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Tuesday, May 2, 2006
Early thoughts on possible Derby favorites
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Furman Bisher
Let it be said at the outset, that this is no Kentucky Derby to be shopping around for longshots. That’s taking a rather safety-first run at Run for the Roses No. 132, which will start with a full gate, 20 horses making a wild stampede of it down the stretch the first time around. There have been some pretty soft favorites in recent years, Captain Bodgit, Indian Charlie and Harlan’s Holiday, neither of whom showed up at the finish line early. Last year it was Afleet Alex, but who got there first? A 50-1 shot named Giacomo, who otherwise had an ordinary year.
Not until the post drawings this evening at Fourth Street Live, a place downtown with which I’m not familiar, will we know who starts in what hole. Be that as it may, be assured that the auction price of a horse rarely ever indicates his prospects on Derby Day. One exception was Fusachi Pegasus, bought by a Japanese horse collector for $4 million, the most expensive horse that ever won the Derby. The cheapest winner was Canonero II, who sold for the dog-food price of $1,200, and not only won as one of the field horses, but later set a new track record in the Preakness.
Going into the new and improved Churchill Downs unbeaten is no guarantee of leaving with a blanket of roses around the withers. There are two who will attract a lot of cash at the betting window, Brother Derek and Barbaro, and a third lurking, Lawyer Ron. Brother Derek wiped out all major challengers on the West Coast, one after the other, Stevie Wonderboy, the two-year-old champion, in the San Rafael; Sacred Light in the Santa Catalina; and Point Determined and A.P. Warrior in the Santa Anita Derby. This was a race in which he went off at 2-5, after which jockey Alex Solis said, “This is an elegant horse that does everything so effortlessly.”
Two of his connections have worked through injury, though Solis’ from a spill at Del Mar was temporary. Dan Hendricks trains from a wheelchair, and the owner, Cecil Peacock, is sure to attract a lot of NBC’s attention with its peacock symbol. Hendricks was left paralyzed from a motocross accident two years ago. Brother Derek comes from the family of Alydar, through Benchmark, ranked 17th on the general sire list.
Barbaro goes into the gate a mystery horse. He is unbeaten, we know that, but since winning the Florida Derby on April 1, he has been on holiday. He should be well rested, but maybe he’s too well rested. We know, too, that he is unbeaten, and while this son of Dynaformer won the Florida Derby, he barely beat Sharp Humor by half a horse.
Lawyer Ron runs for the estate of his late owner, James Hines, who drowned in his own swimming pool some time ago. Ron won the Arkansas, the Southwest, the Rebel and the Arkansas Derby, unbeaten in seven races after flunking the grass test as a two-year-old. He follows the action of Smarty Jones and Afleet Alex, both of whom worked the Arkansas circuit, with jockey John McKee, a Derby rookie, aboard. With an impressive lineage behind his name, this is a well- bred horse. But for that matter, they all are, or they wouldn’t be there on the first Saturday in May.
So much for the chalky side, if you persist in searching for a needle in a haystack, you have some tantalizing possibilities. Say you go for the late finisher, Steppenwolfer was running 11th down the backstretch in the Arkansas and came blazing home, past Private Vow, and was charging behind Lawyer Ron. Sharp Humor almost caught Barbaro at the wire in the Florida Derby. Then you have Bob and John, winner of the Wood Memorial, Sinister Minister, who could have walked home in the Blue Grass against an average field, and one that caught my eye with burning stretch runs in a couple of races, Jezil. He never won, but always managed to show up. That’s for those who have money to burn.
In fact, there are a lot of those. Keyed Entry for one, the Atlantan Jack Wolf’s second Derby horse. He won the Hutcheson in Florida, finished second in the Gotham, but hasn’t shown up since. This looks like a Derby too good to miss, but miss it, I must. That means I don’t have to be here to face the music for all this. Too bad you can’t take your choices to the window in bet-free Georgia.
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Tuesday Countdown doesn’t dodge draft
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jeff Schultz
10: Marcus Vick told ESPN.com: “I’ll tell you one thing. Without the character issues and the problems I had in my past, I was definitely a first-round guy, from my point of view.” On a related note, if I didn’t get a C in eighth-grade biology, I was definitely going to be a brain surgeon, from my point of view.
9: Actually, it would be worth it for an NFL team to sign The Lesser Vick. One year. Low wage. Low risk. Great athlete. A knucklehead and a punk — but a great athlete.
8: Southern Cal coach Pete Carroll said he’s confident the school will escape NCAA sanctions and added, “To me, it looks like somebody’s out to get [Reggie Bush’s] money, a classic case of people trying to create some kind of opportunity based on another guy’s good fortune.” Well, OK. But what does that have to do with Bush potentially knowing this his parents were living rent free in a house paid by his would-be marketing rep?
7: There are two major reasons the potential for problems at USC is so great: 1) It’s a successful, high-profile college program in a major city that breeds human leeches (I can say that. I’m from L.A.); 2) The lack of an NFL team in the city has elevated the Trojans to a new level in terms of focus and star power. It would be remarkable if something WASN’T going on.
6: Anna Nicole Smith and the Supreme Court intersect in history. Is it too late to convert to Communism?
5: Back to the NFL, because the media was painfully thin in its coverage (aaaaaggggh!): It’s futile grading a team’s draft. But notwithstanding the strong pick of cornerback Jimmy Williams, the Falcons erred by ignoring their offensive line.
4: They have one of the league’s best rushing attacks. But abysmal pass protection last year screamed for help. Wayne Gandy should help but one mid-level veteran doesn’t qualify as a significant upgrade.
3: Before I had a chance to put out the recyclables, my wife told me, “We’re saving the empty water bottles for the orangutans in Borneo.” No, I didn’t ask.
2: Andrew Brunette’s overtime winner for Colorado was his 10th playoff goal since the Thrashers let him leave in free agency. That’s 10 more playoff goals than the Thrashers have scored since he left.
1: The Falcons spent their second draft pick (third round) on a speed running back tailor-made for their offense. If I’m T.J. Duckett, I’m renting my furniture.
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