GIACOMO - Trainer John Shirreffs returned to California just hours after Mr. and Mrs. Jerome Moss' gray son of Holy Bull had won the Kentucky Derby, but jockey Mike Smith stopped by to check on his first Kentucky Derby winner.

Smith participated in a live interview via satellite on NBC's "Today" show. He later spent some time before photographers with the Derby winner after the colt received a morning bath that followed a morning walk.

As the Eclipse Award-winning jockey and Hall of Fame rider talked with reporters, he talked of the disappointment of losing the 1994 Kentucky Derby aboard Holy Bull, a heavy favorite who went on to earn honors as "Horse of the Year." He also talked about how much Giacomo had reminded him of his sire from the first time he worked the colt for Shirreffs.

"After I got on him the first time, I told John that he was so much like his dad,"

Smith recalled. "It was the way he traveled, the way he feels. His father was very aggressive, but he's a little kinder - he probably got that from his mother. But yet he felt so much like him, I said 'This is our Derby horse, and if we can get him there, he's going to redeem his father's name.' "

Smith credited Shirreffs for doing a remarkable job of putting Giacomo in position to turn in his best effort on racing's biggest stage: the Kentucky Derby.

"John's so sharp," said Smith. "Once he realized that we were capable of getting here, he just took little steps. Other people would hone 'em down three or four preps out, but he said, 'If we're good enough, we'll get it. If not, we'll get better. And every time I'd come back from the races, I'd says 'John, this is better.' After the Santa Anita Derby, although everybody thought it was a bad race, I knew it wasn't. I knew what he had done to get there, I knew what would happen in the race - how the pace was so slow and how they finished strong - but people don't watch after the race. You should have seen him gallop out. He was getting fitter and stronger. Then, after the Santa Anita Derby, John said, 'OK, now it's time'." He tightened up the screws and he said either he's going to step forward or he ain't - and he did."

Other trainers approached Smith to see if he would be interested in riding their horses in the Derby, but the jockey's confidence in Giacomo and Shirreffs never wavered.

"I'm sure John was approached a few times about taking me off, too," said Smith, "but he didn't. He stuck by me. It was a story, I'm telling you. It really was - it should be a movie. There's no way I could have taken off him. I was talking to my agent about two weeks out and I said, 'You know what, if I could ride (Derby favorite) Bellamy Road, I don't think I would. I said I wouldn't change, I would stick with this horse. I said that I believe. It's pretty neat, you know?"

KIARAN McLAUGHLIN (Closing Argument, second) - "He will ship to New York on Monday and make a decision (on the Preakness) later. Normally, I do not like to run back in two weeks, but this is not a normal situation. He came out of the race great and looks super today."

McLaughlin, who helped form the rookie Derby trainer trifecta with John Shirreffs and Tim Ritchey, was still seeking the opportunity Sunday morning to watch a replay of the race.

"I never got to see it yet. I was hung up in traffic for an hour and a half after the race. I made a rookie trainer mistake on the traffic problems. When I got back at 8:20 or so, I still didn't get to see it. It was on once, but there were a lot of people in my way. I want to watch it over and over again and watch everybody.

"I watched our horse very well the whole time. I knew we were three wide and in really good position. They were going fast and we were up there pretty close, but when he turned for home, I thought we were going to win. It was an unbelieveable feeling and I am glad that my wife and family were here to see it. I am proud of him to be second." TIM RITCHEY (Afleet Alex, third) - "I am happy, but I would be happier if we had won, but, you know what, it wasn't in the cards. On that particular day, those two horses were just better than him, but it wasn't from his lack of trying or heart or courage. He ran a game race. We are very proud of him."

On his thoughts at the eighth pole when Afleet Alex was on even terms with Closing Argument for the lead:

"I thought we had a heck of a shot. He just got beat by two horses who were better than him on that given day. I thought the race would go fast early. There was enough quality speed in there that I thought they would go that fast."

On plans for the Preakness:

"He will walk for a few days and then we will ship to Baltimore probably Wednesday. Tentatively, he will ship Wednesday morning and be there Wednesday afternoon and get ready for the Preakness. He is walking around the barn bucking and squealing this morning, so obviously, he came out of the race well."

On his reactions during the race and then falling a length shy of victory:

"For a little while, it looked like he absolutely had the race. But, the race is the finish line, and you've got to get there. You can't dwell on the past. If you do, you go crazy. There is always tomorrow, he came out of the race well, and we are looking forward to the Preakness. It's a little shorter race; it's in our backyard and if he runs with the same courage, they will have to outrun him like they do most times.

"It (the race) was kind of hard to watch from the grandstand where we were. From what I saw, Jeremy (Rose) rode a great race. He sat back and saved some ground, he kind of tracked behind Jerry Bailey (on High Fly) most of the way and got through where he needed to get through. At the head of the lane, he kind of had to steady for a little bit. He said there was a lot bumping, but there was a lot of bumping in the whole race - it is that kind of a race with 20 horses - but I couldn't be more proud of Jeremy or the horse."

RON ELLIS (Don't Get Mad, fourth) - (Regarding the Preakness) "We will have to see and I have to talk to Wayne (owner B. Wayne Hughes) about what he wants to do. We will probably decide after a few days. He ran a hard race coming back in a week, so we will just kind of see how he is doing."

Ellis said if the decision was to go on to the Preakness, the colt would leave from Louisville the Wednesday before the race. "I was able to watch him pretty well yesterday. He got a great trip other than ending up about seven or eight wide around the turn. It is just the way things have to go when you come from far back. You've got to get lucky to be able to get through. (Jockey) Tyler (Baze) said there were just too many horses in front, so he just kind of went to the outside. I got pretty excited at the eighth pole, because it looked like his momentum was going to carry him by, but he got just a little late the last sixteenth of a mile and kind of flattened out a little bit. He had a chance there. At the eighth pole, he went with Giacomo for about four or five strides and they were closing together and then he weakened just a little bit. Overall, it was really a good effort and we got a lot of excitement out of it."

JEFF MULLINS (Buzzards Bay, fifth) - "We are going to go home (to California) and regroup. He came back fine. He had a lot to overcome (from the outside, No. 20 post) and he ran a good race. We couldn't be any happier."

Buzzards Bay, the Santa Anita Derby winner, was one of four runners from that Derby prep in Saturday's field to make up the top six. "Maybe Andy (Beyer) will give the winner a 98 (speed figure)," Mullins said with a laugh.

CRAIG DOLLASE (Wilko, sixth) - "He had a little bit of bleeding yesterday and that was a disappointment, but he is in good spirits today. We will monitor him the next few days and kind of go from there. It's a two-week turnaround, but just the way the California contingent ran yesterday - you know, we have beaten all of those horses - I actually feel pretty good about it. The little bleeding issue, obviously, it can be fixed, so I feel pretty good about it, especially after seeing the way he came back. We are going to give him a few days and then see what we are going to do. He would stay here and I understand they have a flight from here to Baltimore on Wednesday (the 18th) so that would probably be the plan if we decide to do it."

NICK ZITO (Bellamy Road, seventh; Andromeda's Hero, eighth; High Fly, 10th; Noble Causeway, 14th; Sun King, 15th) - "They all came out of the race terrific. We will just keep them here and let them rest. I don't want to ship them anywhere right now. We will just stay here. We will definitely go on to Baltimore with somebody. I don't think we will be shipping in early. It has been a grueling situation for everybody. We will come up with something.

"I still can't pinpoint anything (that produced his horses' results). These horses look tremendous. They look better now than they went in the race. They look great. It is a devastating thing that way in sports. You just have to regroup. I don't know why. I try to have a positive outlook on everything. It's sports, and that's the way it is. Give the winner credit; he won the race. It is just an unusual type of situation. But that is what makes the sport great. Hey, they are doing something right. There were 156,000 people here yesterday. It wasn't bad.

"At the top of the stretch, we were getting excited. My wife, Kim, and Alex, my son, we were getting excited because those two horses (Bellamy Road and High Fly) were making a winning run. But, when that big burst of horses came around the turn, I couldn't believe that none of them were our other horses. You know Noble Causeway, Andromeda's Hero - I couldn't believe that. That really put a damper on the whole day. What could you do? That's sports. Noble Causeway lost all chance. He checked and had a legitimate excuse. He was sharp and he was out of his game. Sun King is kind of like a mystery. He came back great. I don't know. You know he is better than that."

MICHELLE NIHEI, assistant to TODD PLETCHER (Flower Alley, ninth; Coin Silver, 12th; Bandini, 19th) - "They will ship to Belmont Park at 10:30 this morning. They all came back fine. I am pretty sure we will take Bandini back to the drawing board. Coin Silver and Flower Alley are head-scratchers as far as returning in two weeks."

Nihei was asked about the emotions of the day that dawned with such high expectations.

"I think it was tough for both Nick (Zito) and Todd, because they walked over with really strong chances. It was surprising."

Flower Alley produced the best showing for the Pletcher barn. "I expected him to run as well or better because he just really progressed massively with the addition of the blinkers," said Nihei, who served as the colt's main exercise rider. "Chasing the rabbit didn't help us, but you could see in the replays him throw that head up when he got checked. He ran into a little bit of trouble, but I think there were a couple of things that he really showed us - that he can get the distance; he just needs to do it the other way around, and that the blinkers really have him focused. He is a very talented horse." Nihei was asked about whether Bandini washed out before the race.

"It went from being 30 when he exercised in the morning to being 80," Nihei said. "One of the things that struck us after the first race when Yes Yes Yes kind of got pretty hot coming home and had trouble cooling out was that maybe this (the heat) was more of an issue than we thought. Our vets say the change in temperature rather than the absolute temperature is what sometimes stresses them out."

WARREN STUTE (Greeley's Galaxy, 11th) - The 83-year-old trainer told reporters Sunday morning that the colt came out of the race fine, but that he was unlikely for the Preakness and may ship back to California this week.

BOB HOLTHUS (Greater Good, 13th) - "He is good this morning. He came back fine. We are going to give him a little time off. He will be here four or five days and then we will take over to (owner) Mr. (Lewis) Lakin's farm and give him two weeks in the paddock."

PATRICK BIANCONE (Spanish Chestnut, 16th) - "He is doing good this morning (at Keeneland). He ate up all his food last night, but he was tired. We will not make a decision (on a next start) for the next few days and go to New York at the end of the week. As for the Preakness, at this stage I would say it is very doubtful."

BOB BAFFERT (Sort It Out, 17th) - "He came back fine. We took our shot and it didn't work out. We will freshen him here, see how he is doing and then go to New York and train up there. I learn something every year I run in the Derby and yesterday the jocks were saying that the running lanes were different; some dry, some wetter than others. So I just store that stuff in the memory bank, because you can never learn enough about what to do in this race."

D. WAYNE LUKAS (Going Wild, 18th) - "He came out of the race fine. We beat Giacomo in California in the Sham, but we could not beat him on The Day. I think the most unbelieveable thing that came out of that race was that Todd Pletcher with three and Nick (Zito) with five was that they went all the way down to seven before they got one up there. The odds against that (those trainers' horses making up eight of the last 14 spots) are astronomical."

Lukas said no firm plans had been made for Going Wild's next start, but if one were compiling a list for the Preakness, the colt would fall under the possible category.

BOBBY FRANKEL (High Limit, 20th) - "He is definitely not running in the next month or so. He will go to New York and miss about two weeks of training. He got pretty cut up. He grabbed both hind quarters and was bleeding a lot. I think it happened on the backside. He was making a move on the inside and then all of a sudden he just stopped. I think it was Sun King who came up behind him."

Later in the morning, Frankel told reporters that after being checked over by veterinarians, High Limit's injuries were not serious enough to rule out a possible Preakness attempt.

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