And Down The Stretch They Come - All Posts

2013 Kentucky Derby Race Replay

2013-05-21T01:17:07Z

The video replay from the 2013 Kentucky Derby won by Orb.

Breaking sports news video. MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL highlights and more.

2013 Preakness Stakes Race Replay

2013-05-21T01:11:56Z

The Preakness race replay from NBC Sports.

Breaking sports news video. MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL highlights and more.

Belmont Stakes: Early Belmont Field Taking Shape (Updated)

2013-05-20T16:54:42Z

[Updated: May 23, 2013 11:30 AM]

Confirmed Runners:

Oxbow

Lukas Points to Belmont Stakes with Oxbow bit.ly/10cN1ce #TC13
— The Blood-Horse (@BloodHorse) May 19, 2013

Revolutionary, Palace Malice, Overanalyze

Per Brisnet.com:

"Overanalyze breezed this morning and breezed well," Pletcher said. "We are planning to run him. We breezed Palace Malice and talked to (Cot) Campbell (of Dogwood Stable). We plan to run him.

"Revolutionary will have two breezes starting next Sunday. We plan to run him.

Freedom Child

Per BloodHorse.com:

...said Terry Finley, president of West Point Thoroughbreds. "The next day we put a circle around the Peter Pan. I think we're going to the Belmont Stakes in about four weeks (now).

Giant Finish

Giant Finish, 10th in Kentucky Derby, confirmed for Belmont Stakes, per trainer Tony Dutrow.
— David Grening (@DRFGrening) May 22, 2013

Will Take Charge

HOF trainer D Wayne Lukas has confirmed Will Take Charge for @belmontstakes, says Jon Court has the mount back. #ChurchillDowns
— Marty McGee (@DRFMcGee) May 23, 2013

Code West

Rosie Napravnik will ride Code West in the Belmont Stakes, trainer Bob Baffert said. They teamed to win Pimlico alw on Saturday.#belmont
— Jay Privman (@DRFPrivman) May 23, 2013

Likely Entrants:

Orb

Per DRF:

"If everything’s right, he’s doing right, puts his weight back on, his energy level’s good, we would like to run in the Belmont," said McGaughey...

Golden Soul

Per HRTV

Possible Entrants:

Micromanage & Unlimited Budget

Trainer Todd Pletcher is also considering Micromanage and the filly Unlimited Budget for the #BelmontStakes.
— NYRA (@NYRAnews) May 19, 2013

Doubtful:

Goldencents

O'Neill on HRTV says Goldencents "came up empty today" & is cooling out super. Belmont unlikely.
— KY Derby Contenders (@DerbyContenders) May 18, 2013

Out:

Dreaming Of Julia & Verrazano

Dreaming of Julia to Mother Goose on 6-22 at Belmont. Verrazano to Pegasus at Monmouth on 6-16, as per Pletcher
— David Grening (@DRFGrening) May 20, 2013

Departing

Per Brisnet

"[Al] Stall said he had not talked with the owners about future plans for Departing, but that the Illinois Derby victor would not be participating in the Belmont Stakes."

Power Broker

@midnightlute: Power Broker will not run in the Belmont.. Decision to come on Code West..
— Steve Byk (@Steve_Byk) May 21, 2013

Titletown Five

Per Courier-Journal:

...while Titletown Five (who faded to last of nine) will revert to sprinting. [Lukas]

Mylute

BREAKING NEWS: Trainer T.Amoss just texted: "Mylute will not run in the @belmontstakes. Will point to a start later in summer." #DRFBelmont
— Marty McGee (@DRFMcGee) May 22, 2013

Itsmyluckyday

No Belmont for Preakness runner-up Itsmyluckyday, who is being pointed to Pegasus and a meeting with Verrazano, per trainer Eddie Plesa.
— David Grening (@DRFGrening) May 23, 2013

Got any field news? Let us know in the Comments!

Preakness Hangover Sunday Thread

2013-05-19T19:56:50Z

How can you not be happy for one of the greatest jockeys ever? So...let's see if we can make back money that was lost yesterday....!

Pedigree Profile: Oxbow

2013-05-18T23:40:00Z

A 4th in the Rebel, a 5th in the Arkansas Derby, and a hard fought 6th in the Kentucky Derby followed a win in the LeComte. Each time, except the Arkansas Derby, Oxbow sought the lead. In the Rebel, Oxbow made every fraction and got nipped at the wire by the longshot, Will Take Charge. The Arkansas Derby was a failed experiment in rating off the lead. The Derby was an example of the pure grit of this horse in that he stayed with a radioactive pace and still managed to hold of most comers and finish 6th.

I can't say enough that this horse is completely bred for the classic distance. By Breeders' Cup Classic winner Awesome Again, and from a family which boasts the only two-time BC Classic winner, Tiznow, there was never any doubt that he could get a classic distance. But the confluence of events necessary to actually win a major stakes race from the front had eluded Oxbow up until the Preakness came about.

The pedigree screams dirt. The pedigree screams 10 furlongs. The pedigree screams that the colt will be better as he gets older.

But the major knock on him was that he was headstrong, and didn't listen to the jock's instructions.

So what do you do? You add one of the best jockeys in the history of the game to the equation and what do you get? You get a Grade 1 victory after enough time for the colt to grow, develop, and mature to the point where Gary Stevens could have perfect control over the colt on the front of of a tame pace and steal the Preakness.

Oxbow certainly is living up to every bit of the lofty expectations of his lineage. All he needed was a little bit of luck.

(Note by TFTribe: Original article posted immediately following Oxbow's victory in the LeComte Stakes in January 2013)

But as Oxbow crossed the line first in the LeComte Stakes, I knew that I had seen that pedigree before. As a son of Awesome Again out of the Cee's Tizzy mare Tizamazing, it really rang a bell.

Oxbow didn't show a ton of class as a 2 year old. In fact, on this site, the handicapping that took place saw a lot of drawbacks as a contender in the Lecomte there:

I think he’s simply outclassed. Took four maiden tries to win, and faded in only route (granted, it was a G1). (matt.sanders.3910)

[Oxbow] could be a good candidate to pop a good effort in this race after finishing a distant fourth in the G1-CashCall Futurity at Betfair Hollywood Park on Dec. 15 ... I'm hesitant, however, by the presence of D. Wayne Lukas, as the Hall of Fame trainer has only five wins in his last 227 graded stakes starts (Matt Gardner)

But then the colt goes off and obliterates the field. As I looked into his pedigree, it seemed remarkably familiar. Seeing Cee's Song as his granddam tipped me off. In fact, it was so similar to one I've seen before, that I can simply quote myself about the pedigree (just change Paynter to Paynter/Oxbow):

Cee's Song was the 2001 California Broodmare of the Year. She was an amazing producer with two Champion-caliber offspring. Her cross with Cee's Tizzy was as productive a mating as can be dreamed of (and yes, I actually do dream of things like this).

His pedigree certainly shows the stamina to go 10 furlongs, with Tiznow featured right there in the middle. Paynter's siblings are extremely successful at 6-8 furlongs on the turf and the dirt, so there's the genesis of his speed.

And Awesome Again? From the Stallion Register:

Name Earnings

Ghostzapper $3,446,120

Ginger Punch $3,065,603

Awesome Gem $2,851,370

Game On Dude $2,644,658

Wilko $2,435,133

That's some very good names that all succeeded at classic distances.

Oxbow and Paynter are out of full siblings. Oxbow is out of Tizamazing (Cee's Tizzy - Cee's Song). Paynter is out of Tizso (Cee's Tizzy - Cee's Song). Their full sibling is Tiznow and they can count amongst their other siblings Budroyale, a gelding who won nearly $3,000,000. Remarkable. But Oxbow and Paynter are full cousins (?) if you can say that. So they share 100% of the same genetic information; it may be arranged differently, but it's all there.

Oxbow's dam Tizamazing is unraced. But she has already had three winners from three foals including listed stakes winner Awesome Patriot (another colt by Awesome Again). So the family cross with Awesome Again is pure gold. Paynter's dam, Tizso, has a deeper and better production record while crossing with multiple stallions, but she is also 7 years older.

So I will give Oxbow some time to grow up. Paynter showed that he needed an extra month or two to really come into his own as one of the more dynamic 3yos of the 2012 racing season. (Had he only won the Belmont! arghh....). I can write off some of Oxbow's struggles as a 2yo and hope that he's developing just a hair quicker than did Paynter, and hope for that same dynamic front running style to hold up as we inch closer to the Derby.

[Note by TFTribe, 01/22/13 12:25 PM EST ] And as soon as I peruse the rest of the interwebs I find that the Paulick Report's Lane's End Weekender Pedigree Profile took a look at Oxbow as well.

2013 Preakness Results: Oxbow goes gate-to-wire

2013-05-18T22:47:28Z

The Triple Crown drought will go one for at least another year as Oxbow races to the lead under Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens and rolls gate-to-wire to win the 2013 Preakness. Heavy favorite Orb didn't respond when entering the far turn and could only muster a fourth place finish, joining Barbaro and Super Saver as the worst finish by a Derby winner in the Preakness in the last decade.

Itsmyluckyday rallied to finish second while Mylute rounded out the trifecta.

Oxbow is a three-year-old colt by Awesome Again out of a Cee’s Tizzy mare (Tizamazing), trained by D. Wayne Lukas, owned by Calumet Farm and ridden by Gary Stevens.

Full Order of Finish and beaten lengths:

Place	Horse	Lengths
1st	Oxbow	--
2nd	Itsmyluckyday	1.75
3rd	Mylute	2.25
4th	Orb	9.00
5th	Goldencents	9.50
6th	Departing	10.00
7th	Will Take Charge	16.00
8th	Govenor Charlie	32.00
9th	Titletown Five	47.25

Below are the results and payouts for the 2013 Preakness Stakes:

Horse	Win	Place	Show
6-Oxbow	$32.80	$12.00	$6.80
9-Itsmyluckyday		$7.80	$5.00
5-Mylute			$5.20

Base	Bet	Combo	Payout	Pays to -
$1.00	Exacta	6/9	$150.70
$1.00	Trifecta	6/9/5	$1,030.80
$1.00	Superfecta	6/9/5/1	$1,817.80
$1.00	Double	10/6	$278.70
$0.50	Pick 3	6,7,10/10/6	$676.50	3-of-3
$0.50	Pick 4	3/6,7,10/10/6	$4,883.05	4-of-4
$0.50	Pick 5	1,2,6/3/6/,6,10/10/6	$16,685.65	5-of-5

Preakness 2013: Odds

2013-05-18T12:04:51Z

There are plenty of hours left until today's Preakness (Post Time: 6:20 pm Eastern; TV: NBC), but the early wagering at Pimlico and OTB/ADW locations saw Orb's odds cut from a morning line of even money to a price of 3/5. About the only surprise in the early wagering is Departing drifting from his morning line of 6/1 to 13/1. I would expect those odds to get severely reduced over the next ten hours.

Mylute remains the second choice on the morning line, holding at odds of 6/1 through the early betting. Goldencents (8/1) and Itsmyluckyday (9/1) are the other two horse with odds of less than 10/1 as the day begins at Pimlico.

PP	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Odds
1	Orb	J. Rosario	S. McGaughey	3/5
2	Goldencents	K. Krigger	D. O'Neill	8/1
3	Titletown Five	J. Leparoux	D.W. Lukas	23/1
4	Departing	B. Hernandez, Jr.	A. Stall, Jr.	13/1
5	Mylute	R. Napravnik	T. Amoss	6/1
6	Oxbow	G. Stevens	D.W. Lukas	15/1
7	Will Take Charge	M. Smith	D.W. Lukas	13/1
8	Govenor Charlie	M. Garcia	B. Baffert	11/1
9	Itsmyluckyday	J. Velazquez	E. Plesa, Jr.	9/1

Preakness 2013 Results & Open Thread

2013-05-18T11:39:47Z

The waiting is over and it's time for Preakkness Day 2013. Will Orb take the second step towards a possible Triple Crown run? Will Derby also-rans Goldencents and Itsmyluckyday bounce back just two weeks after disappointment in Louisville? Will Departing move forward off his impressive Illinois Derby victory? Will we see a major upset today at Old Hill Top? We'll find out today at 6:20 pm Eastern time on NBC.

#	Post	Race	Age/Sex	Dist.	Surf.	Winner	$2 Win
1	10:45a	Allowance/OC	3up	8.5	Dirt	1-Aussi Austin	$5.40
2	11:18a	Starter Handicap	3up	8.5	Dirt	9-Hello Lover	$3.40
3	11:53a	Allowance	3up	5.0	Turf	7-Relentless Move	$7.40
4	12:30p	Rollicking Stakes	2yo	5.0	Dirt	3-Debt Ceiling	$12.20
5	1:09p	Allowance	3up, f&m	8.5	Turf	7-Joy	$10.80
6	1:50p	Chick Lang Stakes	3yo	6.0	Dirt	2-Zee Bros	$7.40
7	2:33p	James W. Murphy Stakes	3yo	8.0	Turf	10-Redwood Kitten	$6.80
8	3:14p	G3-Dupont Distaff	3up	8.5	Dirt	6-Summer Applause	$5.20
9	4:00p	G3-Gallorette Handicap	3up, f&m	8.5	Turf	3-Pianist	$15.40
10	4:42p	G3-Maryland Sprint Hcp.	3up	6.0	Dirt	10-Sage Valley	$6.60
11	5:25p	G2-Dixie Stakes	3up	9.0	Turf	10-Sky Ring	$50.40
12	6:20p	G1-Preakness	3yo	9.5	Dirt	6-Oxbow	$32.80
13	7:08p	Allowance	3up	8.5	Dirt