Kentucky Derby 134 Update: March 31

Kentucky Derby 134 Top Stories:

- Big Brown Impressive in Florida Derby Romp
- Triple Crown Nominees Falter in UAE Derby
- Salute the Sarge Rallies in San Miguel
- Wood Memorial, Santa Anita Derby, Illinois Derby Loom Saturday

SOUTHEAST/BIG BROWN REMAINS UNBEATEN WITH FLORIDA DERBY VICTORY – IEAH Stables and Paul Pompa Jr.’s Big Brown lived up to his big billing Saturday by romping to a 5-length victory as the 3-2 favorite in the $1,000,000 Florida Derby (Grade I) at Gulfstream Park.

Trained by Richard Dutrow and ridden by two-time Kentucky Derby winner Kent Desormeaux, Big Brown improved his record to 3-3-0-0 with earnings of $662,700 after notching $600,000 for his victory Saturday over 11 foes. Big Brown covered the mile and one-eighth in 1:48.16 over a main track labeled “fast.”

“I don’t see any 3-year-old that can beat him anywhere in the world and I’ve watched them all,” Dutrow said of the son of Boundary out of the Nureyev mare Mien who has won his three starts by a combined 29 lengths.

“We’ve got a Kentucky Derby contender. It’s a long way off, and a lot of things have to happen right, but I expected him to run just like we saw.”

Breaking from the far outside post 12, Desormeaux was only three-wide entering the first turn where Big Brown grabbed the advantage from Fierce Wind, who broke from the rail, and Nistle’s Crunch. Big Brown maintained a daylight margin as he led the field through fractions of :22.76, :45.83,1:10.08 and 1:35.18.

Mount Joy Stables’ Smooth Air rallied for second, 7 ½ lengths ahead of Jet Set Racing Stable’s Tomcito. Completing the field in order were Hey Byrn, Cool Gator, Majestic Warrior, Nistle’s Crunch, Face the Cat, Da’ Tara, Fierce Wind, Elysium Fields and B B Frank.

“My plan was not to get on the lead, but rather to get close enough to the rail so as not to get caught wide,” Desormeaux said. “He just galloped around. When a horse sets fractions like that and still tells me that he’s got more, and that the other horses can’t get to him, that’s something special. He’s a major talent; possibly the best horse I’ve ridden. I thought that after the first time I rode him. I’d have to say that he’s my (Kentucky) Derby horse.”   

Smooth Air also is Kentucky-bound for trainer Bennie Stutts Jr., who never has had a Kentucky Derby starter.

“We’re going to the Kentucky Derby,” Stutts said on Sunday morning. “It’s not hard to take $200,000 for finishing second. The key to him is that he’s able to rate.”

A son of Smooth Jazz out of the French Deputy mare Air France, Smooth Air has a record of  7-3-2-2 with earnings of  $395,500.

“As far as when he’ll ship to Kentucky, that will be up to (Mount Joy owner Brian Burns),” Stutts said. “I’m pretty sure they’ll want to go up well before the race and he’ll go into Dallas Stewart’s barn (at Churchill Downs) rather than a Derby barn or receiving barn. Dallas has horses for them (Mount Joy) and there won’t be any problem with help and he’ll have 24-hour security.”

SPORTING ART TAKES PALM BEACH STAKES – Jon and Sarah Kelly’s Sporting Art rallied from off the pace for a neck victory over Flying Dismount in Saturday’s $100,000 Bulleit Bourbon Palm Beach Stakes (GIII) on the turf at Gulfstream Park.

Ridden by Javier Castellano, Sporting Art covered the mile and an eighth on firm turf in 1:45.98. A son of Doneraile Court out of the Run Softly mare Playful Run, Sporting Art increased his record to 6-3-1-0 with earnings of $101,185 for trainer Christophe Clement.

“He’s a nice horse and he’s trained like a nice horse,” Clement said of the Triple Crown nominee, whose four starts in 2007 were in England. “I will try him on the Polytrack next time, maybe in the (Coolmore) Lexington (at Keeneland on April 19). It’s a very good spot.”

DUBAI/TRIPLE CROWN HOPES TAKE HIT IN UAE DERBY – Honour Devil, a 4-year-old Argentine-bred, rolled to a 4 ¼-length victory Saturday in the $2 million UAE Derby (GII) at Nad Al Sheba, a mile and an eighth race in which Zayat Stables’ Triple Crown hopeful Massive Drama faded to ninth after setting the pace.

“He really wasn’t handling the ground too well and he was getting away from me a little bit,” jockey Garrett Gomez said of Massive Drama, who is trained by Dale Romans. “He’s a really aggressive horse so it was hard to get him in a rhythm.”

Two other Triple Crown nominees also did not fare well. Martyn Barber’s Strike The Deal finished fifth, 8 ¼ lengths behind Honour Devil, and Godolphin’s Numaany ran last in the field of 10.

WEST/SALUTE THE SARGE KENTUCKY-BOUND AFTER SAN MIGUEL SCORE – Southern Equine Stable’s Salute the Sarge, making his 2008 debut, rallied from last place to win Saturday’s $75,000 San Miguel Stakes by 1 ¾ lengths over Leonides at Santa Anita.

Ridden by Michael Base, Salute the Sarge covered the six furlongs over the all-weather track in 1:09.07 in his first start since finishing ninth in the Bessemer Trust Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last October at Monmouth Park. A son of Forest Wildcat out of the Silver Ghost mare Dixie Ghost, Salute the Sarge improved his record to 7-4-2-0 with earnings of $333,340.

“I’m probably going to run him in the Kentucky Derby,” trainer Eric Guillot said, “so my partner (owner Michel Blanco Moreno) can get the Derby Fever out of his system.”

Next up for Salute the Sarge is the Coolmore Lexington Stakes (GII) at Keeneland on April 19 and then on to the Kentucky Derby.

“I honed on him harder because I knew I might have to stretch him out after this,” Guillot said. “Usually I don’t hone in on a layup, but I needed three three-quarters works in him. He’s a good horse.”

THREE MAJOR DERBY PREPS COMING UP SATURDAY – Major contenders for Kentucky Derby 134 will have their final preps for the Run for the Roses Saturday on three fronts.

At Aqueduct, Robert LaPenta’s champion War Pass will attempt to rebound from his last-place finish in the March 15 Tampa Bay Derby (GIII) when he is expected to go postward in the $750,000 Wood Memorial (GI) at a mile and one-eighth. The juvenile champion of 2007 closed at 9-2 in Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager that closed March 9.

Other Pool 2 horses likely to contest the Wood Memorial are IEAH Stables and WinStar Farm’s Court Vision, who closed at 16-1, Charles Fipke’s Tale of Ekati, who closed at 47-1, and Albert Fried Jr.’s Giant Moon, who closed at 67-1.

At Santa Anita, the cream of the West Coast crop is expected to line up for the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby (GI) at a mile and one-eighth.

Standouts expected to face the starter include George Schwary’s Georgie Boy, winner of the San Vicente (GII) and San Felipe (GII) in his two 2008 starts, the 1-2 finishers from the March 1 Sham (GIII)  -- WinStar Farm’s Colonel John and West Point Thoroughbreds’ El Gato Malo – and Harlequin Ranches, David Bienstock, Richard Duggan and Charles Winner’s Yankee Bravo, who was third in the Louisiana Derby (GII) in his most recent start on March 8.

Georgie Boy closed at 20-1 in Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager; Colonel John was 17-1, El Gato Malo 15-1 and Yankee Bravo 41-1.

At Hawthorne, Mr. and Mrs. William K. Warren Jr.’s undefeated Denis of Cork will face six rivals in the $500,000 Illinois Derby (GII) at a mile and one-eighth. Denis of Cork, who closed at 12-1 in Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, will break from post position five under Julien Leparoux in Saturday’s race.

The field for the Illinois Derby, from the rail out, is as follows: Louis Roussel and Ronald Lamarque’s Recapturetheglory, Sharon Morgan’s Instill, Zayat Stables’ Z Humor, Dogwood Stable’s Atoned, Denis of Cork, M375 Thoroughbreds and Suarez Racing’s Golden Spikes and Roulette Racing’s Real Appeal. All are Triple Crown nominees except for Recapturetheglory.