Gio Ponti Holds Off Court Vision
Gio Ponti Holds Off Court Vision to Capture $750,000 Virginia Derby
NEW KENT COUNTY, Va., July 19 -- When the horses reached the three-eighths pole on the far turn Saturday in the $750,000 Virginia Derby, Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux knew he had to shake his colt, Court Vision, clear from a tight spot on the rail to make a run in the stretch. To his outside, Garrett Gomez, aboard Gio Ponti, held his ground, determined to keep Court Vision pinned inside.
The resulting war of wills led to a series of bumps at top speed worthy of the climactic scene of "Ben Hur." Gio Ponti, the larger horse, refused to yield for Court Vision and took the lead on the turn for home. Desormeaux eventually eased Court Vision to the outside, shook clear and surged toward his rival.
In a thrilling photo finish, Gio Ponti held on by a nose to win the signature race at Colonial Downs before a record crowd of 9,061. Trained in New York by Christophe Clement and owned by major Kentucky breeding farm Castleton Lyons, Gio Ponti completed the 1 1/4 -mile Virginia Derby in 2 minutes 2.22 seconds. Colonial Turf Cup winner Sailor's Cap was 2 1/4 lengths behind Court Vision in third. A $2 win bet on Gio Ponti paid $5.20.
The sweltering 90-degree heat and intense competition led to hot heads immediately after the race.
"I cussed him," Gomez said after the winner's circle ceremony. "I was like, 'What are you doing?' He tried to push his way out and find the lane, and he wasn't going to push his way past me and my horse. He was acting like I had no horse. I was like, 'Where are you going?' "
For Desormeaux, who rode Big Brown to victory in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, the afternoon couldn't have been more frustrating. He entered the day with 4,998 career victories and four chances to get to 5,000. Instead, he finished second with all four mounts, none of the defeats more bitter than in the Virginia Derby.
Gomez had ridden Court Vision, owned by IEAH Stables and WinStar Farm, in the colt's prior four starts but abandoned the horse Saturday to ride Gio Ponti, who had won three of four career starts. After an outstanding 2-year-old season, Court Vision figured to be a lead contender for the Triple Crown, but he finished 13th in the Kentucky Derby. He then took a moderate fourth in the rain-soaked Colonial Turf Cup on June 21 at Colonial Downs.
Clearly, however, better things were expected from him in the Virginia Derby. Despite the presence of Sailor's Cap, Gio Ponti and multiple stakes winner Old Man Buck, Court Vision was bet down to 2-1 odds early and went off at 9-2.
When the gate opened, Old Man Buck dueled with Baltimore Bob for the lead, through a moderate half-mile in 49.15 seconds and a mile in 1:38.18, while Gio Ponti and Court Vision tracked behind them, side by side, no more than two lengths back.
At the turn, the two best horses asserted themselves.
"I thought I had enough to extricate myself," said a bitter Desormeaux after the race, his face soaked in sweat. "I might have gotten manhandled by that horse. After that, [Court Vision] took aim at the leader. I think I actually got my nose in front 50 yards from the finish."
Asked if that were true, Gomez y said, "No."
(c) 1996-2008 The Washington Post Company
Horse trainer Jerry Hollendorfer is raising his profile
The unimaginable happened last weekend at Golden Gate Fields. When the Bay Area track's 30-day spring meet came to a close Sunday, Jerry Hollendorfer had not won the training title.
Billy Morey saddled four winners on Saturday to take a 25-23 lead, and neither trainer had a winner on closing day.
For Hollendorfer to not win the title is comparable to Kobe Bryant not being the Lakers' leading scorer.
Hollendorfer, one of only four North American trainers to have ever saddled more than 5,000 winners, had won 32 consecutive training titles at Golden Gate to go along with a streak of 37 training titles at Bay Meadows. He had been the leading trainer at every major meet in Northern California since 1986. And his horses have earned more than $91 million.
But now a horse named Heatseeker is shining a light on Hollendorfer, providing the national attention people in the sport believe he deserves.
"Within horse racing, he is regarded as one of the best in the country," Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens said.
And if Heatseeker pulls out a win Saturday in the 69th running of the Hollywood Gold Cup, as he is favored to do, and also wins the Breeders' Cup Classic on Oct. 25 at Santa Anita, Hollendorfer's national stature will grow even more.
Hollendorfer has had some nationally prominent horses before.
In 1998, Event Of The Year appeared to be a solid Kentucky Derby contender until a hairline fracture took him out of the race.
Two years later, Globalize had to be scratched from the Kentucky Derby after being kicked by a stable pony. Hollendorfer's Eye Of The Tiger placed fifth in the 2003 Kentucky Derby.
But Hollendorfer, nationally, is still not as big a name as some of his colleagues.
Maybe it's because he has toiled mostly in Northern California (although he says he now has 35 to 40 horses in Southern California and that number may soon increase).
Or maybe it's just because he doesn't seek attention.
"Jerry is a low-profile guy," said friend and rival trainer John Shirreffs.
"I don't think anybody minds gaining a little of the spotlight," Hollendorfer said. "But what I do, and the people in my stable do, is every day we work as hard as we can with what we have and we are certainly pleased to have Heatseeker. We are not working for fame. Our main goal is not to become famous. We are just trying to win."
Shirreffs, who saddles Tiago, Heatseeker's chief rival in Saturday's $750,000 race, has known Hollendorfer since the mid-1970s.
"Jerry is always out there at the crack of dawn," Shirreffs said. "And he's in constant motion all day."
Shirreffs has been widely quoted the last few days as saying, "Unless Heatseeker is carrying an anchor, I don't know how we're going to catch him."
Shirreffs and Hollendorfer were chatting Thursday morning at Hollywood Park when Shirreffs said, "I see you didn't get that anchor I was wishing you'd get."
They were laughing then, but it will be all business Saturday as the 4:43 p.m. post time approaches.
"I'd love to beat him," Shirreffs said.
Hollendorfer feels the same.
Mike Willman, who owns Gold Cup entrant McCann's Mojave, said, "It doesn't matter if it's a claiming race or a big one like the Gold Cup, it's the same for Jerry. He just wants to win."
(c) 2008 Los Angeles Times
Family shows love for horses
She wasn't sure she would hear the answer she wanted.
Noel Fauntleroy knew how emotionally attached her mom was to her horse, Walter. But four years ago, she sought consent from her mother, Betsy, and rode Walter for the first time.
"She rode him so beautifully," Betsy Fauntleroy said, laughing. "And there was no way to stop it."
Ever since, 13-year-old Noel has been riding Walter, whose show name is "Heartsong." The two will compete at the junior hunter level at the 54th Deep Run Horse Show, which runs today through Sunday at Deep Run Hunt Club in Manakin-Sabot.
The Fauntleroy family will be there. Rob, 16, will work with the jump crew, Eliza, 7, will practice with Betsy and Bob Fauntleroy, Betsy's husband, will watch.
The Fauntleroys' horses, including 14-year-old Walter, have lived long lives thanks to how the family cares for them. Unlike the horse racing industry, the Fauntleroys' practices in horse riding represent a reminder that well-treated horses may be able to escape dying young. Barbaro, the 2006 Kentucky Derby winner, shattered his legs two weeks following the Derby. Eight Belles, a 2008 Derby contender, was euthanized shortly after collapsing.
"Horse racing is all business," said Dan Robertshaw, who has teamed with Ron Danta to help train Betsy Fauntleroy's horses for 20 years. "We feel it's our responsibility to teach them the responsibility of truly caring for animals and truly loving them."
The Fauntleroys demonstrate that affection by ensuring their horses' protection and comfort.
Rosie, a pony, wore a fly mask on her face and a protective sheet around her chest and loin when she was eating grass on the Fauntleroy's 50-acre farm in Manakin-Sabot on Monday. The mask and sheet help prevent insect bites.
The Fauntleroys' horses occasionally wear magnetic blankets to stimulate blood flow and relax muscles. Sometimes they stand on magnetic pads if their hooves are sore.
Betsy Fauntleroy knows her horses well, describing the personality of each on the spot. That made it easier for her to grant her daughter's request to ride Walter four years ago. Betsy thought Walter's trustworthiness, patience and maturity would help calm Noel's nerves. She never had ridden a horse and had competed only at the children hunters level, which consisted of 3-foot jumps.
Riding Walter forced Noel to move up to the junior hunter level, which involves jumping over a 3 1/2-foot bar.
"It was nerve-wracking," Noel Fauntleroy said. "After the first jump, I felt a lot better. I trust him a lot."
There seems to be a lot of trust between rider and horse with the Fauntleroys, who have passed down their love for horses from one generation to the next.
"It's kind of a way of life for us," Betsy Fauntleroy said. "It's what we do."
(c) 2008 Media General Communications Holdings, LLC.
We will see Big Brown again
Big Brown's loss in the Belmont Stakes, although particularly embarrassing for his backers, was not unusual.
Most horses with a chance to win a Triple Crown fail. Only 12 of 31 have done it.
So why was the public shocked with his loss?
They were conned to believe he was a freak. They were victims of a marketing hype. In this era of mega-million dollar television and breeding deals, image is king.
His majority owners, a financial holdings company, led most to believe that Big Brown was a super horse with a messianic aurora. He was a 3-year-old without an equal. He was more like a commodity than an animal. Investors required this spin.
Big Brown didn't embarrass himself. He did all he could. He ran a Herculean race in the Kentucky Derby after only three prep races. Although he seemed to toy with the unremarkable field in the Preakness Stakes two weeks later, handicappers saw his performance diminishing. They wondered, could he recover enough in three weeks to win the Belmont Stakes?
Many were doubtful but couldn't identify the horse who could capitalize.
A foot injury caused Big Brown to miss a few critical days of training between the Preakness and the Belmont. Yet the public was still told by his trainer that he was doing great. He bragged that winning the Belmont Stakes and the Triple Crown was a foregone conclusion.
The post-time odds reflected the success of the hype and the bettor's desire for a Triple Crown after a 30-year hiatus. It overlooked, however, the horse and the toll his previous races had on him.
Big Brown may be a super horse, but he is not a machine or a commodity. On Belmont day he gave his all but he was exhausted and likely under-conditioned. But with a great heart he followed his trainer's wishes and went out and tried.
His jockey, Kent Desormeaux, did the right thing. He eased him when he sensed that his horse lacked the energy to continue. He saved him to race again.
If Big Brown stays healthy and his connections put racing before investments, we will likely see Big Brown again this summer. Currently, it looks like either the 11/8 mile Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park or the 11/4 Travers Stakes at Saratoga will be next.
With fatigue as the prevailing explanation for his last-place finish in the Belmont Stakes, Big Brown, with a few months rest and conditioning, should run back to his spectacular Kentucky Derby performance in his next race. D'Tara, who is stabled at Saratoga, will be waiting for a rematch in the Travers. The Haskell will have its share of contenders, all craving the challenge against a now fallible Big Brown.
Wherever they run, the gate likely will be full of rested and more mature horses trying to get even, not with Big Brown, but with his brash trainer, Rick Dutrow, who trash talked them all in the spring.
(c) 2008 Hudson Valley Media Group
Triple Crown contender Big Brown draws rail at Belmont
ELMONT, New York (AFP) - Big Brown will break from the rail in Saturday's Belmont Stakes as he tries to become the first Triple Crown winner in 30 years.
The colt who won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness to remain unbeaten in five career starts, will face nine rivals in the final jewel of US flat racing's Triple Crown, the 1 1/2 mile Belmont dubbed the "Test of the Champions."
The last horse to sweep the three races was Affirmed in 1978. Since then, 10 horses have arrived at Belmont after winning both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness only to fail to complete the sweep. The last was Smarty Jones in 2004.
Big Brown enters the biggest test of his career with health concerns - a quarter crack in his left front hoof.
The crack has been sutured and patch, and Big Brown enjoyed an impressive final workout Tuesday, breezing five furlongs in 1:00, an effort that left trainer Rick Dutrow jnr as confident as ever.
"I feel as good as I can possibly feel about Big Brown," said Dutrow, who earlier predicted his horse would win the Derby and Preakness. "I feel very good. I was not expecting to see anything other than what we saw."
Oddsmakers apparently agree that Big Brown remains on course to make history. He has been tabbed the overwhelming 2-5 favorite.
If victorious, Big Brown will join Seattle Slew (1977) as the only undefeated Triple Crown winner.
Dutrow insists his horse is the class of the field.
"He is by far the best horse in the race," Dutrow said. "I've seen him run and I've seen the other horses run. It's simple."
Big Brown's jockey Kent Desormeaux has endured Triple Crown heartache. In 1998, he was aboard Real Quiet, who opened a four-length lead in the stretch but lost by a nose to Victory Gallop.
But Desmormeux was also confident, saying: "Big Brown is the best horse I've ever ridden."
Since 1905, the first post in the Belmont has produced 23 winners, most recently Empire Maker in 2003.
The biggest threat to Big Brown appears to be Casino Drive.
The Japanese import, who is half-brother to the last two Belmont winners Rags to Riches (2007) and Jazil (2006) was made the 7-2 second choice for trainer Kazuo Fuijisaw.
Edgar Prado, a two-time winner of the Belmont, will ride Casino Drive, who will break from the fifth post.
Prado won the 2004 Belmont aboard Birdstone, denying Smarty Jones the Triple Crown. He also won with Sarava in 2002.
The third choice is Denis of Cork (12-1), who finished a distant third to Big Brown in the Derby.
Denis of Cork will leave from the third post for trainer David Carroll with Robby Albarado in the irons.
Macho Again (20-1), beaten by 5 1/4 lengths by Big Brown in the Preakness, will leave from the third post under Garrett Gomez for trainer Dallas Stewart.
The Graham Motion-trained Icabad Crane (20-1), the third-place finisher in the Preakness, will leave from the far outside with Jeremy Rose aboard.
Returning from the Derby to face Big Brown are Tale of Ekati (20-1) and Anak Nakal (30-1).
(c) 2008 AFP
Triple Crown contender Big Brown returns to track
ELMONT, New York (AFP) - Triple Crown contender Big Brown returned to the Belmont Park track on Tuesday, jogging 1 1/2 miles a day after a crack in his left front hoof was repaired.
The Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner had been off the track since Friday, when a vertical crack about five-eighths of an inch long was discovered.
On Monday, hoof specialist Ian McKinlay opened the crack and inserted stainless steel wire stitches to draw it together.
"I felt the horse going to the track was not only good for his conditioning but also good for his mind," trainer Rick Dutrow jnr said.
"He's been kind of aggravated. He doesn't know why he's not going to the track. He just doesn't understand why he's not doing it.
"We can't explain it to him, and we just let him go out there today and take the edge off him. He's getting too rough around the barn."
Big Brown went out to the track early on Tuesday in light rain.
Big Brown's owner, Michael Iavarone, echoed Dutrow's opinion that the restless colt needed to return to the track.
"I guess we surprised everybody today," Iavarone said. "I think the decision to go to the track this morning was made late last night. Big Brown was just getting too aggressive in the barn. He needed to go to the track."
Dutrow believes that the time off from training will have little effect on Big Brown, who is bidding to become the first to win US flat racing's coveted Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978.
"Rick said he could breeze anytime up to Tuesday," Iavarone added.
"We weren't concerned about the track today (Tuesday), even with the rain last night. The track wasn't that bad and quite frankly, as aggressive as he's been, it was safer for him to be on the track than in the barn."
Dutrow, who has called the minor injury a "hiccup" in Big Brown's preparations for the June 7 Belmont Stakes, said he still expects the colt to be dominant in the 1 1/2-mile race.
"I think he looks better now than he did for the Preakness," Dutrow said.
Big Brown roared to a 4 3/4-length victory in the Kentucky Derby on May 3 and followed up with a 5 1/4 length victory in the Preakness.
(c) 2008 AFP
70-year-old trainer saddles his first Derby contender
LARRY MILLSON
May 3, 2008
LOUSVILLE, KY. -- It was the day before the Kentucky Derby on the backstretch at Churchill Downs, a time when the big-name trainers, such as Nick Zito, Bob Baffert, Todd Pletcher or D. Wayne Lukas, usually are prominent.
This is not the place or the time when you would expect to see Bennie Stutts Jr. holding court, as he did yesterday, as the media scrum at Barn 35 expanded from two to three before swelling to four.
"I'm enjoying it right now, talking to you guys," he said. "Because after tomorrow, I might not see a reporter for the rest of my life."
Stutts is 70 and was a thoroughbred trainer for 32 years before he had his first stakes winner eight years ago. He has won a total of four stakes.
Now with Smooth Air, a three-year-old colt owned by Brian Burns's Mount Joy Stable, Stutts has his first runner in the Kentucky Derby, which will be run today for the 134th time.
Stutts knows it will be emotional. He already has felt it. He said he became choked up this week when doing a television promotional clip in the winner's enclosure at Churchill Downs.
He has watched the Kentucky Derby on TV and even has had Derby parties at his house, but the only one he has seen in person was in 1959, when he watched while standing atop a car as Tomy Lee won. His father, also a trainer, was stabled at Churchill Downs at the time.
Smooth Air earned his way to Louisville by winning the Hutcheson Stakes at Gulfstream Park in Florida on Jan. 5, finishing third in the Sam F. Davis at Tampa Bay Downs on Feb. 16 and finishing second to 3-to-1 Kentucky Derby morning-line favourite Big Brown in the Florida Derby at Gulfstream on March 29.
Smooth Air was listed at 20 to 1 in the morning line for today's 1 1/4-mile race and will be ridden by Manoel Cruz. In seven career starts, Smooth Air has never finished worse than third.
"They call him a stalker," Stutts said. "I never heard that word on the racetrack. I've heard it outside with humans. Then [former jockey] Jerry Bailey explained to me that a stalker means he's not on the pace, he's not off the pace, he's somewhere in the middle. I like our post position [No. 12]."
There are more people in horse racing like Stutts than there are people like the big-name trainers, with their careful haircuts and fashionable clothes, who play the role of celebrity trainer to the hilt. Guys such as Stutts can be found at the barn working instead of in the turf club. They get up every morning at 4:30.
Stutts has been stabled at Calder in Miami since 1971 and stayed there because he did not want to keep moving his family. His family, including four grandchildren, joined him this week in Louisville.
He has a modest stable with five horses in training in addition to Smooth Air and they will be joined by two two-year-olds.
"I'll have eight stalls when I get back to Calder," Stutts said yesterday, "and I hope I don't get back for a while ... I think you all know what I'm talking about."
A good showing today would earn Smooth Air a chance at the other Triple Crown races, the Preakness in Baltimore in two weeks and the Belmont in New York three weeks after that.
Smooth Air is over a fever that hit a couple of days after his flight to Kentucky from Florida. It was a flight that Stutts wanted to take but he was not on the list for the plane that left from West Palm Beach so only the groom was allowed to accompany the colt.
"It's an emotional ride, and it was heartbreaking not to go with the horse, I didn't want him out of my sight," he said.
Stutts is in a situation where he is mostly happy just to be here, but he was asked whether he allows himself to expand the dream to a victory.
"It's really an honour just to be in the Derby," he said, "and if he draws a cheque, then I'm going to be all that more excited, and to win it ... well, I guess anything's possible, but I really can't picture him winning the Derby, there's so much talent in there."
The 134th Derby
Kentucky Derby, 1 1/4 miles, three-year-olds. Twenty entered. Weights: Colts and geldings, 126 pounds; fillies 121 pounds. Churchill Downs, today, post time 6:04 p.m. (EDT).
Purse $2,211,800. Winner: $1,451,800. 2nd: $400,000. 3rd: $200,000, 4th: $100,000. 5th: $60,000 (all currency U.S.).
Colonel John The question was whether the Santa Anita Derby winner could handle Churchill Downs dirt after running on synthetic surfaces, but a bullet workout last Sunday of 57.4 seconds for five furlongs and the way he has acted would seem to dispel that concern.
Big Brown The morning-line favourite is undefeated in three career starts and was drawing away in the Florida Derby, but has the No. 20 post. The last Derby winner with only three previous races was Regret in 1915.
Tale of Ekati The victory in the Wood Memorial should set him up for this, but he did take advantage of a fast pace and prevailed in a slow final furlong, and his jockey in that race, Edgar Prado, chose Adriano for the Derby.
Millson's picks Larry Millson first covered the Kentucky Derby in 1976, when Bold Forbes upset Honest Pleasure. His favourite successful picks since then were the filly Genuine Risk in 1980 and Canadian-bred Sunny's Halo in 1983 and his 1-2-3 pick last year when Street Sense won. He is not proud of the fact that he was persuaded to pick Easy Goer in the 1989 Derby, won by Sunday Silence.
Larry Millson
(c) Copyright 2008 CTVglobemedia Publishing Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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