Preakness Stakes: Pedigree profiles
A closer look at the pedigrees of the entrants for the 140th running of the $1.5 million Preakness Stakes, to be contested Saturday at Pimlico
DRF Breeding StaffMay 14, 2015
A closer look at the pedigrees of the entrants for the 140th running of the $1.5 million Preakness Stakes, to be contested Saturday at Pimlico
Larry Collmus, the star race-caller who grew up in nearby Ellicott City, and John Scheinman, a former racing writer for the Washington Post and longtime freelancer, were among the honorees Thursday morning at the annual Alibi Breakfast in the Pimlico clubhouse.
Ten years ago, Robbie Bailes narrowly averted becoming a sorry footnote in Preakness history. Bailes was the trainer of Scrappy T, whose erratic swerve under Ramon Dominguez at the top of the stretch caused the eventual winner, Afleet Alex, to almost fall.
American Pharoah likes to move at a brisk clip, and he was certainly eager on Thursday morning here at Pimlico, tugging hard at the reins during his daily gallop in preparation for the Preakness Stakes on Saturday. But he had a formidable opponent in exercise rider Jorge Alvarez.
The first time Bob Baffert ran a horse in the Preakness, someone in the infield threw a football at his horse. That was his welcome to the Preakness. Fortunately, the ball wasn’t thrown by Johnny Unitas. The football didn’t hit Cavonnier, and the incident sure didn’t deter Baffert.
I believe American Pharoah has a big forward move coming in the Preakness when we might see the big-margin win some were expecting in the Kentucky Derby.
These horses go out to the wise guys in the crowd, the handicappers out turning over even the plainest gray rocks in the field, reasoning, unlikely as it seems, buried treasure might lie beneath.
As far as jockey Gary Stevens is concerned, the post-position draw for Saturday’s $1.5 million Preakness Stakes at Pimlico couldn’t have gone any better if he was allowed to conduct the draw himself.
With only eight horses in the Preakness, three of whom seem overmatched, bettors shouldn’t anticipate any blowup payoffs. But that is not to say there isn’t a potential overlay. If the betting goes as expected, DORTMUND might start a tick or two higher on the board than he should.
The knock on AMERICAN PHAROAH is not the inside post. The knock is price. His odds will be low after a Kentucky Derby victory in which he lost ground for much of the trip. He also raced in the clear and avoided the trouble that compromised others. American Pharoah is quick enough to make the lead from the rail, and it is doubtful that his stablemate drawn directly to his outside will engage early. Assuming a clean break, American Pharoah can lead wire to wire. Nine of the last 18 Derby winners returned to win the Preakness.