the street waving — it’s a
lot of roller-coaster emotions.”

Barnes said a near-constant stream of visitors and well-wishers had visited
America’s newest Triple Crown winner since Saturday’s triumph at Belmont Park.
He joked that the horse had gotten less sleep since the race than he had, but he
added that American Pharoah has handled the post-race celebration as well as any
aspect of his historic Triple Crown run.

“He probably had about two bags of carrots (since the race), along with
his normal feed,” Barnes said. “But he came back good. He’s happy.”

Baffert’s colt will get some rest following his busy spring and a trio of
Triple Crown wins in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes that
extended his ongoing win streak to seven races. But he probably will not be away
from the track for long.

“For the next four days he’ll be walking and then we re-evaluate the
horse, see where he’s at and if Bob’s ready to go back to the track with him,”
Barnes said. “Seeing how he came out of the race, I would think he would go
right back to the track.”

American Pharoah will parade before racing fans at Churchill Downs Saturday evening (NYRA/Dave Alcosser/Adam Coglianese Photography)

The Stephen Foster Handicap schedule also will include the annual
presentation of engraved trophies earned by the Kentucky Derby’s winning owner,
trainer, jockey and breeder.

Owner Ahmed Zayat also bred American Pharoah, so he will receive both
the solid gold winner’s trophy and the smaller sterling silver replica that goes
to the winning breeders. Plans for Baffert have not been finalized but winning
jockey Victor Espinoza plans to be at Churchill Downs to personally accept his
trophy.

According to a press release issued by NBC — which televised all three legs
of the Triple Crown — the network’s
race-portion ratings, from 3:15 to 4:15 p.m. (PDT), registered a 12.3/27 metered
market rating — the third best overnight for a Belmont Stakes on record. (People
Meter history dates to 1988).

NBC has now posted back-to-back 12+ overnight ratings for
the Belmont Stakes, marking the first time in People Meter history that
successive Belmont’s have topped a 12 overnight.