Kentucky Derby 2012

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Preakness

I'll Have Another works out at Pimlico


Reddam Racing's I'll Have Another, the winner of Saturday's Kentucky Derby, was settled into his new home in Barn D at Pimlico Race Course on Tuesday morning. The horse was limited to very light exercise, standard procedure in the days after a race, in preparation for the Preakness on May 19. "He walked this morning for about 15 or 20 minutes," assistant trainer Jack Sisterson said. "He was just taking it all in and looking around. He's feeling good." Sisterson said the colt has come out of the Derby in great shape. "He looks like he never ran," he said. "He's eaten everything up. He wants to get out of the barn. He's quiet once he's in there, but once he's out, it's like, 'OK, I want to go out to the track now.' That's something we want to see. After a race, especially one like the Kentucky Derby, you're always wondering if it has taken something out of him, but he's doing fantastic." Heinz Steinmann's gray colt Creative Cause is a likely Preakness starter, trainer Mike Harrington said. The three-time graded-stakes winner was shipped back to Harrington's stable in California after he finished fifth in the Kentucky Derby. Harrington said the colt is scheduled to make the trip to Baltimore next week. "We're planning on it; we've got the flight booked," Harrington said. "We have to see how he bounces back."
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/bs-s ... 417.column

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I'll Have Another



...working out at Pimlico Racecourse

[resigned]

Preakness Report: May 17

May 17, 2012, 11:40 PM ET
By James Scully | Brisnet.com




Bodemeister came up short when finishing second in the Kentucky Derby, but Saturday's Preakness Stakes shapes up differently with the talented colt as the probable lone speed.

He enjoyed no such luxury at Churchill Downs, whipping through splits of :22 1/5, :45 1/5 and 1:09 4/5 while being chased by the ultra-quick Trinniberg, but none of his 10 rivals Saturday appear capable of applying serious pressure. His tactical advantage is such that Kentucky Derby winner I'll Have Another, who enjoyed the perfect trip when rating off the pace two weeks ago, may be forced to take up the early chase in order to keep Bodemeister company. But it's difficult to imagine any rival sticking with the pacesetter -- Bodemeister owns too much natural speed and will look to accelerate away turning for home.
Bodemeister captured the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby two starts back by a widening 9 1/2-length margin under a similar pace scenario and is trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, who has captured the Preakness a whopping five times with horses exiting the Kentucky Derby. His runners tend to run right back to, or even improve upon, their Derby form.

And the quality of competition can be questioned -- Bodemeister definitely won't be facing a deep roster of proven foes Saturday. He appears capable of dominating the Preakness on the front end.

I'll Have Another should be in position to capitalize if the front runner falters, but may lack the same finishing kick from the Kentucky Derby if forced to get involved early. I would like to beat him underneath in the exacta, but the possibility remains that he will be too good for all but Bodemeister. The Doug O'Neill colt is three for three this year, producing a pair of 109 BRIS Late Pace ratings in his two stakes wins prior to the Kentucky Derby.
Went the Day Well has the potential to get involved if he continues to move forward off an encouraging fourth in the Kentucky Derby. He was compromised at the start, dropping farther back than expected in the congested field, but finished full of gusto to be beaten only 2 1/2 lengths and galloped out past the top three after the wire. His BRIS numbers are strong and I will include the promising colt in the exacta.

Creative Cause is the 6-1 co-third choice on the morning line following a wide fifth at Churchill Downs, but the Grade 1-winning colt is a play against for me. He was dogged by physical concerns the week before the Derby and trainer Mike Harrington elected to ship him back and forth to California afterward instead of remaining in Kentucky with other Preakness prospects. Creative Cause may be heading in the wrong direction presently.

Daddy Nose Best was training forwardly for the Derby and is eligible to improve upon a disappointing 10th, but the late runner doesn't possess a favorable running style and may leave himself with too much to do in the stretch.

Optimizer looks better-suited for turf and would be a huge surprise here. The new shooters in the Preakness  Cozzetti, Pretension, Teeth of the Dog, Tiger Walk and Zetterholm  probably aren't fast enough to make a significant impact.

http://espn.go.com/horse-racing/triplec ... 73/17-2012

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Check out the Lady Legends in the winner's circle with Maryland Jockey Club Racing Secretary Georganne Hale on the big day of pink at Pimlico on Black Eyed Susan Day. (2011) correction: pic was taken on Wednesday, prior to the Preakness "draw


undated

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2012 Black-Eyed Susan: Entries, Post Positions and Morning Line Odds

by Matt Gardner




Mamma Kimbo, winner of the G2-Fantasy Stakes at Oaklawn Park in her last start, leads a field of nine three-year-old fillies in Friday's G2-Black-Eyed Susan Stakes at Pimlico (post time: 4:46pm Eastern; TV: NBCSN). The Bob Baffert trained Mamma Kimbo broke her maiden in late February at Santa Anita Park while posting a 105 Beyer Speed Figure before shipping to Oaklawn for the Fantasy. A daughter of Discreet Cat out of a Devil's Bag mare (Bag Lady Jane), Mamma Kimbo will be ridden by Mike Smith.

Plum, a daughter of Pure Prize, is the only Maryland-bred filly in the Black-Eyed Susan field. Trained by Rodney Jenkins, Plum won an optional claiming/N3X allowance race at Pimlico in her last start.

In Lingerie, the runaway winner of the G3-Bourbonette Oaks at Turfway in her last start, is the third choice on the morning line at 9/2. In Lingerie has two wins from three lifetimes starts but has never won a race on conventional dirt; both of her victories came over the Polytrack surface at Turfway.

Below are the entries and post positions for Friday's G2-Black-Eyed Susan











PP Horse Jockey Trainer

ML



1

Glinda the Good

C. Nakatani

S. Asmussen

12/1



2

Disposablepleasure

J. Castellano

T. Pletcher

5/1



3

Welcome Guest

R. Dominguez

C. Brown

4/1



4

Mamma Kimbo

M. Smith

B. Baffert

7/5



5

Oaks Lily

J. Leparoux

T. Hills

30/1



6

Plum

A. Castellano

R. Jenkins

30/1



7

In Lingerie

J. Velazquez

T. Pletcher

9/2



8
Wildcat's Smile

R. Napravnik

D. Galluscio

10/1



9

Zucchini Flower

S. Russell

G. Motion

10/1

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BALTIMORE – All the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes did last year was produce the 3-year-old filly champion. Royal Delta rolled home by 2 1/2 lengths in the Preakness eve fixture for her first career stakes victory in a 2012 campaign that ended in a Breeders’ Cup win and a divisional Eclipse Award.

It would be unfair to expect any of the nine 3-year-old fillies entered Friday at Pimlico to use the 88th running of the Grade 2, $300,000 Black-Eyed Susan as a similar launching point, but there can be no denying that the 1 1/8-mile race is rife with potential. Mamma Kimbo, an eye-catching winner of her first two career starts, will be a solid favorite in a race that also includes Welcome Guest and the uncoupled Todd Pletcher duo of Disposablepleasure and In Lingerie as major threats.


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Mambo's Kitten out on the Pimlico course

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Kelly, of Eldersburg(MD) , was named this year’s Miss Preakness Pink Warrior during activities leading up to the 137th Preakness Stakes, the Baltimore-based second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown.


For the third consecutive year, the Maryland Jockey Club, in partnership with the Maryland affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, named a breast cancer survivor Miss Preakness Pink Warrior. The winner becomes race ambassador and is part of most Preakness week events.


This year, Kelly, 47, received the honor. When she was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer five years ago, she scanned the Internet searching for survival success stories.


She didn’t find many that matched her diagnosis, hardly a comforting feeling while facing life-threatening breast cancer with a five-year survival rate of between 49 and 67 percent.


“I decided if I could get through it, and I’m fortunate enough to still be here, that I would tell people my story,” she said. “I’m sure there are people who are desperate to hear success stories who have advanced stage breast cancer.”


Following diagnosis, Kelly underwent a double mastectomy, 33 radiation treatments, chemotherapy and two experimental treatments.


The single mother had seven surgeries in 18 months, all while caring for her two sons, Alex, 15, and Josh, 12.


“I was still cooking dinner at the time, and it was tough,” she said. “But in hindsight, it was the best thing I could have done. I was just trying to keep things normal.”


Her sons and their friends constantly peppered Kelly with questions about her cancer and her treatment. When she lost all her hair, they asked to rub her head.


Kelly welcomed the inquiries. Some adults, including at least one who had lost a loved one to cancer, did not know what to say to her. They kept their distance during her treatments, which were ultimately successful.


Three years after being diagnosed, doctors could not find any evidence that her cancer had returned. She remains cancer free. Her hair has grown back.


This week, she’ll be taking part in most of the events leading up to the Preakness Stakes as part of her Miss Pink Preakness Warrior duties.


She ran in the third Preakness 5K Saturday, a fundraiser for Komen Maryland that kicks off race week festivities. She assisted with the Preakness post draw Wednesday and will be on hand for Black-Eyed Susan Day Friday.


Black-Eyed Susan Day features the Lady Legends for the Cure race with retired female riders and the female jockey challenge, where eight of the world’s top female jockeys compete in four races.


Emma-Jayne Wilson, last year’s winner, donated her $10,000 to Komen Maryland.


The day culminates with a breast cancer survivor parade, featuring 88 survivors invited by the Maryland Jockey Club to take part in the Friday’s events.


“It’s nice to be able to do highly recognized events when it’s not Breast Cancer Awareness Month [in October],” said Maryland Komen spokeswoman Brittany Fowler. “It puts breast cancer back in the forefront of peoples’ minds. If one person sees the pink and remembers to get a mammogram, we could have just saved a life.”


Kelly, and her pink sash, are hard to miss. She will be on the cupola for the presentation of the Woodlawn Vase, given to the winner, following Saturday’s Preakness. And she’s happy to explain her survival story to anyone who asks, keeping the promise she made to herself when first diagnosed five years ago.


“Back then,” she said, “I was looking for someone exactly like me who was still around 5 years later, 10 years later. There were so few stories like that.”


And now, with her pink sash, she can be the type of inspiration she wanted to find after her own diagnosis.


http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/news/ ... c8886.html

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a few years back:

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I'll Have Another wins Preakness, Triple try next

By RICHARD ROSENBLATT, AP Sports Writer





BALTIMORE (AP) — I'll Have Another had Bodemeister in his sights again, a shot at the Triple Crown hanging in the balance.

Two weeks ago, he ran down his rival and won the Kentucky Derby. This time, the chestnut colt needed to be even more relentless to win the Preakness.

Jockey Mario Gutierrez asked for more at the top of the stretch, and I'll Have Another closed the gap with each stride, finally surging past Bodemeister a few yards from the wire.

Next up: New York and the Belmont Stakes in three weeks and a chance to join the company of Secretariat, Seattle Slew and Affirmed, who was the last to win thoroughbred racing's most coveted prize in 1978.

That's heady company for a colt who has yet to be favored in any of his seven races. That should change in the Belmont.

"We're thinking Triple Crown, baby," elated winning trainer Doug O'Neill said. "He's a special horse. We'll see how he comes out of it, and if he comes out of it in good shape, we're heading to New York, baby."

I'll Have Another won by 1½ lengths in the Derby and by a neck in the Preakness — the same margins Affirmed posted in wins over rival Alydar in those two races 34 years ago.

But there's one big storyline difference this time: Bodemeister is skipping the Belmont. "He's getting off the bus here," trainer Bob Baffert said.

The 1 3-16-mile Preakness unfolded the same way as the 1¼-mile Derby, with the speedy Bodemeister moving to the lead under Mike Smith and I'll Have Another hanging back in fourth in the 11-horse field. The early fractions were slower than the Derby, but when it came time for Bodemeister to dig in, it was I'll Have Another who found another gear under Gutierrez and reeled in the tiring pacesetter in the shadow of the wire.

Since Affirmed became the 11th Triple Crown winner, 11 horses have won the first two legs only to come up short in the 1½-mile Belmont, the longest of the races also known as the "Test of the Champion." The most recent try came in 2008, when Big Brown was pulled up around the turn for home and did not finish. Before that, Smarty Jones was run down in the final 70 yards by Birdstone in the 2004 Belmont.

With the colorful and controversial O'Neill squarely in the limelight, scrutiny is sure to intensify about his violations for allegedly giving his horses improper drugs. He was fined $1,000 and suspended 15 days in one incident. He is contesting another.

"We know we play by the rules," O'Neill said. "It's all about the horse, and we're just going to focus on the horse."

O'Neill has been accused in California of "milkshaking," the illegal practice of giving a horse a blend of bicarbonate of soda, sugar and electrolytes. The mixture is designed to reduce fatigue and enhance performance.

The trainer's most recent violation dates from an Aug. 25, 2010, race at Del Mar in California. A blood test on his horse, Argenta, showed elevated levels of TCO2 — the so-called milkshake — before it finished eighth.

He faces penalties ranging from a minimum 90-day suspension and a $5,000 fine to a maximum 180-day suspension and fine of $15,000.

Any suspension almost certainly wouldn't occur before the Belmont.

I'll Have Another seems to have made a habit of close calls lately. Before the Derby and Preakness, the chestnut colt won the Santa Anita Derby by a nose over Creative Cause. As usual, owner Paul Reddam wasn't sure his colt would come through this time.

"I didn't feel confident we were going to get there until 10 yards from the wire," Reddam said. "I wasn't sure that we would get there, but I knew that our horse had a lot of heart and a lot of fight."

With a record crowd of 121,309 watching, I'll Have Another was sent off as the second choice at 3-1, with Bodemeister the 8-5 favorite. The winning time was 1:55.94.

I'll Have Another paid $8.40, $3.80 and $2.80. Bodemeister returned $3.20 and $2.80, and Creative Cause paid $3.60 to show.

Zetterholm was fourth, followed by Teeth of the Dog, Optimizer, Cozzetti, Tiger Walk, Daddy Nose Best, Went the Day Well and Pretension.

Baffert, a Hall of Famer and five-time Preakness winner, thought his colt — named for his 7-year-old son, Bode — would outlast I'll Have Another.

"I felt really good about where he was," Baffert said. "I really thought he was going to do it. The winner is a good horse. He should get the respect now that he deserves."

The victory was worth $600,000, boosting his earning to $2,693,600. Not a bad return for Reddam, who bought the colt for $35,000 on the advice of O'Neill's brother, Dennis.

"He showed he's the real deal. He's a real race horse. He gutted it out," Reddam said. "The other horse was not stopping. He ran a bang-up race, to come and catch him. How can you criticize that? For those who have followed the horse and bet on him, that's been pretty rewarding. I don't know if that will be the case next time, though."

I'll Have Another could have plenty of company for the Belmont, including some familiar foes from the Derby: third-place finisher Dullahan; seventh-place finisher Union Rags; eight-place finisher Rousing Sermon and 12th-place finisher Alpha. Other possibles include Paynter — trained by Baffert — and Peter Pan winner Mark Valeski.

Gutierrez, who was riding at Hastings Park in Western Canada until showing up in California last winter, displayed the calm and cunning of a veteran.

"It's not me, it's him. It's all about the horse," the 25-year-old jockey from Mexico said. "He just keeps proving people wrong. I'm so happy for him because he's such a great horse. He has a tremendous kick in the end."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/art ... 8754a810d9

[resigned]

I'll Have Another

Owner: Paul Reddam

Trainer: Doug O'Neill

Jockey: Mario Guiterrez

[yankee-in-france]

This is getting very exciting.

[resigned]

I hope he wins the Triple Crown. That was quite a race coming down the stretch in the Preakness. He really did prove he was best over Bodemeister. It will be interesting to see who runs in the Belmont -still...I'll Have Another has already beaten most of the potentials for the Belmont in either CA or KY. Bodemeister isn't going to run but Union Rags and Dullahan are expected and probably some NY breds that are shooting for the stars.
________________

The Morning After:


Preakness winner I'll Have Another feels fine as he prepares to leave Baltimore
Colt with a chance at the Triple Crown headed to New York today



May 20, 2012

I'll Have Another, fresh off winning the second leg of the Triple Crown, nipped at anyone who came by Sunday morning.

He was more playful than ornery.

Someone told trainer Doug O'Neill that the colt's eyelids looked heavy.

"He's always got that look," O'Neill shot back.

It's true. I'll Have Another appeared only mildly bothered yesterday after running a mile and three-sixteenths in under two minutes and being herded into a crowded winner's circle.

After his connections partied late into the night outside of his barn – except for O'Neill, who went to his hotel room with his wife and kids and ordered room service – I'll Have Another was spry at dawn.

"He looks great this morning," O'Neill said. "Licked his feed tub. Legs look good. Energy is high."

I'll Have Another shipped out of Baltimore at about 8 a.m., bound for a yet-to-be-decided barn at Belmont. O'Neill and owner Paul Reddam spoke Sunday morning about finding a secluded spot like the one they had in Baltimore.

O'Neill will head back to California, where his operation is based. Assistant Jack Sisterson and a crew of others will accompany the horse and see him through probably his first week in New York until O'Neill returns.

Team O'Neill is more familiar with Belmont than it was with Pimlico when it arrived. Their horse Stevie Wonderboy won the 2005 Breeders' Cup Juvenile there and had all the looks of a Triple Crown contender. He broke his ankle in February of the next year, though, and was retired.

O'Neill has not yet decided on a training plan for I'll Have Another, but said the colt will likely only walk the next few days before returning to jogging.

"He'll tell us what to do," the trainer said.

I'll Have Another will be the 12th horse to head to New York with a chance at the first Triple Crown since 1978. O'Neill playfully said that he was unlikely to research what befell those other contenders.

"Studying and me don’t really get along," he said.

But that discussion will only intensify, and his team of assistants -- one that owner Reddam has readily financed -- will be looking for any way to keep their run going.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/prea ... 3881.story

[yankee-in-france]

... a beautiful horse.

[Eliza]

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/may ... oug-oneil/

California racing board explains timing of Doug O'Neill ruling

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — California Horse Racing Board officials said Saturday they ruled on trainer Doug O’Neill’s case prior to the Belmont Stakes because they feared the case’s documents would be released to the public prior to their ruling.

O’Neill trains J. Paul Reddam’s I’ll Have Another, who is trying to become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed won it in 1978. But on his way to making horse racing history with his super 3-year-old colt, O’Neill was slapped Thursday with a $15,000 fine and a 45-day suspension (as of July 1) because a horse he trained, Argenta, was overlimit for TCO2 nearly two years ago at the Del Mar racetrack. After a lengthy two-year ordeal that included a federal lawsuit filed by O’Neill, the CHRB cleared O’Neill of alleged “milkshaking” charges at the recommendation of a hearing officer. But the racing board held him responsible for Argenta’s overlimit of carbon dioxide because he was “insurer of the horse.”

Milkshaking is the illegal practice of administering baking soda, electrolytes, sugar and other ingredients to a horse to help break down lactic acid buildup and other issues.

O’Neill repeated Saturday that he is grateful that the CHRB cleared him, but he added that he and his legal counsel “are exploring their next options.” That could involve another lawsuit or an appeal. O’Neill has spent $250,000 fighting the charges.

CHRB chairman Keith Brackpool told TVG Saturday that delaying the action to the June meeting really wasn’t an option because the hearing officer’s recommendation and 24-page report would have been public record on June 2.

“I thought that considering everything that was absolutely the right thing to do,” Brackpool said, adding that he could see why the public was confused why the board acted when it did.

Brackpool refused to speculate what might happen on July 1, the earliest date the CHRB can order O’Neill’s 45-day suspension to begin.

“I think as far as this case it’s done,” Brackpool said. “What I suspect now is that I’ll Have Another will go onto Belmont and become California’s first Triple Crown winner and we’re going to have great, great enjoyment in seeing those connections bring home the Triple Crown.”

Notes: In other Belmont Stakes news, the Daily Racing Form reported Saturday that I’ll Have Another won’t be permitted to wear his signature wide nasal strip he wore in his last four victories, including the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. New York Racing Association stewards ruled that the strips are prohibited at all New York tracks for thoroughbred racing. O’Neill said he’ll comply with the regulation.

Wilkinson, a 44-1 long shot, was the upset winner of the 73rd Grade II, $150,000 American Handicap at Betfair Hollywood Park on Saturday. Wilkinson is owned by E.K. Gaylord II, trained by Jeff Mullins and was ridden by jockey Martin Pedroza. Wilkinson paid 90.60, 18.20 and 8.20, the longest price in the 73-year history of the stakes race. Mr. Commons, the 3-5 favorite, was second by 1¼ lengths in the 1 mile race on the turf

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O'Neill not concerned with change



Updated: May 27, 2012
Bloodhorse

An equipment change for I'll Have Another will be noted in the program for the 144th Belmont Stakes June 9. The son of Flower Alley will attempt to become the 12th Triple Crown winner without the aid of a nasal strip, which he has worn in each of his seven previous races.

New York is the only state that bans nasal strip use. The prohibition does not come from the New York State Racing and Wagering Board, which approved their use in October 1999 and allows nasal strips to be used in Standardbred racing.


The strips have been banned at New York Racing Association tracks at the discretion of stewards under a one-sentence, catch-all equipment state regulation known as 4033.8 that states: Only equipment specifically approved by the stewards shall be worn or carried by a jockey or a horse in a race.


When the NYSRWB approved the strips in 1999 it was done so with the provision that they would be re-evaluated at the end of the year. The next month the NYRA's then-president and chief executive officer, Terry Meyocks, announced the strips would be banned at NYRA tracks, according to Dr. Jim Chiapetta, a former practicing veterinarian and president of Flair LLC, which developed and produces the strips.


"There is no specific rule in New York regarding nasal strips other than the use is at the discretion of the stewards," NYSRWB spokesman Lee Park said.


Nasal strips, produced by Flair LLC, are self-adhesive strips about three inches wide that provide "spring-like force" to the soft tissue overlaying a horse's nasal passages. According to the company, eight peer-reviewed studies have shown the nasal strips reduce exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhaging, more commonly known as bleeding, by reducing the collapse of the soft nasal tissue during exercise.


Doug O'Neill, trainer of I'll Have Another, said he uses the strips regularly on all his horses.


"I think it has some therapeutic value," O'Neill said. "I'm not a part of some study but it does seem to lessen the chance of bleeding."


O'Neill said he doesn't expect I'll Have Another's performance in the Belmont to be adversely affected by the lack of a nasal strip.


"We understand that this is the rule in New York and we'll follow the rules," O'Neill said. "But it will be a zero issue. He's a freak. You could put a blindfold on him, and he'll run his race. This will be his first race without one, but he'll be fine."


Chiapetta, who created the equine nasal strip with Dr. Ed Blach, said he also doesn't expect I'll Have Another to suffer a reversal in form without the strip, but Chiapetta is frustrated because he knows the strips help reduce EIPH, which studies show does affect performance. Also, he said he cannot find anyone at NYRA willing to at least openly discuss the concerns with the strips.


"Why is there only one state that bans them?" Chiapetta asked. "They are FDA-approved. The (U.S. Equestrian Federation) allows them in its Olympic sport,s and every human sport approves them."


New York State steward Carmine Donofrio was not available for comment May 25, and calls to the stewards at Belmont Park were not returned.

One concern Chiapetta said he knows has been raised about the nasal strips has been the potential for a strip, listed as equipment in a program, to fall off in the paddock or at the gate in wet weather. The horse would then have to be scratched.


"I am not aware of them falling off, but early on we did have comments about them coming loose," he said. "We have since modified the adhesive. It is tricky. You are trying to stick something to a hairy nose. But if they are put on properly -- and we work with people on the procedure -- once they put them on, they stay."


Chiapetta did note that if the horse is sweaty or wet, the strip will not adhere properly.

http://espn.go.com/horse-racing/story/_ ... ned-change

[Fashionista]

I'll Have Another Scratched from Triple Crown Run at Belmont

By BEN FORER (@BenForer)
June 8, 2012

I'll Have Another has been scratched from the Belmont Stakes and will not run for the triple crown on Saturday because of an injury, trainer Doug O'Neill announced today on the Dan Patrick Show. O'Neill said the 3-year-old colt will likely never race again.

"I'll Have Another is officially out of the Belmont," O'Neill told the show.

The champion horse was pulled because he had a swollen left front tendon.

"It's not tragic, but it's a huge disappointment," O'Neill said.

When asked if I'll Have Another had raced his last race O'Neill responded, "If I had to wager, I would say yes."

ESPN reporter Jeannine Edwards told ABC News that last minute injuries are not uncommon in horse racing and after observing I'll Have Another during training runs she is not surprised.

"I had watched the horse train over the last few days and he didn't seem to be moving with the same efficiency, energy and enthusiasm as we had seen from him before the (Kentucky) Derby and the Preakness," she said.

Edwards says this morning O'Neill ran I'll Have Another at 5:30 a.m. ET under the cover of darkness, something he had never done before. O'Neill had been training the horse at 8:30 a.m. ET at a strong gallop, but this morning the horse was moving at an easy cantor.

I'll Have Another would have been competing to be the first thoroughbred in 34 years to capture the triple crown. Affirmed was the last horse to win it in 1978.

A press conference is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET at Belmont Park with O'Neill and owner J. Paul Reddam to discuss I'll Have Another's injury and the decision to pull the horse.

The Associated Press and ESPN contributed to this report.




http://abcnews.go.com/US/scracthed-trip ... 9IsjlL66So

.

[yankee-in-france]

... oh, so sad.

[resigned]

Awwwww.......... It was the right decision for the horse albeit not a popular one for the fans.


Eliza McCalmont pets I'll Have Another as trainer Doug O'Neill stands outside of barn two at Belmont Park. O'Neill said at a press conference on Tuesday that the horse had tendinitis in his left front leg, and would not race. Al Bello/Getty Images



ELMONT, N.Y. — Word began to circulate just after 11 at Belmont Park on Friday morning. It almost seemed unbelievable. But it was true.
I’ll Have Another, 30 hours away from walking into the starting gate for his date with history, was going to be scratched from the Belmont Stakes. He would not get the chance to join the 11 other 3-year-old colts who had achieved the elusive Triple Crown.

One track worker called home: “Did you hear that? They scratched the horse!” A horseplayer threw his program and shouted, “Unbelievable.”

Jimmy Crennan of Williston Park, Long Island, who has been to every Belmont since 1980, was set up in the backyard area. “Shock and disappointment,” he said. “It’s like the air comes out of the balloon. I got here today, and I was in such good spirits.

“I’m sure there will be 30,000 less people here tomorrow now.”

The scratch was extraordinary. Only two previous horses who won the Derby and Preakness did not contest the Belmont, and those, Burgoo King in 1932 and Bold Venture in 1936, were well before the Triple Crown matured into mainstream prominence.

I’ll Have Another will not race again, according to his owner, J. Paul Reddam, and his trainer, Doug O’Neill.

The Triple Crown is a demanding series. More than nearly any other trainer, D. Wayne Lukas can speak to that. He has won the Belmont Stakes four times and in 1999 his colt Charismatic broke down and finished third in his effort to capture the Triple Crown. Lukas, 76, will saddle the long shot Optimizer in the Belmont on Saturday.

Standing in the paddock soon after hearing the news, Lukas grew philosophical.

“It’s a part of the game the general public doesn’t realize,” he said. “For Doug to get this horse this far he had to basically live with him.”

Lukas shook his head. “Boy, it knocks you right to your knees,” he said. “This game is humbling.”

Lukas himself was not in great shape. He had a gash on his left temple and underneath his sunglasses a vicious shiner surrounded his left eye. On Tuesday one of his horses kicked his head, sending him to the hospital with a concussion and a pint less blood.

Like O’Neill, Lukas has been in this position. The day before the 1995 Belmont Stakes he scratched heavily-favored Timber Country because of a fever. Kentucky Derby favorites A. P. Indy, in 1992, and I Want Revenge, in 2009, were scratched before the race. I’ll Have Another’s scratch also called to mind Majestic Prince, who in 1969 entered the Belmont Stakes undefeated but with a known tendon injury. His trainer Johnny Longden was pressured into running him, and he finished second but never raced again.

O’Neill called I’ll Have Another’s injury a “freakish thing,” but Lukas said the rigors of the Triple Crown had escalated over the years. The fields are larger in Triple Crown races now, and the graded-stakes earnings required to get into the Derby require aggressive campaigning early in a horse’s career.

“The Triple Crown does take more out of horses now,” Lukas said. “It’s much more demanding. Much more.”

Behind Lukas, on benches circling the paddock, early arrivals were turning over the news. Besides disbelief there was, as befits racetrack habitués, cynicism.

“I think he would have got beat anyway,” said John Rosiak, a Queens resident who said he had been coming to Belmont for 50 years. “He would have come in third or fourth.”

Rosiak said he had 20 bets for the Belmont he had to place for his friends and relatives. But he said none of them had to be changed. I’ll Have Another was nowhere on those tickets.

“They all seem to like Optimizer,” he said.

Hours earlier, there were no outward signs portending the unfortunate turn for I’ll Have Another. A few people milled about at Doug O’Neill’s barn at 9:30 a.m., and they were in good spirits.

By 12:45, dozens of reporters had formed a bottleneck outside the detention barn where I’ll Have Another and his 11 expected rivals have resided since Wednesday.

Nearby, two security guards stood on the path that leads from the barns to the racetrack. Five precocious 2-year-old colts and one 2-year-old filly bounced on their toes on their way over for the second race. It was a well-bred bunch, and the thought occurred, as it does when races for 2-year-olds are run this time of year, that a classics winner might be before you.

The security guards stoically acknowledged that they had heard the news of I’ll Have Another. One of them said to the other, “At least it will be quieter tomorrow.”

Racetrack life ticked on under a warm sun. But another chance had passed, and the crowning of a 12th Triple Crown champion again looked far away.


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/09/sport ... lated.html

Thanks for Memories!

[yankee-in-france]

I will hope that I'll Have Another will live on without pain and enjoy his life.

[resigned]

UNION RAGS wins 144th running of the Belmont Stakes




A New Cast, a Winning Ride at the Belmont Stakes


Chang W. Lee/The New York Times
Jockey John R. Velazquez celebrates after riding Union Rags to victory at the Belmont Stakes. Johnny V., as he is known, was recently named to the Hall of Fame.

By JOE DRAPE

Published: June 9, 2012


This 144th running of the Belmont Stakes was supposed to be about history, about a gritty colt named I’ll Have Another’s determined assault on a feat achieved by only 11 horses. But the colt’s Triple Crown quest blew up on Friday when a sore tendon derailed the Kentucky Derby and Preakness champion and his connections decided I’ll Have Another would not have another chance to run. Ever again.

Instead, the Belmont Stakes was merely a horse race. A good enough one for more than a crowd of 85,811, largely New Yorkers, many of them in fedoras and madras jackets and blowing cigar smoke and returning this grand old racetrack on Long Island to its sepia heyday, when horse racing did not need government intervention and a sunny afternoon treading to the betting windows was just swell.

The giveaway that this was a New York crowd, however, was the polite but reserved reception it gave I’ll Have Another when a made-for-television send-off was staged for him in Belmont’s winner’s circle. They understood that he had been scratched for his own health, but after all, the whole country had been geared up to see if he would pass the Test of the Champion.

When I’ll Have Another returned to his barn and his trainer Doug O’Neill to his seats, the stage belonged to the 11 horses that were left and poised to try to endure Belmont’s grueling mile-and-a-half marathon. The race is not for the faint of heart — human or horse — and there was a suspicion that one of the co-favorites, Union Rags, boasted better press clippings than speed figures.

He had been the favorite in the Florida Derby as well as the Kentucky Derby and had lost in both when his jockey, Julien Leparoux, got him in stuck in traffic. Bad rides or trouble-prone colt was the debate among horseplayers.

Union Rags’s trainer, Michael Matz, knew his colt needed a change. On the Friday before the Kentucky Derby, Matz believed in his heart that Union Rags was going to be the horse here on Saturday trying to sweep the Triple Crown. On the Sunday after the Derby, Matz believed in his heart that Union Rags’s seventh-place finish at Churchill Downs was not indicative of his talent.

So Leparoux was fired and John Velazquez was hired. It was a no-brainer: Johnny V, as Velazquez is known, was recently named to the Hall of Fame, and he knows his home track, Belmont Park, like Stevie Wonder knows a keyboard.

When he arrived in the paddock Saturday, Velazquez did not even let Matz open his mouth to offer instructions. “Break good, get in a rhythm and go from there,” Velazquez said.

In the Derby none of that happened. When the gates popped on the Belmont, Union Rags squirted out in stride like a 4-year-old too zealously squeezing toothpaste from a tube. Velazquez tucked Union Rags along the rail as Mike Smith gunned Paynter to the lead, much as he had another Bob Baffert-trained horse, Bodemeister, in the two previous legs of the Triple Crown.

Matz, a man given to tight smiles, let the corners of his mouth twitch as he watched Velazquez lope Union Rags down that never-ending backstretch as Paynter beat back two pretenders, Optimizer and Unstoppable U. Long before Velazquez skimmed Union Rags around the far turn, his boots inches from taking rail scuffs, Matz understood he was watching something special.

“A brilliant ride,” Matz said afterward, a rare grin finding its way ear to ear.

In truth, it was just starting to get good. Smith and Paynter led into the stretch and then some. On the outside, Leparoux, aboard a 20-1 long shot named Atigun, was angling at Smith with a big run. Smith switched to a left-hand whip, and Paynter shuffled to his right.

It was the opening Velazquez was awaiting. Union Rags powered through a hint of daylight, and suddenly it was blue skies and the finish line ahead. Union Rags got a long, elegant neck in front of Paynter and stayed there.

“I got lucky,” Velazquez said. “The horse did all the work.”

Really, Velazquez and Union Rags got good. Good enough that they might have beaten a healthy I’ll Have Another and upended a Triple Crown bid for the 12th time since Affirmed was the last to earn his place among the sport’s immortals 34 years ago?

No one will ever know. Instead of O’Neill answering questions about the drug violations incurred by his horses or the 45-day suspension that awaits him, the winner’s circle was host to Phyllis Wyeth, an old-school horsewoman, who was absolutely ebullient aboard her motorized scooter.

She rarely keeps horses to race and sold Union Rags for $145,000 at the 2010 Fasig-Tipton Yearling sale, but it did not make her happy. There was something inspirational about the colt, and she had been haunted by dreams troubling enough to buy the colt, a son of Dixie Union and her mare Tempo, back for $390,000 several months later.

Her colt had just won the third leg of the Triple Crown, covering the mile and a half in 2 minutes 30.42 seconds and earning her a $600,000 first-place check and his backers $7.50 for a $2 bet. What mattered most now was that Union Rags had validated Wyeth’s faith in him and showed he was not faint of heart at all.

“It was my dream and he made it come through,” she said.

It was not history, but for horsemen and horse enthusiasts alike, it was a pretty good day at the track.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/10/sport ... takes.html

[resigned]

Dream comes true for owner Phyllis Wyeth


Photo credit: AP | Jockey John Velazquez, left, talks with Union Rags owner Phyllis Wyeth after Union Rags won the Belmont Stakes.


June 9, 2012 by GREG LOGAN



There was no giddy celebration for owner Phyllis Wyeth of Union Rags' victory Saturday in the Belmont Stakes, no jumping up and down as jockey John Velazquez drove the horse through on the rail to defeat Paynter by a neck.

Wyeth has been confined to her wheelchair since 2001 and has used a motorized chair to get around for many more years since suffering some spinal cord damage in a 1962 auto accident. The 71-year-old owner declined all postrace interview requests save for her comments to NBC in the winner's circle, where she explained why she bought Union Rags back for $390,000 as a 2-year-old after selling him for $145,000 as a yearling.

"I knew; I had a dream," she said. "I knew he would make it. I only have that racehorse and half of another, a claimer. I knew [trainer Michael Matz] could do it with him, and he made it come true today."


As the daughter of James Mills and Alice DuPont Mills, who founded Hickory Tree Farms and owned such top runners as Devil's Bag, Believe It and Gone West, Wyeth is a longtime horsewoman. She's well-known, too, as the wife of artist Jamie Wyeth, whose father Andrew is a famed American artist.

She never had a Grade I victory until last year when Union Rags won the Champagne Stakes at Saratoga not long after she bought back the horse she bred at her stable in Chadds Ford, Pa. Matz said that decision belonged to Wyeth alone.

"After she sent Russell Jones to the sales, he handed me a yellow slip and said, 'Phyllis wants you to train him.' I've had horses for Phyllis before. She always said, 'I'm going to have a good one one of these days.' So I think she kept her promise."

Matz believed Union Rags not only was good enough to win the Kentucky Derby but had Triple Crown potential. That dream came crashing down a few jumps out of the gate at Churchill Downs when jockey Julien Leparoux ran into so much traffic, the horse was finished long before it crossed under the wire in seventh place. Matz then skipped the Preakness and pointed for the Belmont.

He wanted the Triple Crown for Wyeth, but one out of three of the classics ain't bad.

"This should be the time of her life that she's enjoying," Matz said. "It would have been nice to do , especially for Phyllis. She's been in that wheelchair for 50 years. just can't imagine what she's gone through in her life like this. I just thought this horse was bringing so much happiness to her"

http://www.newsday.com/sports/horseraci ... -1.3772505