TAKE YOUR PICK: `WEAK' FIELD FOR DERBY MEANS THERE'S NO FAVORITE.Byline: Kevin Modesti Staff Writer LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Harlan's Holiday dominated the East. Came Home conquered the West. Now, America's two most accomplished 3-year-old colts have traveled to the capital of the thoroughbred racing nation to try to earn the admiration their winning ways have so far failed to bring them. Slighted by many experts as too ill-bred, too short-winded or just plain too slow to win the Kentucky Derby Kentucky Derby One of the classic U.S. Thoroughbred horse races. It was established in 1875 and run annually on the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs track in Louisville, Ky. With the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes, it makes up U.S. racing's coveted Triple Crown. , Harlan's Holiday and Came Home can change a lot of minds by coming through today at Churchill Downs Churchill Downs, Ky.: see Louisville. in the 128th running of the race by which history judges young racehorses. ``People aren't looking at the horse,'' Came Home co-owner Trudy McCaffery said of the compact colt who won the Santa Anita Derby The Santa Anita Derby is an American Grade 1 thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run each April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California and carries a purse of $750,000. in a gritty effort last month. ``They're only looking at the pedigree.'' They're also looking at Came Home's and Harlan's Holiday's relatively slow clockings and pedestrian stretch runs - but McCaffery's comment demonstrates the defiance in the two colts' camps. They'd love to prove the doubters wrong. So would 17 other Derby horses' handlers in a season when the U.S. 3-year-old crop has been dismissed as late-blooming and weaker than normal. Harlan's Holiday won by daylight in the Florida Derby The Florida Derby is an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses held annually at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida on the Saturday closest to the end of March or the first of April. and the Blue Grass Stakes The Blue Grass Stakes, currently sponsored by the Toyota Motor Corporation, is an American Grade 1 horse race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds held annually in mid April at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky. in Lexington, Ky., and has six victories and four seconds in 10 lifetime starts and $1,466,564 in earnings as he enters today's $1 million race. Came Home has lost only once in seven career starts, a seventh-place finish on a rough day in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup. in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of last fall. It's not good enough for most handicappers. Harlan's Holiday is the most lukewarm morning-line favorite in Derby history at 9-2. Came Home is right behind Harlan's Holiday at 5-1. Their challenge in today's 1 1/4-mile race became a little easier Friday morning when Buddha, who had been co-second choice on the morning line at 5-1, came up lame and was scratched from the Derby. Trainer Jim Bond Jim L. Bond (born 1936) is a minister and emeritus general superintendent in the Church of the Nazarene. said he discovered a problem in Buddha's left foreleg at about 5 a.m. when the colt was taken out of his stall. ``We are going to do what's in the best interest of the horse and wait for another day,'' said Bond, who appeared on the verge On the Verge (or The Geography of Yearning) is a play written by Eric Overmyer. It makes extensive use of esoteric language and pop culture references from the late nineteenth century to 1955. of tears. ``It is very disappointing for (owners Gary and Mary West) and myself.'' Veterinarian veterinarian /vet·er·i·nar·i·an/ (vet?er-i-nar´e-an) a person trained and authorized to practice veterinary medicine and surgery; a doctor of veterinary medicine. vet·er·i·nar·i·an n. Larry Bramlage said the injury appeared to be to soft tissue and not bone. Bramlage said it could have been a result of Buddha's gallop Thursday morning or of stepping on a stone. He said tests would determine whether the Wood Memorial winner can race in the May 18 Preakness Stakes Preakness Stakes One of the three classic U.S. horse races making up the Triple Crown. It is held annually in mid-May at Baltimore's Pimlico Race Course. The course distance is 1³⁄₁₆ mi (1.9 km). The field is limited to 3-year-old Thoroughbreds. . Pat Day, who was scheduled to ride Buddha, appeared to be about to miss his first Kentucky Derby since 1983. But it was announced Friday afternoon that Corey Nakatani ''' Corey S. Nakatani (born October 21, 1970 in Covina, California, United States) is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. As of 2006, Nakatani has won more than 3000 races including the Kentucky Oaks twice, the Canadian International Stakes, the Dubai Golden will miss riding Blue Burner because of the effects of an accident Thursday at Hollywood Park Hollywood Park may be several places:
Nakatani was able to walk off the track after falling hard when his mount in Hollywood's third race clipped another horse's heels and stumbled. But he woke up dizzy Friday morning and decided he couldn't be 100 percent for the Derby. Nakatani won't ride again at Hollywood Park until Wednesday. Buddha's absence means the Derby will be run with 19 horses, not the maximum 20. But that doesn't help Windward Passage Windward Passage, strait, c.50 mi (80 km) wide, between Cuba and Haiti, connecting the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. It provides a direct route from the E United States to the Panama Canal. , the horse excluded from the race after the late entry of Danthebluegrassman on Wednesday. The Derby has no ``also eligible'' list, the biggest reason being that it would complicate the advance wagering that began Friday. Buddha would have broken from post position 10. Now, the nine horses The group called Nine Horses is a collaboration between David Sylvian, his brother and frequent collaborator Steve Jansen and electronic composer/remixer Burnt Friedman. drawn inside him will be shifted one starting-gate stall to the outside. For example, Johannesburg officially in post 1, actually will come out of the second stall; that should be easier for the 2-year-old champion than running right next to the rail. Because Buddha raced on the lead in the Wood, he might have played a role in determining the pace of the Derby. ``If he was the only speed in the race, I'd say it (the scratch) was beneficial for us,'' said Chris McCarron, who rides Came Home, who tends to race close to the lead. ``It's going to be a benefit to everybody in the field to have a horse of his caliber out of there.'' McCarron thinks the Derby favorites are being short-changed by experts. ``(Came Home) is not the only one that people aren't giving enough credit,'' the jockey said. ``I think Harlan's Holiday is a legitimate favorite. ``Hopefully, we'll have everybody scratching their heads after the race.'' From the other side, Harlan's Holiday trainer Ken McPeek said the opponent he fears most today is Came Home. Compared to the way he appeared at the Breeders' Cup, Came Home is ``a totally different horse - bigger, stronger, better looking, healthier,'' McPeek said. McPeek, a 39-year-old Arkansan who began his racetrack career the day after he graduated from the University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky, also referred to as UK, is a public, co-educational university located in Lexington, Kentucky. , saddled Tejano Run for that colt's second-place finish to Thunder Gulch in the 1995 Derby. For much of this season, Louisiana Derby winner Repent seemed to be McPeek's stronger Derby contender. Repent was injured and dropped off the trail. Between Tejano Run and Harlan's Holiday, McPeek endured a crisis when his wife, Sue, developed a malignant tumor malignant tumor n. A tumor that invades surrounding tissues, is usually capable of producing metastases, may recur after attempted removal, and is likely to cause death unless adequately treated. behind her left jaw while pregnant with the couple's first child. Sue and daughter Jenna survived. Winning today, McPeek said, ``will just be one of those things where somebody who worked hard will get ... the ultimate reward.'' McPeek was confident Friday that he would be able to saddle Harlan's Holiday even though the trainer has been on crutches after breaking his left foot in a basketball game last month. Harlan's Holiday wouldn't give Kentucky a lot to brag about. He was bred in Ohio, which hasn't produced a Derby winner since Wintergreen wintergreen or checkerberry, low evergreen plant (Gaultheria procumbens) of the family Ericaceae (heath family), native to sandy and acid woods (usually of evergreens) of E North America and frequently cultivated. in 1909. Owners Jack and Laurie Wolf live in Atlanta Live in Atlanta is the first DVD release of the German power metal band Savage Circus. It was recorded at the ProgPower USA festival in Atlanta on September 15, 2006. The release also includes a roadmovie. The DVD was released on February 23, 2007 by Dockyard 1. , though Jack is a Louisville native. Jockey Edgar Prado rides mainly in Florida and New York. Came Home would bring the roses back to California, whose preps produced the four Derby winners before 2001's Monarchos. 128th KENTUCKY DERBY What: A 1 1/4-mile race for 3-year-old thoroughbreds. Where: Churchill Downs, Louisville, Ky. When: Post time is 3:04 p.m. TV: Ch. 4, coverage starts at 2 p.m. Purse: With 19 starters, the purse will total $1.19 million and the winner will earn $890,000. Weather forecast: 10 percent chance of overnight rain, partly cloudy and 72 degrees today. Of note: Derby records include the 1:59 2/5 clocking by Secretariat (1973), the eight-length winning margins by Old Rosebud (1939), Johnstown (1939), Whirlaway (1941) and Assault (1946), and the $184.90 win payoff on Donerail (1913). 128th KENTUCKY DERBY A Viewer's Guide The Daily News' Kevin Modesti looks at the Derby horses and the people and stories behind them. Horses are listed in post-position order from the inside rail out, with the identification numbers worn on their saddle cloths and used in betting. Odds listed are the Churchill Downs morning line. Horse No. 10, Buddha, was withdrawn from the race Friday morning because of a foot injury. 1 Johannesburg 6-1 odds, Jockey Gary Stevens, Trainer Aidan O'Brien Stevens goes for his fourth Kentucky Derby victory, which would tie Bill Shoemaker for second place behind five-time winners Eddie Arcaro and Bill Hartack. Co-owner Michael Tabor won the Derby in 1995 with Stevens-ridden Thunder Gulch. But the 2-year-old champion's Irish-based trainer is new to the Derby. The last foreign-based Derby winner was Canonero II in 1971. 2 Wild Horses 50-1 odds, Jockey Rene Douglas, Trainer Todd Pletcher Bred by San Diego County residents Kip and Suzanne Knelman, the Arkansas Derby runner-up with only one victory in five starts sneaked into the 20 entries with the 20th-best earnings in graded-stakes races and is deservedly a long shot. Pletcher had multiple entries in the Derby the past two years and finished third with Impeachment impeachment, formal accusation issued by a legislature against a public official charged with crime or other serious misconduct. In a looser sense the term is sometimes applied also to the trial by the legislature that may follow. in 2000 and second with Invisible Ink in 2001. Douglas is taking his first Derby ride. 3 Perfect Drift 15-1 odds, Jockey Eddie Delahoussaye, Trainer Murray Johnson The low-profile gelding gelding castrated male horse. housed at a training center minutes from Churchill Downs put in a big finishing kick to win the Spiral Stakes at Kentucky's Turfway Park but hasn't raced in the six weeks since. Supporters hope the rest will be an advantage in the Derby. Delahoussaye rode Derby winners in 1982 (Gato del Sol Gato Del Sol (February 23 1979 – August 7, 2007) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He was foaled at Stone Farm in Paris, Kentucky, the son of U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, Cougar II, and out of the mare Peacefully whose grandsire was Bold Ruler, another Hall of ) and 1983 (Sunny's Halo). Johnson had fourth-place finisher Green Alligator alligator, large aquatic reptile of the genus Alligator, in the same order as the crocodile. There are two species—a large type found in the S United States and a small type found in E China. Alligators differ from crocodiles in several ways. in 1991. 4 Lusty lust·y adj. lust·i·er, lust·i·est 1. Full of vigor or vitality; robust. 2. Powerful; strong: a lusty cry. 3. Lustful. 4. Merry; joyous. Latin 30-1 odds, Jockey Glenn Corbett, Trainer Jeff Mullins Mullins and owners Joey (a Burbank native) and Wendy Platts of Wyoming have drawn praise for showing loyalty to Corbett, the leading rider at humble Prairie Meadows in Iowa, instead of hiring a big name. The gray colt was gaining fast on the tiring leaders when he finished third in the Santa Anita Derby at 47-1 odds. 5 War Emblem 20-1 odds, Jockey Victor Espinoza, Trainer Bob Baffert Two-time Derby winner Baffert took over the colt from Frank Springer after Saudi Prince Ahmed Salman's Thoroughbred Corp. purchased War Emblem after a wire-to-wire victory in fast time in the Illinois Derby. Then Baffert replaced low-profile jockey Larry Sterling Jr. with Hollywood Park leader Espinoza. To repeat his Illinois performance, War Emblem needs the kind of easy early lead that's hard to achieve in the Derby. 6 Ocean Sound 50-1 odds, Jockey Alex Solis, Trainer Jim Cassidy The Irish-bred colt scored his only victory in 12 career starts more than 11 months ago in England and is winless in four races in the United States. He was fourth, four lengths behind Came Home, in the San Rafael Stakes The San Rafael Stakes is a race for thoroughbred horses run at Santa Anita Park, located in Arcadia, California. The race is a Grade II event with a purse of $150,000 and is open to three-year-olds willing to race one mile (8 furlongs) on the dirt. at Santa Anita, and third, 4 3/4 lengths behind Harlan's Holiday, in the Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland. Solis, riding Ocean Sound for the first time, has finished second in the Derby three times without winning. 7 Request for Parole 20-1 odds, Jockey Robby Albarado, Trainer Steve Margolis A Kentucky-based colt, he wasn't embarrassed when he raced against Harlan's Holiday last fall, traded decisions with Perfect Drift this winter and is widely overlooked because he lacks a major victory. Albarado hasn't finished better than sixth in four Derby rides. The 38-year-old Margolis will saddle his first Derby starter. 8 Essence of Dubai 15-1 odds, Jockey David Flores Flores, town, Guatemala Flores (flōrəs), town (1990 est. pop. 2,200), capital of Petén department, N Guatemala. Flores was built on an island in the southern part of Lake Petén Itzá and on the site of the , Trainer Saeed bin Suroor Saeed bin Suroor (born October 10, 1967, Dubai), is a horse racing trainer. Formerly a policeman, he took out his training license in 1994 and the following year was appointed as the trainer for Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin operation. The strongest of the horses sent to the Derby by the sheiks of Dubai in the past four years, he has the advantage of having raced in the United States before (winning the Norfolk Stakes at Santa Anita as a 2-year-old) and having raced 1 1/4 miles (winning the UAE Derby over a California-based runner-up in March). Speed-figure handicappers' estimates of his Dubai performances say he's as good as the U.S.-based contenders. He ought to be after costing $2.3 million in a Kentucky yearling yearling an animal in its second year of age, e.g. yearling cattle, yearling filly, yearling colt. yearling disease rinderpest in wildebeeste in the Serengheti. sale. 9 Medaglia d'Oro 6-1 odds, Jockey Laffit Pincay, Trainer Bobby Frankel The speedy colt purchased by San Diego's Ed Gann has raced only four times, and no horse with that little experience has won the Derby since Exterminator in 1918. But he showed he fits with the best 3-year-olds when he upset since-sidelined Siphonic in the San Felipe Stakes The San Felipe Stakes is a race for Thoroughbred horses run each year at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. The race is normally held in mid-March and is open to horses, age three, willing to race one and one-sixteenth miles (8.5 furlongs) on the dirt. at Santa Anita and finished a head behind Buddha in the Wood Memorial in New York in his first two starts for his current trainer. Frankel is looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. his first Derby victory after running second with Aptitude in 2000. Pincay won the Derby in 1984 with Swale swale n. 1. A low tract of land, especially when moist or marshy. 2. A long, narrow, usually shallow trough between ridges on a beach, running parallel to the coastline. 3. . 11 Private Emblem 20-1 odds, Jockey Donnie Meche, Trainer Steve Asmussen Sired by Our Emblem - as was War Emblem - the colt would be the first New York-bred horse to win the Derby. He romped over marginal competition in the Arkansas Derby and is 3 for 3 at age 3. Asmussen, the nation's second-winningest trainer in 2001, was to have two entrants, but Windward Passage was squeezed out by the late entry of Danthebluegrassman. 12 Castle Gandolfo 20-1 odds, Jockey Jerry Bailey, Trainer Aidan O'Brien The other Ireland-trained colt is less experienced and less accomplished than Johannesburg, but it's hard to question the methods or judgment of O'Brien, one of Europe's leading horsemen. Castle Ganolfo won a race called the Fosters-International Trial Stakes in England in his only start at age 3. Bailey has ridden two Derby winners. 13 Proud Citizen 30-1 odds, Jockey Mike Smith, Trainer D. Wayne Lukas Darrell Wayne Lukas (born September 2, 1935 in Antigo, Wisconsin) is a former educator who became one of the most successful horse trainers in American Thoroughbred horse racing history and a U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee. A victory for Lukas would be his fifth in the Derby and would put him one behind Citation trainer Ben Jones' record. Lukas is counting on a repeat of the 1999 upset by Charismatic with another colt who ran poorly in the Santa Anita Derby before winning the Lexington Stakes. Lukas hopes patriotism will help to carry the colt. He points out that Proud Citizen is out of the mare Drums of Freedom. The barn bears a poster of emergency workers raising a flag at the World Trade Center site. 14 Harlan's Holiday 9-2 odds, Jockey Edgar Prado, Trainer Ken McPeek This will be the first Kentucky Derby favorite, and only the third Derby horse overall, ridden by Edgar Prado, the 35-year-old Peruvian who led North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. jockeys in earnings in 1997-99 while competing in Maryland. Prado finished 17th aboard Commendable in 2000 and fourth aboard Thunder Blitz in 2001. Harlan's Holiday has been sitting fourth or fifth early in his recent races and rallying on the outside. 15 Came Home 5-1 odds, Jockey Chris McCarron, Trainer Paco Gonzalez A son of Gone West - as is Castle Gandolfo - the smallish colt won the Santa Anita Derby over a field that included Easy Grades, Lusty Latin, Proud Citizen and Danthebluegrassman. It's not that fans don't like Came Home, who displays admirable grit in his victories, it's just that he seems to get slower as the races get longer. 16 Saarland 15-1 odds, Jockey John Velazquez, Trainer Shug McGaughey A son of 1990 Derby winner Unbridled, this is the best-bred horse for the race, and there are reasons both physical and metaphysical to think he'll improve on his New York prep efforts. Physical: Saarland had minor surgery to improve his breathing after running fourth in the Wood Memorial. Metaphysical: The breeding-owning Phipps family, which lost racing giant Ogden Phipps last month, and trainer McGaughey, in his first Derby since Easy Goer's upset loss to Sunday Silence in 1989, might fit the category of ``deserving horsemen'' who seem to find ways to win the roses. 17 Danthebluegrassman 50-1 odds, Jockey Kent Desormeaux, Trainer Bob Baffert Baffert and owner Mike Pegram, who teamed up with Desormeaux to win the 1998 Derby with Real Quiet, decided to make Danthebluegrassman a surprise entrant after concluding his eighth-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby was the result of bad racing luck. His two stakes victories came at Golden Gate Fields Golden Gate Fields is a horse racing track straddling both Albany, California and Berkeley, California along the shoreline of San Francisco Bay adjacent to the in the San Francisco Bay Area “Bay Area” redirects here. For other uses, see Bay Area (disambiguation). The San Francisco Bay Area, colloquially known as the Bay Area or The Bay when he set or prompted the pace. 18 It'sallinthechase 50-1 odds, Jockey Eddie Martin Jr., Trainer Wilson Brown Brown, 59, a former quarterhorse trainer from Cement, Okla., is running his first Derby horse. He must have figured it'snowornever despite his colt's poor record. It'sallinthechase has won twice in 14 starts, making him the losingest los·ing·est adj. Slang Less successful or losing more often than any others of its kind: "help turn around one of the network's losingest nights of the week" Washington Post. horse in the field, and finished ninth in the Arkansas Derby in his latest race. 19 Easy Grades 20-1 odds, Jockey Jorge Chavez, Trainer Ted H. West West, 28-year-old son of veteran California trainer Ted West, would be the youngest to saddle a Derby winner. Chavez rode 2001 Derby winner Monarchos. Owner Scott Guenther was born in Van Nuys but grew up in Orange County. Easy Grades, a gelding, was head and head with Came Home in the stretch in the Santa Anita Derby before slowing to finish second by 2 1/4 lengths. 20 Blue Burner 30-1 odds, Jockey Pat Day, Trainer Bill Mott The colt owned by New York Yankees  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism. boss George Steinbrenner finished fifth in the Wood Memorial, but Mott, certainly not an imprudent im·pru·dent adj. Unwise or indiscreet; not prudent. im·pru  dent·ly adv. manager of horses, thought it was all right to try the Derby. Blue Burner will be ridden by one-time Derby winner Day because Corey Nakatani is sidelined following a fall at Hollywood Park on Thursday. MODESTI'S DERBY PICKS 1. Perfect Drift - Freshest horse in the race will be surging in the stretch under Eddie D. 2. Medaglia d'Oro - Second-place finish in Wood was just a prep for Frankel-trained colt 3. Harlan's Holiday - Favorite might not win, but it's hard to see him finishing up the track. Long shot - Castle Gandolfo CAPTION(S): photo, 3 boxes Photo: (color) With six wins and four seconds in 10 starts, Harlan's Holiday looks to be a challenger at the wire. Al Behrman/Associated Press Box: (1) 128th KENTUCKY DERBY (see text) (2) 128th KENTUCKY DERBY: A Viewers Guide (see text) (3) MODESTI'S DERBY PICKS (see text) |
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