Todd Pletcher’s three Kentucky Derby (G1) horses — Florida Derby (G1)
runner-up DUNKIRK (Unbridled’s Song), Lexington S. (G2) winner ADVICE (Chapel
Royal) and Tampa Bay Derby (G3) runner-up JOIN IN THE DANCE (Sky Mesa) — were
out and done with their leg stretching prior to 7 a.m. (all times EDT) Friday,
each galloping approximately 1 3/8 miles around the sloppy Churchill Downs oval
that had been pelted with some fairly serious overnight rains.
Advice, the last of the barn’s Derby contenders, came off the strip just
prior to 7 a.m. with Pletcher looking on near the six-furlong gap.
“If it is fast or sloppy tomorrow for the race, I think we’ll be fine,”
Pletcher said. “Dunkirk went over this slop a little earlier and he handled it
well. He was good with it. But I don’t think we’ll want to see a ‘good’ or muddy
track. That won’t help my horses. We’ll hope we don’t have to deal with that.”
Trainer Kelly Breen waited until daylight hit the Downs to get WEST SIDE
BERNIE (Bernstein) and ATOMIC RAIN (Smart Strike), the respective runner-up and
fourth in the Wood Memorial (G1), out on the track Friday morning.
“The track was sloppy, and I wanted to wait until there was enough light to
see well before I took them out,” Breen said.
West Side Bernie went out at 7 a.m., and Atomic Rain was on the track by
7:30. Both colts jogged one mile with Breen aboard. They were ponied to the
track by George Hall, who owns the horses with his wife, Lori.
The six-year-old pony Hall was aboard is a story of his own. He is a
Thoroughbred named Fagan’s Legacy, a son of 2001 Derby hero Monarchos, who won
the Pilgrim S. at Belmont as a two-year-old. He’s named in honor of Hall’s
grandfather, Larry Fagan.
“My grandfather took my brother John and me to the track at Belmont and
Aqueduct when we were kids,” Hall said. “He’s the one that got us interested in
racing.”
Hall ponied one of his horses to the track for a race Thursday, but says he
has no plans to repeat that in the Kentucky Derby.
“I thought about it,” he said, “but the Derby is too big a race. I might get
too nervous. Plus, I’m looking forward to the walk over there with family and
friends. It was fun and exciting yesterday, and I’m glad I did it. The pony,
being a racehorse, got excited about it, too. He got to the top of the stretch
and I think he was expecting to go to the gate.”
Breen, who has been smiling most of the week as he approaches his first
Kentucky Derby, was coming back to the barn aboard West Side Bernie when he saw
Michael Matz on the path.
“Got any pointers for me?” Breen said to Matz.
Barbaro’s trainer just smiled and said, “You’ll be fine.”
Santa Anita Derby (G1) runner-up CHOCOLATE CANDY (Candy Ride [Arg]) was out
for some 7 a.m. exercise on the sloppy track. Exercise rider Lindsey Molina led
the bay through a drill similar to the one he’d gone through the day before — a
short stand in the starting gate and a good gallop of about 1 5/8 miles.
“He’s never run on an off track,” trainer Jerry Hollendorfer said back at
Barn 42, “but he’s handled it well the couple of times he’s been on one here
this week. This morning when he came around the second time on his gallop he was
going even better than the first. Once he got a feel for the track he liked it
even more. If it comes up off tomorrow, I think we’re going to be OK.”
Trainer Saeed bin Suroor sent the Godolphin runners REGAL RANSOM (Distorted
Humor) and DESERT PARTY (Street Cry [Ire]), the respective top two from the
U.A.E. Derby (UAE-G2), out Friday morning to gallop 1 3/8 miles.
“They’re looking good,” bin Suroor said. “Happy. Fresh. Sound. Healthy. No
problem at all. Now the job is done and we’re looking forward to tomorrow. We’re
happy with them.”
Bin Suroor is optimistic his colts won’t be affected adversely by running
over what is likely to be a wet track in the Derby.
“I think Desert Party will handle it. He’s won on it before,” bin Suroor
said, referring to his victory in the July 24 Sanford S. (G2) on a muddy, sealed
track at Saratoga. “All week, Regal Ransom has handled the ground good, but in
the race it could be different. It’s hard to say.”
Bin Suroor said he thinks Godolphin has the right horses prepared properly,
with three races in Dubai, for the Derby.
“There is no excuse for them,” he said. “If they are good enough, they are
going to win.”
Trainer D. Wayne Lukas sent Lane’s End S. (G2) runner-up FLYING PRIVATE (Fusaichi
Pegasus) to the track for a routine gallop with Taylor Carty up. The Hall of
Fame trainer, who has saddled four Kentucky Derby winners, has always had an
astute eye for the competition during Derby Week.
“Desert Party appeals to me in this race. They have quality horses, and that
horse looks excellent to me. I think he’s going to be a factor,” Lukas said. “I
like (Bob) Baffert’s horse (Pioneerof the Nile). I think he’s adjusted (to the
dirt surface). I wasn’t an I Want Revenge fan earlier in the week, but he’s
starting to come around, too.”
Lukas views handicapping Derby 135 as a particularly tough endeavor.
“The only thing that’s confusing about it are those horses coming from
different areas with synthetic surfaces,” he said. “It’s hard to evaluate how
good they are. Some of them could adapt to this beautifully and others bomb, so
it makes it a nightmare to handicap. There could be a 50 or 60 dollar payoff
pretty easy.”
Robby Albarado will ride Flying Private, whom Lukas has compared favorably to
two of his Derby winners: Grindstone (1996) and Charismatic (1999).
Louisiana Derby (G2) romper FRIESAN FIRE (A.P. Indy) visited the paddock and
galloped five-eighths of a mile with trainer Larry Jones in the saddle.
“We just wanted to keep his legs fresh,” Jones said. “I let him go to the
paddock and look around and he was much more relaxed in there than the other day
when he went to the gate.”
Jones, who saddled Hard Spun and Eight Belles to runner-up finishes in the
past two Derbys, was asked about his confidence level with Friesan Fire.
“There is no way you can get too confident, because it is a horse race,”
Jones said. “He is coming into the race as good, if not better, than the last
two. We have had no issues with him at all. Some others were battling
quarter-cracks and some other things, but everything has fallen perfectly in
place for him.”
Jones, who plans to retire from training after this year’s Breeders’ Cup, was
asked if he could pen the perfect script for Derby 135, how it would read.
“That’s easy. We win,” Jones said with a laugh. “We win in Baltimore and then
Belmont. What a way to go out!”
The eyes of Louisville will be on local owner/trainer Tom McCarthy as he
saddles Blue Grass S. (G1) winner GENERAL QUARTERS (Sky Mesa) in Saturday’s
Derby 135. But don’t look for McCarthy to be hobknobbing in the grandstand.
“I’ll be sitting right there in that tack room and be with my horse all day,”
McCarthy said. “I don’t get into all that other stuff. We’re here to do a job,
and he’s the only one I really need to be with on Derby Day. I’m letting my son
handle all the tickets and people and such.”
General Quarters galloped 1 1/2 miles Friday morning under exercise rider
Julie Sheets, and McCarthy loved what he saw on the sloppy track.
“Oh, boy, I think I’m hoping for rain now to be honest,” he said. “He just
skipped over the mud and loved it.”
WinStar Farm’s vice president and racing manager Elliott Walden checked on
WinStar’s three Derby starters — Lane’s End hero and Blue Grass runner-up HOLD
ME BACK (Giant’s Causeway), Santa Anita Derby third MR. HOT STUFF (Tiznow) and
Advice — on Friday morning.
Hold Me Back, handled by Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott, galloped 1 1/2
miles.
Walden acknowledged that is quite an accomplishment to get three horses into
the Derby field.
“All three are coming off very good races, so you feel good about that,”
Walden said. “Hold Me Back is a horse that has developed very quickly with the
last two races and he seems to be doing very well.
“Mr. Hot Stuff is a horse that is a little further behind, as far as his
development is concerned. He’s only won one race, but we feel that the X factor
is that he’ll love the mile and a quarter. He’s galloped out his races extremely
well and he is progressing physically and mentally. He’s a little bit slower to
come to the party than his full brother Colonel John, who had more of a
two-year-old career. We’re excited about how he’s coming in and we hope we’re
right, but we’re guessing a little bit on that.
“Advice ran a big race and he’s worked great over the dirt, so we felt like
he deserved a chance, too.”
Since all three colts have an off-the-pace running style, Walden said that
WinStar officials were happy to see the speedy Join in the Dance get a spot in
the field this week.
“We had Advice sitting on the fence to run and a lot of that was because of
the fact that he came to it late by winning the Lexington, but we also wanted
the speed in the race from Todd’s horse (Join in the Dance).
“When Todd’s horse got in by another defection, that’s when we decided to run
Advice. We probably wouldn’t have run Advice if he was 20 (on the earnings list)
and Join in the Dance was 21. We would have let him run because of the
speed. We do need speed for all three horses. So we would have probably held
Advice back.”
Mr. Hot Stuff went trackside at 6:45 a.m. and galloped a mile over a sloppy
racetrack.
“A mile was enough,” trainer Eoin Harty said. “I didn’t want to chance any
more.”
The transplanted Irishman was asked how he thought his Kentucky-bred might
handle a possible wet surface in Kentucky Derby 135 on Saturday.
“Haven’t a clue,” the conditioner said. “He’s never been on one, but I guess
there’s a fair chance we might find out.”
Harty was asked if Mr. Hot Stuff’s full brother Colonel John, a two-time
Grade 1 winner whom he saddled to run sixth in last year’s Derby — had any
history of off track performance.
“No help there,” he said. “Don’t believe he was ever on a wet track.
“We’re ready for it now,” Harty said. “We’re as ready as we can be.”
Wood Memorial star I WANT REVENGE (Stephen Got Even), the morning-line
favorite for Derby 135, galloped a mile and jogged a mile under exercise rider
Joe Deegan. Trainer Jeff Mullins expressed satisfaction with the colt’s
preparation.
“The only thing I could ask for is better weather and a fast racetrack,” the
Southern California-based trainer said.
I Want Revenge will enter the Derby coming off an impressive victory in the
Wood Memorial, in which he overcame a very late start and severe traffic in the
stretch under jockey Joe Talamo. Although Talamo will be riding in his first
Derby, Mullins said that the 19-year-old jockey will be on his own without any
instructions on how to get to the finish line first.
“I haven’t given him any yet, so I don’t think I’m going to start now,”
Mullins said. “I could have given him all the instructions in the world for the
Wood, and look what happened.”
While Tom McCarthy might be the most hands-on owner in this year’s Kentucky
Derby with General Quarters, Canadian champion MINE THAT BIRD’s (Birdstone)
co-owner Mark Allen isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty, either. The rancher and
owner of Double Eagle Farm doubled as groom Friday morning, giving his
pint-sized Kentucky Derby contender a sponge bath.
Allen and trainer Chip Woolley go back more than two decades and are making
their first appearance on Thoroughbred racing’s biggest stage. Mine That Bird
galloped 1 1/2 miles Friday morning and impressed Allen with how he responded to
the conditions.
“He handled the track really, really well,” Allen said. “Chip could not have
this horse doing any better.”
Both Allen and Woolley have worked extensively with Quarter Horses over the
years in New Mexico, and Allen said he has big dreams in 2009 for both breeds.
“How amazing would it be to have a horse in the Kentucky Derby and the All
American Futurity in the same year?” he asked. “I’d call that a perfect year.
That’s what we’re hoping for. We have four or five really quality two-year-old
Quarter Horses that we’re aiming for at Ruidoso.”
Trainer Derek Ryan had Illinois Derby (G2) and Tampa Bay Derby victor MUSKET
MAN (Yonaguska) out early in the morning for a one-mile gallop around the sloppy
oval. After that, the colt calmly munched grass behind Barn 41, looking the
picture of a happy, healthy horse.
“He’s doing great,” Ryan said as he prepares for his first Kentucky Derby.
“I’m doing OK, too. It’s like all the other races — if you win, you celebrate;
if you lose, you go home. Except this is the big one, so that makes it
different.”
Illinois Derby fourth NOWHERE TO HIDE (Vindication) walked the shedrow under
tack Friday morning, one day after blowing out a quarter-mile in :25 1/5 for
Hall of Fame trainer Nick Zito.
“Everything’s good and he’s ready,” Zito said.
The two-time Derby-winning trainer is among a trio of multiple Derby winners
in this year’s cast, joining four-time winner Lukas and three-time winner Bob
Baffert. But recent history indicates those three may not have an edge as six of
the past seven Derby winners have been trained by conditioners making their
debut in the Run for the Roses.
What does Zito make of the recent trend?
“It’s terrific and great for the game — are you kidding me?” he responded.
“It shows you how great this race is, and how hard it is to win and also how
many people are trying to come here and win it.
“Everybody wants to win this race from the moment they look at a horse in a
yearling sale. That wasn’t always the case. When I bought Go for Gin for
$150,000 in 1992, it wasn’t with one race in mind like buyers are aiming for
today. Things have changed. Almost everyone today is looking for a Triple Crown
or Breeders’ Cup winner, and that’s about it. As a trainer, you know what they
want and that’s what you aim for.”
With his pre-Derby work completed Thursday after a three-furlong blowout in
:34, Arkansas Derby (G2) winner PAPA CLEM (Smart Strike) walked the shedrow
Friday morning and was feisty as trainer Gary Stute met him afterward in his
stall. Papa Clem took a nip at his trainer, eliciting some laughter and the
declaration, “I think that means he’s ready.”
Stute will stick to his plan and walk Papa Clem on Derby morning as well. The
trainer reported that Papa Clem’s legs were “ice cold” after the final breeze
and that “he has not missed an oat this week, according to my barn foreman.”
Saturday’s famed Kentucky Derby walkover will be an exciting time, Stute
said, as he makes the long journey from the stable area to the paddock with Papa
Clem. He joked Friday morning that he hopes it goes better than the first time
he made the trek in 1980 with his father Mel.
“When my dad ran Bold n’ Rulling, I wanted to walk over with the horse,” he
recalled. “But as I leaned to duck under the rail to go on the track, my pants
split right down the seam! I had to run back to the barn and duct-tape them
together. Let’s just hope that doesn’t happen Saturday on national TV.”
Baffert said Friday morning he has tried to prepare Santa Anita Derby
conqueror PIONEEROF THE NILE (Empire Maker) mentally and physically for the
grind of running three times in five weeks in the Triple Crown series of the
Kentucky Derby, the May 16 Preakness (G1) and the June 6 Belmont S. (G1).
“He’s filled out. He’s carrying a lot of flesh,” Baffert said. “I’ve worked
on his mind pretty well. He’s the kind of horse that is going to be able to
handle the three races. I sort of brought him in here good enough to do this one
but still have him for the next one. I didn’t want to do too much here. I wanted
to do enough to get him to win this one so he can go to the next one. I’m still
trying to win that damn Triple Crown.”
Pioneerof the Nile galloped 1 1/2 miles Friday morning.
“He looks good. He had a good day,” Baffert said. “Everyday has been a good
day for him. You need that.”
Pioneerof the Nile pulled Garrett Gomez to the lead early in the Santa Anita
Derby. The colt will be making his first start on dirt and Baffert chose post 16
in the starting gate in hopes that it will reduce the amount of dirt Pioneerof
the Nile has kicked in his face. The key, he said, is for Gomez to get the colt
to relax early.
“He didn’t want to settle the last time,” Baffert said. “That’s why I didn’t
take a chance of putting him on the inside, especially with the wet. If it’s wet
and he’s down on the inside and that mud starts hitting him, sometimes it can
get to them.”
Trainer Tim Ice had Arkansas Derby third SUMMER BIRD (Birdstone) out very
early Friday morning, and the Birdstone colt jogged two miles over the sloppy
track with jockey Chris Rosier aboard.
“It was dark, I didn’t even see him out there,” Ice said. “But I wanted to
get out early and get him back to his stall today. Chris told me he went good
out there, which is what I wanted to hear.”
Ice, who went out on his own as a trainer less than a year ago, has been the
picture of placidity this week as he saddles his first Kentucky Derby starter.
“I’m trying to do everything like I normally do,” Ice said. “I’m not
approaching this like it’s the world’s greatest race — which it is, of course
— but I’m trying to stay calm and just go through my routine. It’ll probably
all hit me Saturday.
“Chris and I were talking about that the other day,” Ice said. “Chris said
that he’s ridden with all those jocks, so he has that experience to go with. Of
course, when they play ‘My Old Kentucky Home’ that’s when the butterflies will
really start. If you don’t get butterflies in your stomach at that point, you
probably shouldn’t be here.”