Champions American Pharoah, Take Charge Brandi among 429
early Triple Crown nominees
Zayat Stables LLC’s American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile), the Eclipse Award
winner for champion two-year-old colt of 2014, and Willis D. Horton’s Take Charge
Brandi (Giant’s Causeway), who mounted a year-end charge to earn the honor of America’s 2014
juvenile filly champion, head an accomplished roster of
429
sophomore Thoroughbreds made eligible to compete in the 2015 Triple Crown during the early
nomination phase for the series of three classic races that includes the $2
million Kentucky Derby (G1), $1.5
million Preakness S. (G1) and $1.5 million Belmont S. (G1).
The early nomination total for the 2015 Triple Crown
reflects an increase of 15 nominations — or 3.6 percent — from 2014 when 414
three-year-olds were made eligible during the Triple Crown’s early nomination phase.
The 414 early nominations in 2014 was a 12.2 percent increase over the 369
horses made eligible during that phase in 2013.
Ten horses were nominated in last year’s late nomination
period for a final total of 424. The total was the largest since a record 460
horses were nominated to the Triple Crown in 2008.
The 2015 Triple Crown series opens Saturday, May 2, with the
141st running of the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville,
Kentucky. The 140th Preakness, the 1 3/16-mile second jewel, is set for Saturday, May
16, at Pimlico in Baltimore, Maryland. The 147th running of the Belmont, the 1
1/2-mile final leg, is scheduled for Saturday, June 6, at Belmont
Park in Elmont, New York.
The early nomination period for the 2015 Triple Crown
opened December 20 and closed at 11:59 p.m. (EST) on Saturday,
January 17. Nominations were required to be accompanied by payment of a $600 fee.
A late nomination period for the Triple Crown is underway
and requires payment of a $6,000 for each nominated three-year-old. The late
nomination period runs through Monday, March 23, at 11:59 p.m.
This year’s 429 early Triple Crown nominees represent 1.8
percent of the 2012 North American foal crop, which was estimated at 23,500
Thoroughbreds.
Reigning champions American Pharoah and Take Charge Brandi
hail from the stables of two of the most successful stables in Triple Crown
history.
American Pharoah, whose two wins in three races include
Grade 1 triumphs in the Del Mar Futurity and Santa Anita’s FrontRunner S., is one
of 15 nominees trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, who has nine Triple Crown
wins on his career résumé. The total includes three victories in the Kentucky
Derby, five Preakness triumphs and one win in the Belmont Stakes. Also among
Baffert’s nominees is Kaleem Shah’s unbeaten Dortmund (Big Brown), winner of the Los Alamitos Futurity
(G1).
Racing legend D. Wayne Lukas trains Take Charge Brandi, one
of 11 fillies nominated to the 2015 Triple Crown. Lukas trained Winning Colors,
one of only three fillies to win the Kentucky Derby, and is the all-time leading
trainer in Triple Crown victories with 14, the most recent of which being a victory
by Calumet Farm’s Oxbow in the 2013 Preakness.
The 79-year-old Hall of Fame
conditioner has won the Kentucky Derby four times, collected six victories in
the Preakness and won the Belmont Stakes four times. Also among Lukas’ 2015
Triple Crown nominees is Zayat Sables LLC’s Mr. Z (Malibu Moon), runner-up in Keeneland’s Breeders’ Futurity
S. (G1) and third in the Los Alamitos Futurity.
Other stars among the early nominees to this year’s Triple Crown include Texas Red
(Afleet Alex), trained by co-owner Keith Desormeaux and winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1);
Carpe Diem (Giant’s Causeway), winner of the Breeders’ Futurity and
runner-up in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile; Upstart (Flatter), third in the
Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and winner of Gulfstream Park’s Holy Bull S. (G2) to kick
off his sophomore campaign; Calculator (In Summation), runner-up to American Pharoah in the Del Mar Futurity and
FrontRunner and winner of the Sham S. (G3) at Santa Anita; Daredevil (More Than
Ready), winner of the Champagne S. (G1) at Belmont Park; Competitive Edge (Super
Saver), unbeaten
winner of Saratoga’s Hopeful S. (G1); El Kabeir (Scat Daddy), winner of the
Kentucky Jockey Club S. (G2) at Churchill Downs and Aqueduct’s Jerome S. (G3);
Imperia (Medaglia d’Oro), runner-up in the Kentucky Jockey Club and winner
of the Pilgrim S. (G3) over Belmont’s turf; International Star (Fusaichi
Pegasus), winner of the Grey S. (Can-G3) at Woodbine and Lecomte S. (G3) at Fair
Grounds; and Far Right (Notional), winner of
the Smarty Jones S. at Oaklawn Park and third in the Delta Downs Jackpot (G3).
The leader among trainers in total Triple Crown nominees is
seven-time Eclipse Award winner Todd Pletcher, who made 34 horses eligible for
the series during the early nomination phase. His individual total is down from
2014 when nominating 41 horses during the early period.
The 47-year-old
Pletcher has won three Triple Crown races, a total that includes one Kentucky
Derby victory and a pair of triumphs in the Belmont Stakes. Pletcher’s 2015 army
of Triple Crown hopes is headed by the Grade 1-winning trio of Carpe Diem,
Competitive Edge and Daredevil.
Chad Brown nominated 24 horses to rank second to Pletcher.
Others with double-figure early nomination totals include Jerry Hollendorfer
(16), Baffert (15), Lukas (14), Steve Asmussen (13) and Dale Romans (10).
Calumet Farm, a Thoroughbred racing icon which campaigned
Triple Crown winners Citation (1948) and Whirlaway (1941) and is the all-time
leader in victories in the elusive series with 18, is the nomination leader
among owners after making 15 horses eligible for America’s spring classics.
Calumet won the Kentucky Derby a record eight times, has won a record eight
renewals of the Preakness and collected its pair of Belmont Stakes wins when
Whirlaway and Citation completed their Triple Crown sweeps. The victory by Oxbow
in the 2013 Preakness was the first Triple Crown victory for Calumet Farm under
the leadership of new owner Brad Kelley, and first for the namesake since
Forward Pass won the 1968 Preakness.
Ten Triple Crown early nominees are owned by Charles Fipke,
the only other owner with a nomination total in double figures. Godolphin Racing
LLC, Michael Tabor and Zayat Stables LLC are next with nine nominees, owned
either individually or in partnership.
Leading breeders are Darley and WinStar Farm LLC, with each
being the breeder of 11 nominees. Stonestreet Stables is next with 10 and Fipke
bred nine early nominees.
The roster of 2015 Triple Crown-eligible horses includes
379 colts, 30 geldings, 11 fillies and nine ridglings. Of the 429 early
nominees, 409 of those were bred in the United States and 323 of that number, or
75 percent, were foaled in Kentucky.
Twenty horses were bred outside of the United States.
Thirteen of those were bred in Canada, with six foaled in Ireland and one in
France.
The Kentucky Derby field has been limited to 20 starters
since 1975 and the horses that enter the starting gate for this year’s running
will again be determined by points earned in the 35-race “Road to the Kentucky
Derby” eligibility system, which debuted in 2013. If Derby entries total more
than the maximum field of 20, up to four “also eligible” entrants will be
permitted. If one or more starters is scratched prior to 9 a.m. (EDT) on Friday, May
1, the also-eligible horse or horses with the highest preference in the “Road to
the Kentucky Derby” system will be allowed to replace the scratched horse or
horses in the starting gate.
The field for the Preakness is limited to 14 starters,
while the Belmont Stakes permits a maximum of 16 horses in its starting gate.
Three-year-olds that were not nominated for the Triple
Crown series during either the early or late nomination phases have a final
opportunity to become eligible for the races through the payment of a
supplemental nomination fee. Due at the time of entry for either the Kentucky
Derby, the Preakness or the Belmont Stakes, the supplemental fee process makes a
horse eligible for the remainder of the Triple Crown series. A supplemental
nomination at the time of entry to the Kentucky Derby requires payment of
$200,000. The fee is $150,000 if paid prior to the Preakness or $75,000 at time
of entry to the Belmont Stakes.
Churchill Downs adjusted its entry process in 2014 to
permit horses who are made nominations prior to the Kentucky Derby to be treated
the same as original nominees. If one or more supplemental nominees possess
sufficient “Road to the Kentucky Derby” points to qualify for the Derby field,
they will be allowed to start over original nominees with lesser qualifications.
Under its previous policy, Churchill Downs gave preference to original nominees
to the Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown over supplemental nominees.
A sweep of the three Triple Crown races — one of the most
difficult feats in all of sports — has been accomplished on only 11 occasions.
The roster of Triple Crown winners includes Sir Barton (1919), Gallant Fox
(1930), Omaha (1935), War Admiral (1937), Whirlaway (1941), Count Fleet (1943),
Assault (1946), Citation (1948), Secretariat (1973), Seattle Slew (1977) and
Affirmed (1978).
The 36-year gap since the most recent Triple Crown sweep by
Affirmed in 1978 is the longest in the history of the series. The previous
record was the 25-year span between the 1948 Triple Crown earned by Citation and
Secretariat’s record-shattering three-race sweep in 1973.
Steve Coburn and Perry Martin’s homebred fan favorite California Chrome
(Lucky Pulpit) scored impressive victories in the 2014 Kentucky Derby and
Preakness, but could not end the Triple Crown drought and finished fourth to Tonalist
(Tapit) in the Belmont Stakes. California Chrome was the 52nd
sophomore to win two of the three Triple Crown races.
Despite his setback in
the Belmont, the Art Sherman-trained California-bred was honored as racing’s
2014 Horse of the Year and also earned the Eclipse Award for champion
three-year-old.
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