Category Archives: 2014 Kentucky Derby News

While the 2014 Kentucky Derby is still a ways away, there’s a lot going on in the horse racing industry at the moment that’s playing a big role when it comes to online horse odds.

Recently, the all-important Champagne Stakes was run at Belmont Park. This annual race is a key one for two-year-olds looking to set the early pace for pre-Kentucky Derby bragging rights, and this year’s was no exception as a trio of talented colts showed plenty to throngs of onlookers.

Let’s run down who did what.

Havana Heats Up

The big story at Champagne was Havana, the Todd Pletcher-trained horse that earned Pletcher his fifth career-win at Champagne and third in the last four years.

Saddled by Irad Ortiz Jr, Havana battled early with Debt Ceiling before opening up a pretty good lead along the stretch – about four lengths. That lead dissipated late, though, as Honor Code rallied from the wide position (and from back of the pack) to push Havana right to the wire.

The win put Havana on the tongues of many racing aficionados looking for early Derby handicaps. Though he raised some eyebrows with a solid effort in his debut at Saratoga back in August, this was easily the biggest and most impressive run of Havana’s young career. Now he’s looking at some quality Kentucky Derby horse racing odds in his future.

Honor Code Finishes Second, Walks Away a Winner

While post of the talk from Champagne was about Pletcher and Havana, a large contingent felt that the runner up – Honor Code – actually made a bigger splash on the overall scene, thanks in large part to his absolutely gutsy run.

Trained by Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, who won the 2013 Derby with Orb, Honor Code again showed his signature late kick. In his debut race, Honor Code trailed by as many as 22 lengths before winning by four-and-a-half, and he displayed much of the same in chasing Havana down the stretch despite trailing by 11 lengths at the half-mile mark.

McGaughey, who classified his horse as “lazy in the first part, until you do ask him,” confirmed what most onlookers thought – Honor Code was actually unlucky to have not caught Havana and showed the type of speed and rallying ability that makes people start to whisper about him when it comes to Kentucky Derby betting.

Ride on Curlin Shows Well

This might be hard to believe given all the praise showered on Havana and Honor Code, but there were people at Belmont who thought the third-place finisher – Ride on Curlin – had the best run of the lot.

Ride on Curlin came in as a 17-1 longshot but showed extremely well, putting together a solid late kick that resembled the one Honor Code put forth. What’s more, Ride On Curlin got beat a total of 1 ¾ lengths – and there was major separation between third and forth. Several people watching figured Ride on Curlin did more than enough to show he’s one to keep in mind when you bet on the Kentucky Derby.

The horse racing season never really rests, does it? There always seems to be some Kentucky Derby betting news. 

It was only five months ago that Orb, trained by Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, captured the 2013 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs – but in that short amount of time, enough weeks have passed for points races to officially start for the ’14 Derby.

The first points race was the Iroquois Stakes at – appropriately enough – Churchill downs, a $171,500 race that offered 10 points to the winner and four points to the runner up for a spot in next year’s Derby.

And when the Iroquois was settled, it was a pair of horses from Donegal Racing that stole the show.

Cleburne, ridden by Corey Lanerie, captured the race while another Donegal colt, Smart Cover, finished second – giving the Iowa-based racing franchise a fantastic start to the Derby season.

Led by Dale Romans – the 2012 Eclipse Award winner as the nation’s leading trainer – Cleburne and Smart Cover ran neck and neck down the stretch before Cleburne captured the race in 1:45.65 in what was considered a fast track.

While the time was impressive, the way the horses finished was even better – especially for those that like to bet on Kentucky Derby.

Cleburne and Smart Cover came in as huge underdogs – Cleburne at 34-1, Smart Cover at 26-1 – which Romans’ fellow Donegal trainer, Ray Smith, saw as a slight.

“I saw they were both in the 35-1 range (odds),” Smith told the Des Moines Register following the race. “I knew we should be in double digits, but I was like, ‘Whoa, that’s absolutely no respect.’”

Respect is something Donegal will probably get a lot of moving forward. The 10 points captured by Cleburne will go a long way when it comes to Kentucky Derby horse racing odds, and when he gets there, the Donegal experience should kick in – the group has twice competed in the derby and twice come away with third place finishes: Paddy O’Prado did the trick in 2010 and Dullahan did it in 2012.

Mena Suspended

One of the more noteworthy jockeys in the game, Miguel Mena, has been handed a three-day suspension for his role in the disqualification of Air Squadron during the opening day of Churchill Downs racing.

The suspension will cost Mena almost the entirety of September’s Kentucky racing calendar.

Mena, a native of Peru, has over 1,200 racing wins on his resume and has been competing in the United States since 2003.

Son of Curlin Making Waves

Curlin – one of the most famous American thoroughbreds of the last decade and a former Preakness winner – has some strong bloodlines on the current circuit in the form of Ride on Curlin, a two-year-old that recently set a record at Ellis Park for 5 1/2 furlongs.

Owned by Louisville natives Dan Dougherty and trainer “Bronco” Billy Gowan, Ride on Curlin was engaged in a fierce bidding war for a time – Dougherty and Gowan say they turned down $1 million for him – before the pair opted to keep the colt and run him.

Famed jockey and three-time Kentucky Derby winner Calvin Borel raved about Ride on Curlin’s potential.

“The horse just has talent,” Borel explained. “I’ve ridden a lot of good horses, and he’s one of them.”

While the late summer months tend to be slow ones in the world of Triple Crown betting, there’s still a bunch of relevant news surrounding all the major races, including the Kentucky Derby. Let’s take a look at some of the top horse racing stories.

Churchill Downs Renovation Update

The big news out of Kentucky this week is that Churchill Downs is getting a major facelift. According to various reports, there will be a new seating platform – the Grandstand Terrace – in effect for the 2014 Run for the Roses, a venue that is estimated to offer around 2,400 new seats.

As for a timeline? The Grand Terrace Project has already been approved by the Churchill Downs Incorporated Board of Directors, and it’s believed the venue and its amenities will be ready for both the 140th running of the Kentucky Oaks (Friday, May 2, 2014) and the Kentucky Derby (Saturday, May 3, 2014).

This is a big development for those who love to bet on horses at the track. By adding nearly 3,000 patrons on-site, Churchill figures to increase its track handle and get even more exposure as the overall attendance numbers should grow by leaps and bounds. The Grand Terrance Project is just part of an overall renovation that will include 51,000 square feet of complete new space located behind and adjacent to Churchill’s current Grandstand seats.

All in Blue

One of the hottest 2-year-olds currently running – and one to keep an eye out for on the Kentucky Derby futures closer to the big event – is a talented runner from the Todd Pletcher stable, All in Blue.

All in Blue debuted strongly at Belmont earlier this summer and made waves with an equally impressive performance in July’s six-furlong Sanford, the first major open race for 2-year-olds during the Saratoga session.

While he did stumble out of the gate, All in Blue rallied well for a solid fourth-place finish, showing the kind of mid-race kick that many have pegged as a potential weapon for next year’s Triple Crown.

Yes I’m Lucky

Another 2-year-old to keep an eye on this summer – in anticipation of next year’s Derby, of course – is Yes I’m Lucky, a colt ridden by Paco Lopez and trained by Eddie Plesa Jr.

In the first race of August, Yes I’m Lucky overtook his buddy and stablemate Run for Logistics at the Tyro Stakes at Monmouth Park, making a big push down the stretch to win by 1 3/4 lengths.

If you’re considering placing a bet on horses online, then you’ll want to consider how a horse does on different surfaces. Yes I’m Lucky has shown a penchant for running on solid dirt conditions, but showed great flair at Monmouth. The turf track wasn’t ideal for a first-time grass starter, and as Plesa noted, was going to be something new for Yes I’m Lucky. But the horse took the challenge with aplomb, bursting out of the gate to secure a lead he wouldn’t relinquish.

As a result, the colt captured the $60,000 Tyro and now has won all three of his career starts for a tidy earning of $93,000 in overall prize money.

With the Canadian Triple Crown’s first jewel in the books, Ontario’s Fort Erie Race Track is gearing up to host the second leg of the series – the annual Prince of Wales Stakes.

Featured as part of the track’s Twilight Tuesdays series, the gates are set to open at 7:30 PM ET on Tuesday, July 30. The lineup consists of three-year-olds each ready to stake their claim on the $500,000 purse, as well as the second jewel in the Canadian Triple Crown.

It looks like Uncaptured and Kaigun will be the front-runners. However, as with any race, anything can happen.

Uncaptured: The Probable

Deemed Canada’s 2012 Horse of the Year and Top Two-Year-Old Male, Uncaptured is looking like the favored contender. Owned by John Oxley and trained by Mark Casse, this three-year-old Dark Bay Colt has 11-career starts with six first and three second-place finishes in his short two-year career.

Sired by Lion Heart, who ranked 14th in earnings in 2004 and placed second in that same year’s Kentucky Derby, it’s safe to say that talent runs in the family.

In this colt’s most recent outings, he placed at both the Wando Stakes in May and the Matt Winn Stakes in June. Those results, combined with his strong performances in 2012 and a stellar bloodline show that Uncaptured could definitely give his competitors a run for their money.

Kaigun: The Possible

Kaigun, named after the Imperial Japanese Navy, hit the racetrack for the first time in April. The lightest-raced horse at this year’s Queen’s Plate, he has four starts and one first-place finish under his belt. Though Kaigun had a strong start in the first jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown, a ninth-place finish further adds to the doubt surrounding his performance at Tuesday’s race.

While his track-record is not quite as impressive as Uncaptured’s, Kaigun comes from a family of champions. Sired by Northern Afleet, a Breeder’s Cup Sprint participant in 1997, who also sired the multi-Classic winner, Afleet Alex; Kaigun belongs to a strong gene pool, which alludes to his innate potential. Though this thoroughbred may have far less experience than his competitors, there’s always room for improvement and we’ll just have to see what happens.

Now that the news has broken that this year’s Queen’s Plate winner, Midnight Aria, will be skipping out on the second leg of the series, Kaigun might have as good a chance as any other horse down the stretch.

The Queen’s Plate Recap

The 154th Queen’s Plate at Woodbine saw Midnight Aria race gate to wire in the pouring rain to win the 1 ¼ Mile first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown and claim the $600,000 first-prize purse.

A first-time win at the Queen’s Plate for jockey Jesse Campbell, the race was considered a great success for him, trainer Nick Gonzalez and the Tucci Family, who purchased the Ontario bred colt for a measly $35,000 last year.

Despite the well-deserved victory, tough weather conditions and the intensity with which he stormed the finish line seem to have taken their toll on the Queen’s Plate winner. According to Gonzalez, Midnight Aria has been slow to bounce back and has merited himself a break. As such will he will not be around come post time at the Prince of Wales Stakes.

However, the summer is not quite over for this thoroughbred, as the possibility of his participation in the 1 ½ Mile third leg of the Canadian Triple Crown this August lingers.

With the stakes so high, the question of the hour revolves around who will step up to the plate at next week’s race? Only time will tell.

They’ve done it with NASCAR. They’ve done it with tennis, golf and darts. Now thoroughbred racing has its own point system to generate more interest in the Sport of Kings. To race in the 2014 Kentucky Derby , the horse must qualify by earning enough points in the prep races. It’s called, appropriately enough, the Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Other sports have had their ups and downs converting to the point system, but it looks like a great fit for horse racing. In 1986, the folks at Churchill Downs started determining the 20 qualifiers for the Kentucky Derby by adding up their earnings in graded stakes races. This was a fairly reasonable way to separate the best horses from the pack, but it was far from perfect.

More importantly, people didn’t seem to get it. Churchill Downs polled over 300 sports fans from across the United States and found that 83% of them didn’t understand how a horse qualified for the Kentucky Derby. That was the ultimate motivation behind the switch to the point system. Now horse lovers have a “league” of their own to follow.

The 2014 Road to the Kentucky Derby features 34 races, divided roughly into two halves: the Kentucky Derby Prep Season(18 races) and the Kentucky Derby Championship Series (16 races). As the season goes on, the races become more important and more points are awarded to the top performers. The top 20 horses at the end of the season will qualify for the Kentucky Derby on May 3; the next four horses will be waitlisted and can join the field in the event of a scratch.

Should there be a tie in the point standings, the tie-breaker will go to whichever horse has earned more money in non-restricted stakes races, graded or ungraded. Dead heats in individual races will see the two (or more) horses in question split their points evenly. Any fillies who earn points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby will also have those points added to their total for the Road to the Kentucky Oaks.

Here is the full schedule for the 2014 Road to the Kentucky Derby, already in progress.

Kentucky Derby Prep Season

Note: 10 points for first, four points for second, two points for third and one point for fourth.

Sept. 7, 2013: Iroquois (1 1/16 Mile, Dirt, Churchill Downs)

Sept. 28, 2013: FrontRunner (1 1/16 Mile, Dirt, Santa Anita)

Oct. 5, 2013: Breeders’ Futurity (1 1/16 Mile, Synthetic, Keeneland)

Oct. 5, 2013: Champagne (1 Mile, Dirt, Belmont)

Oct. 6, 2013: Grey (1 1/16 Mile, Synthetic, Woodbine)

Nov. 2, 2013: Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (1 1/16 Mile, Dirt, Santa Anita)

Nov. 23, 2013: Delta Downs Jackpot (1 1/16 Mile, Dirt, Delta Downs)

Nov. 30, 2013: Remsen (1 1/8 Mile, Dirt, Aqueduct)

Nov. 30, 2013: Kentucky Jockey Club (1 1/16 Mile, Dirt, Churchill Downs)

Jan. 4, 2014: Jerome (1 Mile 70 Yards, Dirt, Aqueduct)

Jan. 11, 2014: Sham (1 Mile, Dirt, Santa Anita)

Jan. 18, 2014: Lecomte (1 Mile 70 Yards, Dirt, Fair Grounds)

Jan. 20, 2014: Smarty Jones (1 Mile, Dirt, Oaklawn)

Jan. 25, 2014: Holy Bull (1 Mile, Dirt, Gulfstream)

Feb. 1, 2014: Withers (1 1/16 Mile, Dirt, Aqueduct)

Feb. 8, 2014: Robert B. Lewis (1 1/16 Miles, Dirt, Santa Anita)

Feb. 15, 2014: El Camino Real Derby (1 1/8 Miles, Synthetic, Golden Gate)

Feb. 17, 2014: Southwest (1 1/16 Miles, Dirt, Oaklawn)

Kentucky Derby Championship Series

First Leg

Note: 50 points for first, 20 points for second, 10 points for third and 5 points for fourth.

Feb. 22, 2014: Fountain of Youth (1 1/16 Miles, Dirt, Gulfstream)

Feb. 22, 2014: Risen Star (1 1/16 Miles, Dirt, Fair Grounds)

Mar. 1, 2014: Gotham (1 1/16, Dirt, Aqueduct)

Mar. 8, 2014: Tampa Bay Derby (1 1/16 Miles, Dirt, Tampa Bay Downs)

Mar. 8, 2014: San Felipe (1 1/16 Miles, Dirt, Santa Anita)

Mar. 15, 2014: Rebel (1 1/16 Miles, Dirt, Oaklawn)

Mar. 22, 2014: Spiral (1 1/8 Miles, Synthetic, Turfway)

Mar. 23, 2014: Sunland Derby (1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, Sunland)

Second Leg

Note: 100 points for first, 40 points for second, 20 points for third and 10 points for fourth.

Mar. 29, 2014: Florida Derby (1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, Gulfstream)

Mar. 29, 2014: Louisiana Derby (1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, Fair Grounds)

Mar. 29, 2014: UAE Derby (1 3/16 Miles, Synthetic, Meydan)

Apr. 5, 2014: Wood Memorial (1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, Aqueduct)

Apr. 5, 2014: Santa Anita Derby (1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, Santa Anita)

Apr. 12, 2014: Arkansas Derby (1 1/8 Miles, Dirt, Oaklawn Park)

Apr. 12, 2014: Blue Grass (1 1/8 Miles, Synthetic, Keeneland)

Wild Card

Note: 20 points for first, eight points for second, four points for third and two points for fourth.

Apr. 19, 2014: Lexington (1 1/16 Miles, Synthetic, Keeneland)

With the Triple Crown season now in the books, horseracing betting enthusiasts have already begun looking forward to next year and what the season has in store.

Let’s take a look, shall we?

What becomes of Orb?

Despite only winning one of the three Triple Crown races this year – granted, it was the Kentucky Derby, the granddaddy of the circuit – Orb looked to be the breakthrough performer of the year. He got his trainer, Hall-of-Famer Shug McGaughey, his first career win at Churchill Downs and showed amazing development throughout the season.

While he won’t be running in next year’s Derby – the race is limited to 3-year-olds – it’ll be curious to see if he can make an impact throughout the remainder of this season and the next. McGaughey already has Orb training for the Travers Stakes at Saratoga, and thinks there’s an outside shot the Run For The Roses champ could also partake in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes, also at Saratoga later this month.

If not Orb, who?

As mentioned above, Churchill is reserved solely for three-year-olds, meaning anybody that wants to start handicapping next year’s race needs to start looking at the two-year-old set.

Some names to throw your way:

Fiftyshadesofgold: Bred and trained in Texas by longtime horse man Bret Calhoun, this filly ran at the $100,000 Debutante at Churchill Downs in June, on the cleverly-named “After Dark” card.

Calhoun raves about Fiftyshadesofgold’s ability: “We’ve really thought highly of this filly for quite some time,” he told the Louisville Courier-Journal – and it’s expected she’ll be ready to make an impact in 2014.

More Than Beauty: Ridden by jockey Calvin Borel, More Than Beauty burst onto the scene back in early May, winning a race at Churchill by over five lengths – in a race that Calvin wasn’t even supposed to saddle for. It was his brother, Cecil, that was scheduled to run the race, but Calvin stepped in and showed immediate chemistry with the horse, who figures to be a staple in next year’s circuit and a definite contender for the Derby.

Teardrop: Arguably the most exciting two-year-old running right now. Teardrop went into the Kentucky Oakes as a 2-1 favorite and has good lineage as she’s a half-sister of former Grade 1 winner (and $1.6-million earner) Pyro. Teardrop also debuted extremely well in her debut race; even though she started slowly and looked a bit lost, she showed great kick (and some of that Pyro spirit) by charging wide and winning by almost four lengths.

Teardrop is a product of the Winchell group – originally started by Verne Winchell, of the famous Donuts – and Winchell Thoroughbreds does have a history in the Derby. Verne himself had three starters at Churchill downs in the past: Classic Go-Go (fourth in 1981), Sea Cadet (eighth in 1991) and most recently, Valiant Nature (13th in 1994).

All told, next year promises to be an exciting one for those that like to bet on horse racing. The incoming class figures to make the 2014 Kentucky Derby one of the most exciting and unpredictable in recent memory.

The third and final leg of the Triple Crown is in the books – yes, the 145th running of the Belmont Stakes went off without a hitch, and one of the best trainers in the game finally got his big win of the season.

Palace Malice captured the Belmont by finishing the 1 1/2-mile track in two minutes, 30.70 seconds. One of the five horses run by trainer extraordinaire Todd Pletcher, Palace Malice held off strong charges from Preakness winner Oxbow and Derby winner Orb to win in style.

Pletcher’s jockey, Mike Smith, captured his second-ever victory at Belmont. In 2010, he guided Drosselmeyer to a first-place finish.

Smith said Palace Malice enjoyed the entirety of the 2013 race and looked incredibly strong coming down the home stretch. It was a big result for a horse that hadn’t exactly been lighting it up in Triple Crown races – he finished 12th in the Kentucky Derby and didn’t even run in the Preakness, instead opting to rest up for the Belmont.

The son of Curlin, Palace Malice’s lone highlight of the Triple Crown season came at the Derby. He got off to an amazing, blazing start – one that wowed onlookers for its sheer speed, but ultimately proved a letdown as the horse was unable to keep up the pace.

Prior to Palace’s heroics at the Belmont, it was Oxbow who looked like he was in the best shape. Oxbow took the lead with a half mile to go, but got tired while turning for the home stretch, according to jockey Joel Rosario.

As for Orb and Hall-of-Fame trainer Shug McGaughey, the Belmont proved to be a disappointing day. McGaughey had high hopes for Orb to capture a second jewel in the Crown – Orb won the Derby earlier this spring – but it simply didn’t come together at Belmont, even with a fairly solid third-place finish.

McGaughey said he was “disappointed in third” and noted that Orb probably fell too far back to start the race and simply wasn’t able to rally. The longtime trainer said he was impressed with Orb’s ability to make a good run around the turn, but lamented the horse’s inability to keep up that pace.

Notes…

— This year’s Belmont attendance was 47,562, a noticeable dropoff from last year’s massive crowd of 85,811. The reason for the big decline? Last year, I’ll Have Another was in line to become the first Triple Crown winner since 1978. However after wins in the Derby and Preakness, the horse was forced to withdraw from the Belmont due to an injury.

— Rosie Napravnik became the first female jockey ever to run all three Triple Crown races in the same season. She finished sixth at the Belmont while saddling Unlimited Budget.

Here’s your final order of finish for the 2013 Belmont Stakes:

1. Palace Malice
2. Oxbow
3. Orb
4. Incognito
5. Revolutionary
6. Unlimited Budget
7. Overanalyze
8. Vyjack
9. Golden Soul
10. Will Take Charge
11. Giant Finish
12. Midnight Taboo
13. Freedom Child
14. Frac Daddy

Some news and notes to pass your way as the big race draws near.

Orb’s a Go

While there was no question that Orb – this year’s Kentucky Derby winner – was going to run in the field at Belmont, there was some question about his form following a disappointing finish at the Preakness.

Well, no worries says trainer Shug McGaughey.

McGaughey, a horseracing Hall of Famer, worked out Orb extensively this week. The horse worked four furlongs in 48.30 and galloped the five in 1:00.48, raising eyebrows from onlookers.

Orb will be in a direct staredown with Preakess winner Oxbow for the “rubber match” race at Belmont. The winner will have captured two of the three Triple Crown races for the season and culminate what would be one of the most successful individual performances we’ve seen in quite some time.

That said, McGaughey knows Orb will have to raise his game at Belmont. Oxbow beat him by nine lengths.

Frac Daddy may Run

An intriguing horse out of Billings, Montana may run in the Belmont, according to his owner.

Frac Daddy – owned by Billings native Carter Stewart – said he and his crew are “leaning toward” running the three-year-old gray thoroughbred in the $1 million race.

Frac Daddy, a Kentucky-bred horse, ran at the Derby and came into the race as a 25-1 longshot. He started well, but eventually faded to the back and finished 16th.

Since then, the horse has looked good, and drew a lot of whistles and admiration during a mid-week run in which he paced a half-mile drill in 47.80 seconds at Churchill Downs.

“He’s training as well as I’ve ever seen,” said trainer Ken McPee.

Giant Finish will Run

Giant Finish is on his way to New York, trainer Tony Dutrow confirmed this week.

Giant Finish, owned by Andrew Cohen’s Sunrise Stables, finished 10th at the Kentucky Derby but did show solid prior to that, placing at the John Battaglia Memorial and Grade 3 Spiral at Turfway in March.

The ownership group wants to see what they have in Giant Finish, and are essentially throwing him into the Belmont on a hunch more than anything else. Dutrow has been a straight-shooter when it comes to Giant Finish’s pedigree, saying he’s an unremarkable horse that tries his best, and is a straightforward runner.

Always in a Tiz continues to put in work

Nobody’s quite sure what to make of Always in a Tiz.

The horse made major noise near the tail-end of 2012, finishing first at the MSW at Saratoga, second at Traskwood at the Aqueduct and third at the Smarty Jones at Oaklawn.

Since then, though, not much of anything.

“Tiz” did work out this week and worked out well, running five furlongs in 1:01.86. That said, many in attendance noted that jockey David Cohen appeared to let Always in a Tiz breeze an additional 1/8 of a mile after the finish line, then gallop to the clubhouse turn.

The times were good, but for a horse that hasn’t raced in two months or worked in five weeks, many were wondering if there could be an injury or fitness issue at play.

The third and final leg of the Triple Crown promises to be one of the most exciting this year, as separate winners in both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes look to claim two of the big three and stake their claim to horseracing glory.

In previewing this year’s “Test of Champions” from Belmont Park in New York, let’s take a look at a few of the predominant storylines.

Keeping an Eye on Orb
Led by Hall-of-Fame trainer Shug McGaughey, Orb captured the Kentucky Derby and had been running well enough prior to the Preakness to be viewed as a legitimate Triple Crown threat. An average showing at Pimlico – fourth overall  – dashed those hopes, but McGaughey is hopeful that his horse is back on track for a solid showing at Belmont.

Earlier in the week, Orb had a very positive one-mile gallop in anticipation of the Belmont, with exercise rider Jennifer Patterson calling the ride “beautiful” and suggesting that Orb might be rounding back into the form that made him successful at Churchill Downs.

Oxbow Running Strong
Oxbow was the story at Pimlico after Orb dropped back to finish fourth – the D. Wayne Lukas-trained horse captured the Preakness and put himself in prime position for a solid showing at Belmont.

This past week, Oxbow returned to the track (at Churchill Downs) for the first time since winning the Preakness, a light workout that Lukas said was mostly a formality after a few days off.

Lukas said Oxbow showed the most energy out of all his horses and expects him to have one more maintenance workout at Churchill Downs before shipping Oxbow off to New York.

In other news out of the Lukas camp, he confirmed that another of his horses – Will Take Charge – will run in the Belmont with jockey Jon Court chosen to saddle. Mike Smith had rode Will Take Charge in the Preakness after Court saddled at the Kentucky Derby.

Napravnik to Ride Code West
Jockey Rosie Napravnik has been tabbed by trainer Bob Baffert to ride Code West at Belmont.

Napravnik, 25, is looking to become just the second female to ever win the Belmont Stakes; Julie Krone captured the Belmont in 1993 while saddling Colonial Affair.

Krone remains the only female jockey to ever win a Triple Crown event, though Napravnik has shown the talent and pedigree to be the second.

Napravnik has shown a special affinity for riding Baffert’s horses – especially Mylute, who will be held out of the Belmont but showed extremely well while being ridden by Napravnik in the first two legs of the Crown.

Napravnik finished fifth at the Kentucky Derby with Mylute, then put forth a stellar third-place showing at Pimlico.
Smith to Ride Palace Malice

Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith will saddle Palace Malice at Belmont, according to Dogwood Stable president Cot Campbell.

While he only finished 12th at the Derby, Palace Malice was the early pacesetter and raised a lot of eyebrows by getting off to a remarkably fast start before eventually fading to the back of the pack.

The lead up heading into the 2013 Preakness Stakes was all about one name: Orb.

But at the end of the day, there was another horse that dominated the race – and the headlines – ensuring that there would be no Triple Crown winner this year.

On a solid day at Pimlico, it was Oxbow who surprised the field to capture the 2013 Preakness Stakes.

Oxbow dominated proceedings and gave yet another big-ticket win for trainer D. Wayne Lukas. Lukas, 77, captured his 14th victory in Triple Crown races and did it by winning the Preakness – the same race that he captured for his first-ever TC victory (in 1980, when he did it with Codex).

Despite Oxbow’s fairly solid pedigree and Lukas’ training acumen, the result was still something of a surprise. All eyes heading into Pimlico were on Orb, the Shug McGaughey-trained horse that captured the 139th running of the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago.

However Orb failed to materialize as a contender. Instead, it was Oxbow that stole the show.

The horse ran the 1 3/16 mile track in 1:57.54 and didn’t face much in the way of a challenge throughout the race. Oxbow came into the race as a 15-1 longshot but paid handsomely after holding off Itsmyluckyday and Mylute, both of whom showed well in what were considered decent conditions at Pimlico.

But still, you may be asking – what happened to Orb?

A heavy favorite coming into the race, Orb was unable to overcome a bad start position – he began the race along the rail – and couldn’t pick the best spot to make his move to take on Oxbow. Orb began his move along the backstretch, and temporarily, moved into third place – but it was at that point that jockey Joel Rosario failed to move out into open space.

As a result, Orb finished fourth.

Going back to Oxbow for a moment – this horse was not only a good story, but the jockey was as well.

Gary Stevens, 50, had been retired from horse racing for seven years. The Hall of Fame jockey was actually serving as part of NBC’s broadcast team for various races over the last few campaigns, but felt the itch to reunite with a fellow Hall-of-Famer – Lukas – who said his goal at these types of big races was to “spoil dreams.”

Stevens got the itch to ride again a few months ago and found the perfect partner in Lukas who, in the interest of spoiling dreams, ensured that there would be no Triple Crown winner for the 35th-consecutive year.

(Orb was considered a legit candidate to break that streak – McGaughey raved and called the horse one of the best he’d every trained, and had high hopes for a record-setting campaign.)

Here are your 2013 Preakness Stakes Results

1. Oxbow $32.80 $12.00 $6.80

2. ItsMyLuckyDay $7.80 $5.00

3. MyLute $5.20

4. Orb

5. Goldencents

6. Departing

7. Will Take Charge

8. Govenor Charlie

9. Titletown Five