Horse Racing
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by Tom Pedulla
Justify stands alone.
Of the swift and lucky 13 Thoroughbreds who have won the Triple Crown since Sir Barton became the first to wear the mantle of greatness in 1919, only Justify holds the distinction of accomplishing the rare sweep after going unraced as a 2-year-old.
Justify completed a dizzying rise to superstardom, one brilliantly orchestrated by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, when he won the Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets with a commanding 1 ¾-length victory against late-running Gronkowski on Saturday at Belmont Park.
“This horse ran a tremendous race. He’s so gifted,” said jockey Mike Smith, 52, in a post-race interview on NBC. “He’s sent from heaven, I tell you.” Smith became the oldest jockey to win the Triple Crown.
A crowd capped at 90,000 spectators roared its approval as the imposing chestnut colt prevailed for the sixth time in less than four months in a whirlwind campaign that allowed him to join Seattle Slew as the only undefeated Triple Crown winners.
Slew, benefitting from three starts at 2, was perfect through eight starts before he passed the Belmont’s arduous mile-and-a-half “Test of Champions.”
Baffert joined “Sunny Jim” Fitzsimmons as the only trainers to produce two Triple Crown winners. Baffert, of course, saddled American Pharoah in 2015 when that horse ended a record 37-year drought. Fitzsimmons added to his legend with Gallant Fox (1930) and Omaha (1935). Baffert’s 15th Triple Crown win overall moved him ahead of D. Wayne Lukas for the all-time lead.
“It never gets old,” Baffert said, adding, “American Pharoah, he’ll always be my first love.”
Read more: Undefeated Justify Completes Triple Crown Sweep in Belmont Stakes
J. Keeler Johnson
How many times have some of the greatest sporting events in America been held? The Super Bowl is relatively young, having been contested 52 times. The World Series of Major League Baseball is more than twice that old with 113 editions in the history books.
But the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in New York has them both measured for longevity, as the 2018 renewal will mark the 150th edition of the historic 1 ½-mile “Test of the Champion.”
Through the years, the Belmont Stakes has produced an exciting variety of results ranging from blowout wins to photo finishes. It’s been won by some of the greatestby champions ever seen on a racetrack, yet it has also produced some of the most unforgettable upsets in the history of the sport.
Let’s step back through time and recall some of the memorable milestones in the history of the Belmont Stakes….
1867: The inaugural running of the Belmont Stakes is held at the newly-opened Jerome Park in New York. At the end of 1 5/8 miles (the race was an eighth of a mile longer at the time), the filly Ruthless prevails in a photo finish over De Courcey.
1874: The distance of the Belmont Stakes is changed to 1 ½ miles and Saxon comes out on top in the time of 2:42.20, a slow clocking by today’s standards.
1882-1888: Jockey James McLaughlin wins six Belmonts in the span of seven years, setting the record for the most Belmont wins by a jockey.
by Julie June Stewart
It was a typical glorious morning at Santa Anita Park in 2013. The horses were met with brilliant sunshine as they gracefully slipped onto the track for their morning workouts. There was the usual crowd at Clockers’ Corner and a line of photographers on the rail hoping to catch a perfect “morning sunlight” shot as the horses went by. The Bob Baffert horses were heading onto the track under the supervision of his assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes. Suddenly there was a moment of silence as every camera aimed at Barnes. His horse was a vision of perfection. A beautiful burnished palomino whose coat gleamed in the sunlight. There was a quiet explosion of shutters going off as photographers focused on the palomino and for a moment forgot the world-class Thoroughbreds just outside their viewfinders. A single voice said, “Who was that?” Someone said, “Baffert’s new pony – he’s called Sunny.” You could tell by the photographers’ reactions that there was an instant star in the Baffert barn.
Read more: ‘Small But Mighty’: Meet Sunny, Justify’s Stable Pony
by Michael Anthony Lindenberger
When the editors of the brand new Sports Illustrated cobbled together the money to pay William Faulkner to come to Louisville to write about the mad scene leading up to the 1955 Kentucky Derby, they had but one real concern: how to keep the famously thirsty Southern writer away from the city’s equally well known, and forgiving, attitude toward bourbon drinking long enough to keep him writing. They needn’t have worried. Faulkner was on a roll. On the day he arrived, Tuesday of Derby Week, he won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and by the end of the week had produced, in daily chunks of 300 words each, one of the most famous pieces of sports journalism of the last century.
Read more: Kentucky Derby 2018: The Biggest Week In Bourbontown
by Frank Smith
American Pharoah was the last horse to achieve the Triple Crown in American horse racing when he won all three of the major events in the 2015 season. The bay colt was a truly exceptional competitor and brought glory for legendary trainer Bob Baffert.
Baffert has another strong contender on his hands that could emulate the success of American Pharoah. Justify has the quality to match the accomplishments of his predecessor and is backed in the latest odds provided by Betway at 100/30 as of May 1st 2018 to secure the victory at the Woodford Reserve Kentucky Derby.
American Pharoah’s triumphs were historic, becoming the first horse to pull off the feat since Affirmed in 1978, highlighting the challenge ahead of Justify. Only 12 horses have managed to win the Triple Crown. Its company are the elite of the American horse racing, and we’ll now break down whether another one of Baffert’s horses is capable of joining the class by analysing American Pharoah’s run to glory.
American Pharoah’s Early Dominance
The stallion had a poor start to his career, finishing fifth and well off the pace in his first race at Del Mar despite being considered the favourite. However, American Pharoah bounced back with a fine performance in his second outing, securing victory at the Del Mar Futurity by four-and-a-half lengths ahead of his nearest rival. He finished his debut campaign with another win this time at Santa Anita in the FrontRunner Stakes, triumphing by a comfortable margin.
Read more: Could Justify Match American Pharoah's Triple Crown?
by Ivy Joy Zalavarria-Trillana
Britain’s glorious Gloucestershire countryside will once again play host to four days of brilliant action with the Cheltenham Festival (13th-16th March). The Festival contains some of the most important horse racing events in steeplechasing and hurdling, including the Champion Hurdle, Queen Mother Champion Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup. While none of these races get the worldwide attention of, say, the Kentucky Derby or Melbourne Cup, Cheltenham has nonetheless a high concentration of top class races. Of the 28 races held at the Festival, 14 are Grade 1 races.
Still questions over Faugheen in the Champion Hurdle
There is, of course, always plenty of intrigue in the lead up to Festival. Much of the talk has been about the form, or lack thereof, of Faugheen. The 10-year-old was seen as one of the all-time great hurdlers for much of his career. He was injury plagued for the last couple of seasons, but he came back with a win to start the national hunt season in November. Faugheen has had a rough time of it in his last two races though, coming second in one and pulling up in another. He currently sits at odds of 6/1 (+600) for the Champion Hurdle (13th March). Most bettors are plumping for last year’s winner, Buveur D’Air, at odds of 4/7 (-175.00).
American sports fans are hearing plenty from Bode Miller just now. The country’s greatest male Alpine skiier is a key and outspoken member of the NBC TV coverage of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. But Miller’s sporting passion these days is horse racing. He runs an experimental training establishment in Maryland, and his views on how to condition racehorses, and his plans for the future, are as progressive and unconventional as anything he’ll be saying in the commentary box, as Geir Stabell found out.
Bode Miller, Alpine skiing great, philanthropist, friend of Bob Baffert, is the most successful male American Alpine skier in FIS (International Ski Federation) World Cup history. He took part in 438 World Cup races and has 33 wins to his name. He was on the podium 79 times.
He purchased the Perfect Sky 1 Barn at Fair Hill Training Center from Earl Mack two years ago with the ambition of one day becoming a trainer.
With James ‘Chuck’ Lawrence II, previously a top-flight steeplechase rider, in charge of his horses, Miller runs a project experimenting with new ways of training and monitoring Thoroughbreds.
“Bode has great ideas coming from the human aspect,” Lawrence explains, “and some of these things are very different to traditional training methods.”
Read more: Why this Winter Olympics Skiing Legend is ‘Great for racing’
by Natalie Voss
The MeToo sexual harassment movement has yet to find its stride in the horse industry.
In the broader news world, every morning seems to bring a new name of a high-profile man accused of sexual harassment or assault, followed by (sometimes) swift removal of Hollywood stars, producers, political figures, writers, and news anchors from their jobs. As Time magazine put it in its Person of the Year article on ‘Silence Breakers' released last week: “This reckoning appears to have sprung up overnight. But it has actually been simmering for years, decades, centuries. Women have had it with bosses and co-workers who not only cross boundaries but don't even seem to know that boundaries exist. They've had it with the fear of retaliation, of being blackballed, of being fired from a job they can't afford to lose.”
A time when it feels like serial offenders might be hiding behind any well-known name, people have started asking me when this sea change is going to hit the racing business. And I cynically laugh.
It isn't that racing is immune from the problem of harassment. If anything, sexism, and the mistreatment that can sometimes come along with it, are woven into the sport's culture. It was not really that long ago that women were not permitted on the backstretch, only 50 years ago male jockeys refused to ride against women. It was just 39 years ago the Daily Racing Form told Jane Goldstein it didn't hire women, and five years ago top jockey Rosie Napravnik told 60 Minutes she was often told to “stay in the kitchen” by irate railbirds in the course of doing her job.
Read more: Sexual Harassment In Racing And Why The Industry Is Not Ready For ‘Silence Breakers’
Following his success in the Breeders’ Cup Classic last month at Del Mar, Gun Runner is now considered as the best dirt horse in the world today. The four-year-old will get the opportunity to reaffirm that status when he lines up in the richest race on the planet, the Pegasus World Cup, next month.
Gun Runner started his run of four consecutive victories at Churchill Downs back in June where he made all over 1800m. He then showed his class at Saratoga over the same trip in the Whitney Stakes in which his margin of victory was over five lengths.
The distance between Gun Runner and his rivals when crossing the line in the Grade One Woodward Stakes was even bigger in September as he forged clear in the home straight to put ten lengths between himself and Rally Cry who was the best of the rest of the pack in second place.
Steven Asmussen horse’s biggest of his career came at Del Mar as not only was he taking on the defending champion Arrogate in the leading dirt race of the year, he also had to overcome West Coast and Collected. The son of Candy Ride rose to the challenge as he made all at the Californian track to establish himself as a superstar in the sport.
Read more: World’s Best Gun Runner Set for Return in Pegasus World Cup
One of the biggest and best events towards the end of the racing calendar is the Breeder Cup meeting in America. With long distance traveling, hot weather and different surfaces to contend with, the Europeans are often at a disadvantage when trying to compete with the American horses. However, when it comes to the races on turf, Europe holds the key.
The Breeders Cup Filly & Mare Turf is a race the European trainers target and a race they have had success in recently. Last year, Queen’s Trust, trained by Sir Michael Stoute, won the race, partnered by experienced Italian Frankie Dettori. That was a third win in the race for Stoute, one he clearly targets as many of the European trainers do.
Looking ahead to this year’s meeting, the Breeders Cup Filly & Mare Turf has been targeted again by the European trainers, as has the Breeders Cup Turf. It is expected that we will see a strong European challenge in both of these races. It comes as no surprise that these two races are two of the races where European trainers hold the advantage.
Read more: Europeans Hold the Key in Breeders Cup Turf Races
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