'Your papers, please' must never be heard in America
Independent voices from the TWT Communities
After Oxbow upset Kentucky Derby winner Orb in Saturday's Preakness to extend racing's Triple Crown drought to 36 years, the next best alternative for the Belmont Stakes is a rematch.
Right from the start, a horse trained by one not so over-the-hill Hall of Famer and ridden by another took control of the Preakness. The result: a huge upset and the end of any hopes for a Triple Crown attempt at the Belmont Stakes.
Now that Shug McGaughey has won the Kentucky Derby, it's time for the 62-year-old trainer to go after another race missing from his Hall of Fame resume.
No one quite knows how fast the Belmont Stakes will be, but Paynter and Unstoppable U figure to be on the lead, at least in the early stages. I'll Have Another shouldn't be too far behind.
Since Seattle Slew won the 1977 Triple Crown, co-owner Sally Hill has watched from Belmont Park as several horses fell short. Since Affirmed in 1978, co-owner Patrice Wolfson wasn't ready to let go for a long time.
There's nothing in sports quite like the roar and electricity as horses turn for home in the Belmont Stakes with a Triple Crown on the line.
I'll Have Another overcame the challenge of 20 horses in the Kentucky Derby and the first dose of the burden of expectations in the Preakness Stakes. But to complete the Triple Crown, he'll have to deal with being the favorite for the first time.
With five Preakness Stakes victories in the past 32 years, D. Wayne Lukas has a lot of things figured out.
It was 1997, and Bob Baffert had just won the Kentucky Derby for the first time with Silver Charm. Sitting in a hotel outside Pimlico Race Course in preparation for the Preakness, he kept reliving the experience.
Doug O'Neill is all smiles this week. Throwing out the first pitch at Camden Yards, meeting Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh at a team practice and stopping to take photos, the Kentucky Derby-winning trainer is loving every second of his experience.
Bode Baffert has never been so nervous about a race. The 7-year-old son of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert is the namesake of the 138th Kentucky Derby morning-line favorite, Bodemeister.
"You know me," Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas said after Oxbow's 1 ¾-length victory over Itsmyluckyday, with 3-5 favorite Orb finishing fourth. "I like to rack them up in the big events. So, I'll probably go."
"I still enjoy doing this so much," he said. "I don't wake up every day anymore trying to prove I can train a racehorse. When you're younger, you keep trying to prove yourself. I'm very comfortable with where I'm at."
