Asmussen sees echoes of Lookin At Lee in Combatant

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Few would compare Kentucky Derby longshot Combatant to any of the leading contenders for Saturday’s race, although the colt reminds his trainer, Steve Asmussen, of another prominent horse – 2017 Derby runner-up Lookin At Lee. Like him, Combatant is an Asmussen-trained closer that heads into the Kentucky Derby after competitive but losing efforts in preps in Arkansas.

Lookin At Lee “didn’t win last year, but we were obviously very proud of his race,” Asmussen said Monday after Combatant worked a half-mile at Churchill Downs. “I don’t mean that we are running for second or anything like that. You’re just trying to create a solid run and let that put you where it puts you.”

Combatant, who ran fourth in the Arkansas Derby on April 14, was in maintenance mode for his breeze Monday, registering the kind of the steady-paced, moderate breeze that is standard of an Asmussen trainee the week of a stakes race. He was timed in 49.49 seconds by Daily Racing Form’s Mike Welsch.

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If he is to threaten in the Derby, he may need the kind of racing luck that Lookin At Lee got last year. In the 2017 Derby, Lookin At Lee (drawn in post 1) avoided traffic while slipping up the inside under Corey Lanerie to check in 2 3/4 lengths behind winner Always Dreaming. Such fortune would contrast Combatant’s journeys at Oaklawn, when outside draws contributed to him losing early position and racing wide.

Asmussen also is pleased to have the colt back running in Louisville.

“He does have one win in his life, and it is here at Churchill Downs,” he said.

That victory, coming Oct. 29 at Churchill, was followed by a runner-up finishes in the Springboard Mile, Smarty Jones, and Southwest before a third in the Rebel that preceded his Arkansas Derby fourth.

Ricardo Santana Jr. has the call aboard Combatant in the Kentucky Derby, and both he and Asmussen are seeking their first victories in the race. Hall of Famer Asmussen is 0-2-2 from 18 Derby runners, with Lookin At Lee and 2011 Derby runner-up Nehro his top finishers. Santana is unplaced in three tries, most recently riding Untrapped to a 12th-place finish last year for Asmussen.