Barbaro Updates: 999
updates are now here.
Update 6041: Four ridden for Michael Pino this morning at Fair Hill. And another hot morning for training horses. All mine went nicely. The track was also nice and quiet, as is usual for a Sunday morning.
The Belmont was won yesterday by Drosselmeyer, with new jockey Mike Smith, for trainer Bill Mott and owner WinStar. Drosselmeyer was driven to the lead in mid stretch and held off a persistent Fly Down. It was a first Belmont win for both Mike Smith and Bill Mott. WinStar won this year's Derby with Super Saver: WinStar's Drosselmeyer wins Belmont.
Update 6040: Sue McMullen reports on today's thriling Epsom Derby:
It should have been a sign for us all that Workforce had to be something very special. With just two runs under his belt Sir Micheal Stoute nevertheless aimed his colt at the toughest challenge any colt will ever face and he's not a man who makes too many mistakes.
Not only did the rookie win but he did it in a style that left onlookers breathless. An emphatic victory in a race that was almost stolen by the 100-1 shot At First Glance, the Ballydoyle pacemaker ridden by 'super sub' Seamie Heffernan, so often handed the thankless task of piloting the big-race pacemakers.
A superstar in the making emerged from the Epsom Derby but it didn't quite follow the Ballydoyle script. Physically imposing, the perfect Thoroughbred racing machine at his prime, Jan Vermeer strode imperiously around the parade ring looking every inch the worthy hot favourite poised to make Epsom his own.
But as the race unfolded Ballydoyle's standard bearer didn't shine as expected finishing only fourth and their number one jockey, Johnny Murtagh, claiming he had not been happy with his mount at any stage during the race.
Aiden O'Brien subsequently reported that Jan Vermeer had lost both front shoes so he did well to finish in the frame but it was their pacemaker who shone as nobody told him he was there merely to do a job for his stable companions and on form, he was a rank outsider. Horses can't read form and as the colt, described by Heffernan as 'very genuine', set a blistering pace that would help Workforce break the race record, everybody watching waited for him to fold and get swallowed up by the chasing pack. But the brave colt just kept on galloping and on another day, would have provided Heffernan with the best birthday present and the biggest Derby upset.
But Workforce, ridden by champion jockey Ryan Moore who bagged the girls' classic yesterday aboard Snow Fairy, was about to change the script. Described by Sir Michael Stoute as 'straightforward and very laid back' the King's Best colt has not enjoyed the best preparation for the Derby and the worry for all trainers is that their charges must maintain balance and momentum down the famous hill and a tight left turn. Epsom's unique camber and undulations is the reason it is such a tough test for a young horse and to do it with just two previous runs is truly something special. Workforce lengthened his powerful stride and ate up the ground to catch At First Sight, setting a new race record in the process.
Ryan Moore is the quiet man of Flat racing, a man of very few words who lets the horses do the 'talking' and though he might not have the clowning antics and ebulliance of Frankie Dettori he is much respected in the sport. "Workforce travelled beautifully and did the job really well. I've had a great reception from so many people, not least my family and friends. It's a really special day and one I'll remember for a long time."
There was no fairytale ending for Frankie Dettori, who took 15 attempts to bag his first Derby before finally tasting victory aboard Authorised. Attempting to bag a second aboard the well-fancied Rewilding, the Godolphin colt showed his inexperience with Dettori reporting after the race that might head for Doncaster in September.
"It was a great run, he didn't have the gears to go with the winner but stayed on well and will be a lovely St Leger horse."
But Saed Bin Suroor had other ideas. "He will be a better horse later in the season. Frankie said his trip is a mile and a quarter, a mile and a half. I don't think he's a St Leger horse as he has a lot of speed."
Kieron Fallon was also denied a fairytale ending following his nightmare journey to Epsom. He had to show his own turn of foot to make it to the racecourse, leaving his family with the car in gridlocked traffic and jumping aboard a train arrived in the nick of time to pilot the Godolphin challenger Al Zir, regarded as another one who needs more time.
"He's still a big baby but he will be a very good horse."
In a year when we didn't dare hope that another star would emerge, Workforce today showed us something very special and we've got much to look forward to in the coming months. Fame and Glory's emphatic victory in yesterday's Coronation stakes earned him a 6-1 quote for the Arc and freed from the sight of Sea The Star's powerful backside, his nemsis last season, he is a force to be reckoned with this year. And don't forget the superb Jan Vermeer who will live to fight another day, with a new set of shoes.
Update 6039: Back to work at Fair Hill after a couple of days in Kansas City. And an easy morning's work with only four to ride. All went nicely for a straightforward start to the day.
The final leg of the Triple Crown is upon us today, and will be broadcast on ABC later this afternoon: Belmont Doings: 'It's a Tote Board Race'. Ice Box, First Dude and Make Music for Me are my picks, although I hve not been very successful picking horses for this year's Triple Crown races. The undercard at Belmont includes the Manhattan and the return to races for Gio Ponti. It should be a great race: WEEKEND STAKES: WHERE TO WATCH brought to you by KBC Horse Supplies.
Over in England we have the English Derby at Epsom: LIVE EPSOM DERBY DAY BLOG!
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Update 6038: Another day off, this time unscheduled as I got stuck in Kansas for an extra night. And here are some pictures from my Kansas trip.
The Rail posted our pre-Belmont ABR radio show: Talking Belmont With Alex Brown. As part of the 30 minute show Andy Durnin explained what type of preparations they are making for Make Music for Me, a horse he has been galloping through the Triple Crown trail. It was another fun show!
Update 6037: A day off for me today. I am actually in Kansas City preparing to give a presentation on Social Media.
We do have our 30 minute ABR radio show at 2pm: Alex Brown Racing on the radio. It will be our last chance to discuss the upcoming Belmont Stakes. We will also discuss the retirement of jockey Richard Migliore and Summer Bird, last year's Belmont winner.
Here is the draw for the upcoming Belmont: Ice Box Is 3-1 Favorite for the Belmont.
And please keep calling.
Update 6036: Superfecta here, with your regular weekly update.
While things remain ludicrously busy in Superfectaland (a new job, Philly Beer Week and the World Cup are all converging), we don't want to neglect racing, especially during Met Mile/Belmont week.
First, of course, we must give props to Quality Road in the Met Mile for another fine performance. Sure, he had to work a bit to keep the very game Musket Man from catching him at the end, but he never seemed as though he was digging as deeply as he possibly had to - his 114 Beyer for the race is below his high point (although certainly impressive). He may appear next in the Suburban, with the Breeders' Cup Classic as his ultimate goal (although one still suspects that the mile is his ideal distance).
And so to the Belmont - we'll have more on the undercard (which is almost always one of the best race days of the year) and the race itself later in the week, but here are a few initial thoughts:
- Post positions were drawn today, but in this race, it really doesn't matter (matter matter matter matter).
- Ice Box still looks like the class of the field.
- Uptowncharlybrown will be the human/equine interest story on the broadcast - and I hope he does well.
- It's unlikely to be a race that joins this august list - but the unexpected can happen, and it's always worth watching to see if it does.
Beyond the Belmont, word is in this week that Rachel Alexandra is likely to make her next start on June 12th. While this is good to hear, it's also somewhat problematic for two reasons. First, there's no confirmation yet as to which race it will be - it could be the Obeah (at normally-easily-accessible Delaware Park), the Stephen Foster or Fleur de Lis at Churchill Downs or, perhaps, the Ogden Phipps Handicap at Belmont. Taken alone, each of these options has a variety of positives and negatives, but there is one overarching thumbs down for all of them - the US takes on England in the World Cup that day...
Update 6035: Six ridden this morning for Michael Pino at Fair Hill. And we started 30 minutes earlier which was nice. It did not get too hot before we were finished. All my horses went nicely. We had a nice winner last night at Presque Isle, Hossanah's Song. Her third start and first win.
And please keep calling.
Update 6034: Another seven ridden for Michael Pino this morning at Fair Hill. A busy morning, and another warm morning. We did have a bit of a breeze so it was not quite as bad as yesterday, but hot enough. Tomorrow we are going to be starting 30 minutes earlier, hopefully this will help us get finished before it gets too warm. All mine went nicely, one breezed, and one broke sharply from the gate.
Here is this week's ABR Facebook Group e-mail: First Dude, Ice Box, Interactif, Drosselmeyer, Ron Franklin, Spectacular Bid, Rachel Alexandra, Zenyatta, Quality Road, Musket Man, Xavier Aizpuru, Adam Davison, Michael Dickinson, Mario Calderon, book cover, ABR Radio.
And please keep calling.
Update 6033: Seven ridden for Michael Pino this morning at Fair Hill. And it was a hot morning for riding horses! Fortunately all mine went nicely, so while it was a little too warm, it was a straightforward morning's work.
It is Memorial Day, so Happy Memorial day. To celebrate lets hope Quality Road continues to show us he a one of the top three horses in the nation right now: Quality Road resumes ambitious season Monday.
Update 6032: Five ridden this morning for Michael Pino at Fair Hill. And it turned into a hot morning too for galloping horses. The track was nice and quiet though, so a pretty straightforward start to the day.
We had a fun afternoon at the Fair Hill races yesterday. The weather seemed to cooperate. Here are a few pictures:
Pink coats, in the paddock
Unsaddling after the third
Adam, one of the many guys there who gallops at Fair Hill
Michael Dickinson
Update 6031: Another seven ridden for Michael Pino at Fair Hill this morning. One breezed an easy half mile. All went nicely for a nice start to the day. We are now all getting ready to go over to the Fair Hill races, our annual jump racing hosted just over the road from the training center.
My latest addition to The Rail: Franklin and the Race He Lost.
Those elected to the Hall of Fame have now been announced: National Museum of Racing announces 2010 Hall of Fame class.
Update 6030: Seven ridden this morning for Michael Pino at Fair Hill. Quite a busy morning, and thankfully the weather has broken a little and it was not as humid as it has been. All mine went nicely, which included breezing a couple of sets of babies. A nice start to the day. I then did a phone interview with Dr. Corinne Sweeney, from the New Bolton Center, for my book.
Here is this week's ABR radio show.
And please keep calling.
Update 6029: Five ridden for Michael Pino this morning at Fair Hill. And it was a warm and muggy morning this morning! All mine went nicely, for a short and straightforward morning's work.
2pm today we have our ABR radio show. We will review the Preakness Stakes and look forward to the Belmont Stakes, a week on Saturday. We will also discuss Mine That Bird's return to the track and more. Hopefully another fun show with Bob from Louisville and Andy from Belmont Park.
And please keep calling.
Update 6028: Six ridden this morning for Michael Pino at Fair Hill. And a warm morning here too, it's going to be a hot day! All six of mine went nicely for a very straightforward start to the day. The barn was also quieter this morning, we shipped a few horses out yesterday down to Colonial Downs for their upcoming meet.
Still doing plenty of interviews for my book. Yesterday it was Pat Forde who is a senior writer for ESPN.com I also had a long phone coversation about the book with Mrs. Jackson. We will try to meet in the next week or two.
Mine That Bird had his first workout at Churchill Downs this morning. 3/8ths in 35.2
And please keep calling.
Update 6027: Superfecta here, with your regular weekly update - Euro Watch edition.
Last year, Goldikova finished seventh in the Prix d'Ispahan, her yearly debut; it seemed that the extra furlong and soft going were not to her taste. There were no such questions this year - the 5-year-old mare set a new stakes record in the same race, capturing her eighth G1 victory. It was a narrow margin, to be sure, over the up-and-coming Byword, but the rest of the field (including Stacelita, who may need to regain some conditioning) was some distance back. While a threepeat in the Breeders' Cup Mile is her goal this year, her next race could be nearly as starry - she is being pointed to the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot, potentially taking on Paco Boy and Rip Van Winkle.
While the Breeders' Cup is a long way away at this point, other Europeans to keep an eye on were in action last weekend - 3-year-old Richard Hannon-trained Canford Cliffs was impressive in the Irish 2000 Guineas, while Ballydoyle has another strong group of colts, headed by Jan Vermeer (impressive winner of the Gallinule Stakes) and St Nicholas Abbey. The 3-year-old filly ranks look equally strong (or, perhaps, stronger - at least, in France) with the green-but-promising Sarafina just besting Deluxe in the Prix Saint-Alary. Both fillies may head to the Prix de Diane in June - and we may see one or both of them in the Breeders' Cup at some point.
Given the somewhat scattered picture our own 3-year-olds paint, perhaps more overseas horses will consider heading to Churchill Downs this year - why not take the opportunity to show it can be good breeding and a lack of medication that win big races, rather than an affinity for Santa Anita? I'm of the opinion that the track surface played a smaller role than widely assumed in the European domination of the last two Breeders' Cups, and would love to see that put to the test this fall. Of course, we have plenty of racing to look forward to before that point - but it's always worth watching what's going on abroad.
Here in the US, NYRA got a loan, which should keep things running for a while - and the Met Mile is on tap for the long weekend...in the meantime, why not celebrate Irish-bred Goldikova's continued magnificence by purchasing The Divine Comedy's new album, Bang Goes The Knighthood, out on the 31st?
Update 6026: Six ridden today for Michael Pino at Fair Hill, and the weather remains warm and muggy. All mine went nicely, which included taking two babies to the gate for a little schooling. We had a new rider start today, he has won the Kentucky Derby!
Here is this week's ABR Facebook Group e-mail: Super Saver, Lookin at Lucky, Mine That Bird, Chip Woolley, D. Wayne Lukas, Summer Bird, Rachel Alexandra, Shaun Bridgmohan, Ernie Paragallo, Michael Blowen, Clever Allemont, Tour of the Cat, Cappuccino Kid, ABR radio, UK Pics!.
And please keep calling.
Update 6025: Five ridden this Monday morning for Michael Pino at Fair Hill. A nice easy morning to ease back into work after a fantastic four days off. All five of mine went nicely. The damp and dreary weather was a stark contrast to the weather we had in England the last few days!
And here are a few pictures from my trip:
I love my English beer!
Friends, at my mother's wedding reception
The Smithy, Beeston in Cheshire
Bath house, converted to a flat, Beeston, Cheshire
Nare Point, Cornwall, a favorite spot of mine
Cornish cliff path, love the blue!
Cornish cliff path, just love the cornish foliage
Coffee shop, Knutsford, Cheshire
Summer evening, Five Pilchards, Porthallow, Cornwall
And please keep calling.
Robyn, don't know where Nare Hotel is, but Nare Point is between Porthallow and the Helford river. Beautiful!
Posted by: alex at May 24, 2010 3:25 PM