LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Before the issue of Joe Talamo's age gets all blown out of proportion, it needs to be pointed out that, yes, he is young. But not that young.
He drives, he is eligible to vote, he owns real estate and occasionally shaves. He is conversant in current events, some of them not even related to horse racing, and he spends far less time tweeting on Twitter than we are led to believe.
NEW YORK - The field for the 135th Kentucky Derby is light on the top and heavy on the bottom, leaving horseplayers either to choose among the four favorites who will dominate the betting or to stretch their imaginations to the limit making cases for the members of an unusually unaccomplished supporting cast.
Don't be too impressed. It has been done before. Half a dozen times, in fact, has an owner turned up at Churchill Downs with three, count 'em, three runners in the Kentucky Derby field. Of course, it's been 63 years since the last time it happened.
That is what WinStar Farm can accomplish on Saturday, when the colors of Kenny Troutt and Bill Casner are set to be carried by Lane's End Stakes winner Hold Me Back, Lexington Stakes winner Advice, and Santa Anita Derby third-place finisher Mr. Hot Stuff in the 135th Kentucky Derby.
NEW YORK - The most significant economic event for the racing industry and its fans this past week had nothing to do with who won the Kentucky Derby or how many people watched and wagered on the race. It was the introduction of Bill No. 2140 to the United States House of Representatives, the Parimutuel Conformity and Equitability Act of 2009, which would amend the Internal Revenue Service code to repeal federal tax withholding on parimutuel payoffs.
WASHINGTON - While the Triple Crown races capture the public's attention, the sport of Thoroughbred racing hopes to win new fans by showcasing its glamor and excitement. But the 2008 series turned out to be a public-relations disaster. When Big Brown became the nation's dominant 3-year-old, his trainer, Rick Dutrow, became the face of horse racing. The media recounted his long history of drug-related infractions. Dutrow unblushingly admitted that he regularly administered anabolic steroids to the Kentucky Derby winner.
WASHINGTON - If synthetic tracks did not confuse the issue, an analysis of the Kentucky Derby could be reduced to a simple bit of deductive reasoning.
Pioneerof the Nile has won four straight stakes races in California. He has defeated such rivals as I Want Revenge (twice) and Papa Clem.
I Want Revenge subsequently went to Aqueduct and won two stakes impressively. Papa Clem shipped to Oaklawn Park and captured the $1 million Arkansas Derby.
LOUISVILLE - Imagine settling into a U2 concert, ready to be blown away by Bono, and who shows up to warm up the crowd?
Elvis.
That is exactly the feel this week at Churchill Downs, where an eager-to-please field of callow Derby colts is about to be upstaged by the queen herself, Zenyatta. They are roadies to her rock star. Satellites to the sun. And if you doubt it, witness the scene Wednesday morning at a quarter past nine, when the big mare emerged from Barn 45, scattering a healthy crowd gathered to hear Larry Jones hold forth about Friesan Fire.
WASHINGTON - As the Thoroughbred industry struggles and the largest owner of U.S. racetracks has declared bankruptcy, Churchill Downs Inc. continues to make a profit for its shareholders. The company will receive its annual windfall Saturday when as many as 150,000 people pass through the turnstiles to watch the Kentucky Derby.
Go ahead and envy Garrett Gomez if you want to. Fantasize about being Frankie Dettori, just for a day. Me, I wanna be like Mike.
Run down a checklist of the things a jockey hopes to do at some point in a career, and Mike Smith has done them all. Hall of Fame? Check. Eclipse Awards? Check. Breeders' Cups? Check, times 12. Kentucky Derby? Big-time check, in 2005, with the 50-1 bomb named Giacomo.
NEW YORK - As Derby Week begins, horseplayers contemplating how they will bet the race are faced with a central question: Is this a year when an unusually clear-cut group of favorites are the only real contenders, or is it the frequent anything-can-happen mess that could just as easily produce something like the $9,814.80 exacta of Giacomo and Closing Argument four years ago?
