LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Gary and Mary West watched their colors cross the line first at Churchill Downs, only to have roses literally taken out of their hands. Trainer Brad Cox experienced the opposite, as he saddled a colt to cross the line second in the Kentucky Derby, only to later be promoted to the victory.
Together, the owners and trainer team up in this Saturday’s running of the Derby with Hit Show, hoping for a first-place finish they can celebrate this time.
Mauro Cedillo, a 24-year-old apprentice jockey, remained in serious condition at a hospital in Cleveland on Tuesday afternoon, according to his agent, 24 hours after he was thrown from a horse at Thistledown racetrack.
Luis Quinones, his agent, said that the jockey remains on a ventilator to assist his breathing, but that the rider has movement in his legs. Doctors continue to conduct tests on the rider, and family and friends gathered at the Metro Health Center in Cleveland were awaiting the results of those tests.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – On the eve of the 2011 Kentucky Derby, a downcast Mike Repole joined trainer Todd Pletcher on a podium in the press room at Churchill Downs to announce the scratch of Uncle Mo, the 2-year-old champion of 2010 and second choice on the morning line.
The signs were there all week that Uncle Mo, dealing with what would ultimately be diagnosed as a liver disorder, wouldn’t make the race, though his connections entered hoping for a miracle that didn’t come.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The four first-time trainers with a horse expected to start in this year's Kentucky Derby have sent out well over 20,000 starters combined in races around the globe, according to Equineline statistics. The three jockeys set to ride their first Derby have taken a leg up more than 21,000 times.
But despite all their experiences, there’s nothing quite like this.
"This is it," said trainer Larry Rivelli, who will saddle Two Phil's as his first Kentucky Derby starter. "This is what we do this for. It's a dream come true."
The New York Racing Association will receive a loan of $455 million to rebuild Belmont Park under bills that were passed by the state legislature late on Monday afternoon following negotiations between legislative leaders and Gov. Kathy Hochul.
The bills, part of a package of legislation authorizing elements of the state budget, are certain to be signed by Hochul over the next week. Legislative leaders and Hochul had given their support to the Belmont project prior to the bills being negotiated and passed.
Ramon Vazquez has ridden Practical Move in Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs many times in his mind.
“I can be in the middle of the pack,” he said over the weekend, envisioning the first run through the stretch. “I want to be out of trouble.”
On the backstretch, Practical Move will ideally be in a stalking position.
“I would like to be three or four lengths behind the speed and start moving up,” Vazquez said. “By the stretch, I hope to be on the lead. My dream is I win the race.”
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – After starting a Kentucky Derby horse in 2016, 2017, and 2018, trainer Keith Desormeaux had to wait five years for his next Derby runner, Confidence Game.
Desormeaux, come Derby Day, will have waited 10 weeks to run Confidence Game back after the colt won the Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park. And even with the Derby still a week away, Desormeaux couldn’t wait for people to stop asking about the unusually long break between final prep and Derby start.
Fans are not likely to notice much difference in the Belmont Park they left approximately 10 months ago, when the 2023 spring/summer meet opens Thursday for a 40-day run. But during the time away, a significant amount of work was done to start the process of a new Belmont that will come in the years ahead.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas doesn't have a candidate for this week's 3-year-old classics, but, as always, the legendary trainer is looking to the future.
In his Churchill Downs office before dawn on Saturday morning, the 87-year-old Lukas was looking forward to running last year's Kentucky Oaks winner, Secret Oath, in the Grade 1 La Troienne Stakes on Friday, and was excited to welcome this year's 2-year-olds into his barn this week.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The new-look Churchill Downs paddock shown to the world this weekend at the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks will, ultimately, be a temporary one. But Brad Cox, whose large Churchill Downs string includes four colts and three fillies whom he will lead over for this weekend's spring classics, would be just fine if it wasn't.
"I know it's just temporary, but I'd be fine if that was the permanent paddock," Cox said.
