Moment Of Truth Comes To Midwest And East Visa Triple Crown Prospects

(Apr. 7, 2003) - Now that the Visa Triple Crown die has been cast for the major Southern California classic prospects, the scene shifts to the eastern half of the country this weekend for the moment of truth for several Thoroughbreds eyeing the Wood Memorial, Blue Grass Stakes and Arkansas Derby as a final prep for the 2003 Kentucky Derby.

Leading the push toward the first jewel in the Visa Triple Crown and $5-million Visa Triple Crown Challenge, to be run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., May 3, is the current favorite for the race, EMPIRE MAKER, in Saturday’s Wood Memorial at Aqueduct Race Course in New York. At Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky., Louisiana Derby winner PEACE RULES and BADGE OF SILVER, who finished sixth in the Louisiana Derby as the even-money favorite, will renew their rivalry. In the Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park, MAN AMONG MEN, who bled and finished seventh in Santa Anita’s Grade II San Felipe Stakes March 16, will try to revive his Visa Triple Crown hopes against the likes of REGION OF MERIT, winner of the Tampa Bay Derby, and EUGENE’S THIRD SON, runner-up in the Lane’s End Stakes.

Expected to join EMPIRE MAKER, the winner of the Grade I Florida Derby, in what could be the most critical of Saturday’s preps, are NEW YORK HERO, recent winner of the Grade II Lane’s End Stakes at Turfway Park and a late nominee to the Visa Triple Crown; INDY DANCER, third-place finisher in the Florida Derby; FUNNY CIDE, who finished third in the Louisiana Derby; SENOR SWINGER, who was bought recently by Bob and Beverly Lewis and turned over to three-time Derby winning trainer Bob Baffert; and DURING, another Baffert trainee and late nominee making his stakes debut.

A loss by EMPIRE MAKER could catapult a Wood winner into the middle of the Visa Triple Crown limelight, while a runaway victory such as the one the son of 1990 Kentucky Derby victor Unbridled scored in the Florida Derby could spell the end of the road for other Wood participants.

The most competitive of the three races appears to be Keeneland’s Blue Grass where the late-blooming BRANCUSI, who finished a gritty third in Santa Anita’s San Felipe; the super-talented LION TAMER, a disappointing fourth in the Lane’s End; and OFFLEE WILD, fourth in the Fountain of Youth but on the shelf since then with a minor injury.

At Oaklawn, the one-two finishers in the March 22 Rebel Stakes - CROWNED KING and GREAT NOTION - will be pressing to upgrade their status with a solid performance against a decent field.

Five Likely To Move On To Kentucky Derby - Another stunning victory by late nominee BUDDY GIL - this time in the Grade I, $750,000 Santa Anita Derby - has put him squarely on the Visa Triple Crown trail. He’s likely to lead a pack of four Westerners out of Saturday’s Santa Anita Derby into the Kentucky Derby.

Trainer Bob Baffert, who just seems to keep coming up with solid Derby prospects, showcased another in the Santa Anita classic as INDIAN EXPRESS, a son of 1998 third-place Kentucky Derby finisher Indiana Charlie, was beaten a head by BUDDY GIL. Finishing third was another Baffert trainee KAFWAIN, a length and a quarter to the good of 3-2 favorite ATSWHATIMTALKNBOUT.

That foursome almost surely will go on to Kentucky to contest the Run for the Roses on the first Saturday in May. Finishing fifth in the race was DOMESTIC DISPUTE, another colt from the Baffert barn that the trainer said appears to be off the Visa Triple Crown trail at this time.

Another prime prospect, MINISTERS WILD CAT, was scratched from the Santa Anita Derby with a bruised back front and trainer Neil Drysdale, while saying the colt is much better, hasn’t planned a next move yet.

Trainer Wallace Dollase is expected to be represented at Churchill Downs by TEN MOST WANTED, a late-developing son of Deputy Commander, whom Dollase trained to victory in the Louisiana Super Derby some years back. TEN MOST WANTED was an impressive victor in Saturday’s Grade II, $500,000 Illinois Derby at Hawthorne Race Course. That win could have spelled doom for such promising colts as ALYSWEEP and LONE STAR SKY, but could give encouragement to late nominee FUND OF FUNDS, who made the lead in early stretch but was worn down by the winner and had to settle for second.

A future star may have been born at Gulfstream Park on Saturday as DYNEVER, who was making only his third career start and first in stakes company, pulled away from SUPAH BLITZ, second in the Fountain of Youth Stakes and fourth in the Florida Derby, to win the Aventura Stakes by 3 1/4 lengths.

Trainer Christophe Clement hasn’t made a commitment yet on the next start for the son of Dynaformer but implied that he would skip the Kentucky Derby in favor of the Lone Star Derby May 10 at Texas’ Lone Star Park.

New Kid On The Block - Joining the list of Kentucky Derby prospects recently was EXCESSIVEPLEASURE, who captured the WinStar Derby at Sunland Park March 30.

EXCESSIVEPLEASURE, a gelding bred in California and owned by Lea Leatherman, romped to victory in the inaugural running of the WinStar Derby at the southeastern New Mexico track, not far from the Texas border city of El Paso. In the wake of the son of In Excess, trained by up-and-coming Southern California conditioner Doug O’Neill, were a pair of colts - SPENSIVE and APALACHIAN THUNDER - conditioned by three-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Bob Baffert. They finished second and third, respectively.

The next stop for any of these runners remains undetermined, but the winner likely will head into the Kentucky Derby at Louisville’s Churchill Downs and Baffert may choose to find other arenas of action for the runner-up and third-place finisher.

Halfway across the world, in the United Arab Emirates, Godolphin Racing’s prime candidate for the Kentucky Derby - INAMORATO - finished an inglorious third behind South African-bred Victory Moon and stablemate SONGLARK in the Grade I UAE Derby in Dubai. The winner is not eligible for the Visa Triple Crown, but Simon Crisford, racing manager for Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum’s Godolphin Racing, said both INAMORATO and SONGLARK remain viable candidates for the Kentucky Derby, the first jewel in the Visa Triple Crown.

Of interest, also, in that race was the fourth-place finish of American-trained OUTTA HERE, who was making his first since December for trainer and co-owner William Currin, who conditions on the Southern California front. No next race has been designated by Currin, but OUTTA HERE appears to have qualified for the Kentucky Derby in the money-earned category ($404,250), with money from three Grade III races in his poke even before his portion of the $2-million UAE Derby purse is counted.

Other Recent Winners - Thoroughbred action on March 22 moved at least a couple of Visa Triple Crown prospects a step farther along the trail. Victories by NEW YORK HERO and CROWNED KING, both of whom were made a late nominee to the three classics by payment of $6,000 as late nominations closed Saturday, March 29, put themselves in the picture with stunning wins in the Lane’s End Stakes at Turfway Park and Oaklawn Park’s Rebel Stakes.

At Turfway, NEW YORK HERO hit the wire ahead of EUGENE’S THIRD SON and two-time Turfway stakes winner CHAMPALI, whose defeats may have taken them off the Visa Triple Crown trail.

CROWNED KING defeated GREAT NOTION in the Rebel.

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