O'Brien Duo Clears Quarantine
May 2, 2002
By Derby Notes Team

Kentucky Derby Headlines:

• O'Brien Duo Clears Quarantine
  
• Harlan's Holiday Ready - McPeek
  
• Private Emblem 'Confident' Horse
  

BLUE BURNER - The Pride of the Big Yankee, George Steinbrenner, Blue Burner was on the racetrack at 7 o'clock this morning for a mile and one half gallop with exercise rider Judy Nicks aboard.

Trainer Bill Mott said he was considering taking Blue Burner to the paddock this afternoon to school if the weather permitted. The French Deputy colt will break from the far outside in Post 20 on Saturday with Corey Nakatani up.

BUDDHA - It was another early morning at the racetrack for Wood Memorial (Grade II) winner Buddha, who stretched his legs at 5:45 with exercise rider Fiona Goodwin in the tack. The handsome colt with the distinctive roan/gray coat jogged about three quarters of a mile, galloped a mile and a quarter and had a tour of the paddock all before the sun rose Thursday.

Trainer H. James Bond noted all was well with his charge, who'll have Pat Day on board Saturday afternoon for their mile and one-quarter journey in the Run for the Roses. Day was a visitor at Barn 48 Thursday morning.

"Pat told me if he wins on Saturday he'll thank God for Buddha," said Bond.

"The horse is doing great," the conditioner added. "We might school him this afternoon. Now if we can only keep the trainer calm, we'll be all right."

CAME HOME - Consistent Came Home, a winner of six of seven races and victor in the Santa Anita Derby a month ago, galloped a mile and one-half this morning under exercise rider Fernando Mera for trainer Paco Gonzalez, who continues to be pleased with his colt's progress toward Saturday's Kentucky Derby.

"He's still pulling hard in the morning and wants to go," said Gonzalez.

Came Home schooled in the Churchill Downs paddock Wednesday afternoon and behaved flawlessly, according to Gonzalez. "He schooled very good. The pony got more excited than he did with the TV cables on the ground and all."

Although Gonzalez was more than happy with Came Home's paddock demeanor, the colt will school again today, weather permitting, with horses in either the third or fourth races.

Chris McCarron, who will be seeking his third victory in the Kentucky Derby, was at the barn today to confer with Gonzalez. His mount will break from post position 15 in the 20-horse lineup, a spot that McCarron believes will allow him to secure a good position from the outside going into the first turn.

"The speed appears to be inside," said McCarron, "so I should be able to see what's developing early and go from there." Morning line maker Mike Battaglia's odds on Came Home are 5-1, co-second choice with Buddha behind 9-2 favored Harlan's Holiday.

EASY GRADES - Trainer Ted H. West had his long-legged gelding on the track after the 8 o'clock break for a gallop of a mile and one half and a schooling session in the gate. Regular exercise rider Cindy Lerille was in the boot with the son of Honor Grades who will break from Post 19 on Saturday.

West, the son of trainer Ted West, noted that his dad and mom would be in Louisville this afternoon for the big race. He also recalled that his only other time at Churchill Downs was as a 14-year-old in 1988 when his dad ran the filly Stocks Up in the Breeders' Cup.

Easy Grades will have Jorge Chavez - last year's Derby winner on Monarchos - in the irons for his run to glory in Derby 128.

ESSENCE OF DUBAI - UAE Derby winner Essence Of Dubai visited the paddock and then galloped a mile and a quarter under exercise rider Lee Roebuck. Essence Of Dubai was on the fast track at 6:40.

The Pulpit colt, who will break from post position 8 under David Flores in the 128th Kentucky Derby, was tentatively scheduled for a Thursday afternoon paddock schooling session, but that was before a series of heavy storms swept through the Louisville area. The session was canceled.

Watching the morning's activity was Eoin Harty, who trained the Godolphin runner in 2001. Trainer Saeed bin Suroor was expected to arrive in Louisville Thursday night.

Tom Albertrani, assistant to bin Suroor, said confidence is high in the Godolphin camp for Essence Of Dubai.

"He is training at the top of his game and that is always a good sign," said Albertrani, who has accompanied Godolphin's Derby runners the four years they have participated in the race. "His only bad race was in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile last year, and I think we can throw that out and give him another chance."

Albertrani, also overseeing preparations of Godolphin's Imperial Gesture for Friday's Kentucky Oaks, was asked which race he thought had the best chance of giving Godolphin a winner this weekend.

"I would take my chances with this colt," Albertrani said. "I say that because the filly race looks a lot more competitive than the Derby."

HARLAN'S HOLIDAY - Starlight Stable's morning-line Kentucky Derby favorite Harlan's Holiday backtracked to the finish line and then galloped a mile and a half under assistant trainer Helen Pitts before 7 o'clock.

"He will gallop in the morning, but not Saturday morning," said trainer Ken McPeek of Harlan's Holiday, who will exit post position 14 under Edgar Prado.

"It was up to Edgar (what post was selected), and he wanted the 14," McPeek said. "If he is happy, I am happy."

McPeek was asked about being in the role of having the morning-line favorite.

"It doesn't matter to me what his odds are," McPeek said. "I don't bet, but I know he is going to have his supporters. I know he is going to run well."

IT'SALLINTHECHASE - The bay colt It'sallinthechase was out for a mile and one-half gallop Thursday morning after the 8 o'clock break and just prior to a rain shower that drenched the Churchill Downs racetrack and barn area. He had regular exercise rider Joe Higgins up for the exercise, which also included a tour of the paddock.

Trainer Wilson Brown, the good, old boy from Cement, Okla., who has become a bit of a celebrity and a champion for the underdog coming up to Derby 128, noted that his 50-1 shot would also school in the paddock this afternoon (with horses for the sixth race) and then tomorrow, when the big Kentucky Oaks crowd will give a good simulation of what he will have to face on Saturday.

"If you can help them some by giving them a feel for it, why not?" Brown said. "I'm not worried about him over at the gate. He went over there and introduced himself to the gate crew the other morning and he's never been a problem there. And besides, with us being in the 18 hole, we're not going to be hanging around there much."

Eddie Martin, Jr., the leading rider at this winter's Fair Grounds meeting, will partner It'sallinthechase Saturday.

JOHANNESBURG/CASTLE GANDOLFO - Trainer Aidan O'Brien's Kentucky Derby contingent cleared quarantine Wednesday night, and walked Thursday morning at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky.

Johannesburg, the 2001 Breeders' Cup Juvenile hero and Eclipse Award winner, will break from post position 1 under Gary Stevens in Kentucky Derby 128. He is 6-1 on the morning line.

Castle Gandolfo, who will have the saddle services of Jerry Bailey, will break from post position 12. He is 20-1 on the morning line.

The pair are scheduled to train Friday morning at Keeneland and then van to Churchill Downs on Saturday morning.

"The colts will have a mile canter," O'Brien said, speaking from Ballydoyle in Ireland.

Plans for the trainer are less certain. O'Brien has been battling the flu for the past week and his doctor is reluctant to let him undertake the flight to Louisville.

A final decision on his travel will be made Friday morning. Traveling head lad Pat Keating is supervising the O'Brien pair at Keeneland.

LUSTY LATIN - Joey and Wendy Platts' stretch-running Lusty Latin visited the starting gate and then galloped a mile and seven-eighths under exercise rider Amy Mullins after the renovation break.

Lusty Latin got back to the barn just as the first wave of thunderstorms rumbled across the area.

Lusty Latin, a 30-1 chance on the morning line, will exit post position 4 under Glenn Corbett.

"We are not going to change his style," trainer Jeff Mullins said. "He will lay where he wants, and when it is time to go, he'll go. If he gets there, fine; if not, we'll go on."

Lusty Latin represents the first Kentucky Derby starter for Jeff Mullins, who said he has received only one bit of advice about training a Derby horse.

MEDAGLIA D'ORO - Edmund Gann's Medaglia d'Oro came out after the break and just in front of a quick shower squall at Churchill Downs Thursday morning for a mile and one-half gallop and a schooling session in the gate. Regular exercise rider Jose Cuevas was aboard the solid El Prado colt as trainer Robert Frankel took up his usual observation post at the six-furlong gap.

Hall of Famer Frankel is pleased with the way his San Felipe (Grade II) winner and Wood Memorial (Grade I) runner-up is progressing toward his Saturday date in the 128th Kentucky Derby.

"He's doing great, real great," the conditioner said. "I'm going to school him in the paddock this afternoon (with horses from the first race). I'll just walk him tomorrow and stretch his legs three-quarters of a mile on Saturday morning."

Frankel also revealed that Medaglia d'Oro had coughed on him last Monday following his 1:13.80 drill for six furlongs.

"He coughed on me four or five times following the work," the trainer stated. "I've got several in my barn coughing; it's all over the track. We checked him and found just a bit of a discharge in his nostril. We flushed out his guttural pouch and he's been fine since; he hasn't coughed again. It's really not a problem, not that big a deal, especially because we found it early in the week. If I'm a day or two in front of the race and it happens, now I have a problem. But the fact we found it out early might have been an advantage. We cleaned him out and he's fine. Something like this isn't unusual, and the main thing is the horse is just fine."

Laffit Pincay, Jr., will be aboard Medaglia d'Oro as they break from Post 9 on Saturday.

OCEAN SOUND - Irish-bred Ocean Sound, one of the outsiders at 50-1 on the morning line for the 128th Kentucky Derby, galloped a mile and one-half this morning under exercise rider Adam Kitchingman.

"He was sharp," said trainer Jim Cassidy later at the barn.

Ocean Sound, competitive but winless in four races this year, including a third to Derby favorite Harlan's Holiday in the Blue Grass Stakes, is scheduled to school in the Churchill Downs paddock this afternoon with the third race. Alex Solis has the call Saturday.

PERFECT DRIFT - Spiral Stakes winner Perfect Drift galloped a mile and a half at the Trackside Training Center under Joe Deegan.

"We beat the rain this morning," said trainer Murray Johnson, referring to the storms that swept through the Louisville area. "He was very sharp this morning; on his toes."

Johnson said Perfect Drift would gallop very early Friday morning at Trackside, with no track activity Saturday.

"We are going to leave Saturday between 5:30 and 6 to come over," Johnson said. Perfect Drift will be housed in Barn 42, Stall 6.

Perfect Drift will exit post position 3 under two-time Derby winner Eddie Delahoussaye. Perfect Drift is listed at 15-1 on the morning line.

PRIVATE EMBLEM - Arkansas Derby winner Private Emblem, trainer Steve Asmussen's lone hope in the 128th Kentucky Derby after Windward Passage was excluded from the race with the surprise entry of Danthebluegrassman Wednesday, galloped a mile and one-quarter this morning under exercise pilot Lisa Orn.

Asmussen also took Private Emblem to the gate to school this morning and was satisfied with the colt's demeanor. The son of Our Emblem gate schooled wearing the blanket that will be in place when he enters the barrier Saturday.

Asmussen has explained that Private Emblem is skin sensitive to the gate's metal and the blanket provides a cushion in the gate. The trainer was also more than satisfied Private Emblem's

schooling session in the paddock Wednesday afternoon. "Unbelievable," he said. "He was so good I'm not sure we'll have to school again. This horse just has so much confidence now that it makes me confident he's going to run well Saturday."

Private Emblem, who breaks from post position 11, is 20-1 on the morning line under regular jockey Donnie Meche.

Regarding Windward Passage, Asmussen said the Preakness Stakes is one of the races being taken into consideration as a next start for the son of Captain Bodgit.

PROUD CITIZEN - Trainer D. Wayne Lukas' hope for a fifth Kentucky Derby victory, Proud Citizen, galloped before the renovation break under exercise rider Stacy Maker.

"I feel pretty good about my chances, but I am sure the other 17 trainers do to," Lukas said.

Proud Citizen, listed at 30-1 on the morning line, will leave from post position 13 under Mike Smith.

Smith stopped by Barn 44 to talk with Lukas and check on Proud Citizen. Smith, who worked Proud Citizen a couple of times before the Santa Anita Derby, made his first ride in a race on Proud Citizen a winning one in the Coolmore Lexington at Keeneland on April 20.

"I always thought all along that he had the ability," Smith said. "We were just having to play catch-up with him. We had to see how he handled the race. Even if he had won the race, it would not have been good enough. He had to impress me, and I thought he did every bit of that and more.

"He finished running. I was ecstatic with the way he ran. Since then, the concern I had was how he was going to train afterward. It looks like he just relished it. I watched him graze this morning, and he looks great. Ideally, you'd like to have one more (race), but the way he looks, I don't think he needs it."

REQUEST FOR PAROLE - Jeri and Sam Knighton's Request For Parole was on the track when it opened at 5:45 to jog a mile and gallop a mile and a half under exercise rider Loren Diego.

Listed at 20-1 on the morning line, Request For Parole will break from post position 7 under Robby Albarado.

Trainer Steve Margolis is saddling his first Derby starter, and he was asked if he had received any input on how to achieve success Saturday.

"The guy that sells me vitamins was trying to give me advice yesterday," Margolis said with a laugh. "He used to be a trainer, but nobody else has really said anything about it.

"I might ask a couple of guys like Carl (trainer Carl Nafzger, who saddled Unbrided in 1990). It's not that you don't want anybody's advice; it's more about knowing your horse."

SAARLAND - Cynthia Phipps' Saarland, 15-1 on the morning line for the 128th Kentucky Derby, galloped one mile this morning for trainer Shug McGaughey.

The conditioner was planning to take Saarland to the Churchill Downs paddock later in the day to school with horses in the first race.

U S S TINOSA - Trainer Jerry Hollendorfer worked his erstwhile Kentucky Derby hopeful U S S Tinosa six furlongs Thursday morning after the renovation break with rider Rene Douglas aboard. The Northern California conditioner caught his Foxhound colt in 1:12 for the distance, with out times of 1:26 for seven eighths and 1:42 for the mile. (Churchill clockers gave the horse a six-furlong time of 1:11.60 for the drill on the 'fast' strip.)

U S S Tinosa was entered for Derby 128, but was one of four colts who didn't make the starting list because of a lack of graded stakes earnings.

"If someone wins the Derby real big, then we'd go the other way (the Hawthorne Derby on Saturday, May 11). But otherwise we're thinking Preakness."

WAR EMBLEM/DANTHEBLUEGRASSMAN - The Thoroughbred Corporation's War Emblem, winner of the Illinois Derby, jogged this morning while his stablemate from the barn of trainer Bob Baffert, surprise Derby entrant Danthebluegrassman, walked under the shed.

War Emblem, whom most observers believe will set the early pace Saturday, was hung up at 20-1 on the morning line, while Danthebluegrassman, owned by Mike Pegram, was pegged at 50-1.

WILD HORSES - Peachtree Stable's Wild Horses was trackside at 7:15 Thursday morning for a mile and one-half gallop under the watchful eye of trainer Todd Pletcher. The Saint Ballado colt, runner-up in the Arkansas Derby (Grade II) in his most recent effort, also took a practice session in the Churchill gate in preparation for his break from Post 2 on Saturday.

Exercise rider and assistant trainer Cindy Hutter was aboard Wild Horses, as usual.

"He's doing good," Hutter noted. "He's feeling good. He's a good horse to work with. He's all boy, I'll tell you. He wants to wrestle with you and nip you if he can. But he's not mean, just all boy."

Wild Horses will be ridden by Rene Douglas in the 128th Kentucky Derby.

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