Baffert - Still One of The Best

You can forgive trainer Bob Baffert for being disgusted and frustrated for another gut wrenching loss in the Triple Crown.

The Belmont Stakes, which Baffert has won once but has claimed victim to him on multiple occasions including three missed Triple Crown opportunities, is always one of the toughest races to win in the world. And before the Belmont, he thought he had a great chance with his entrant.

Paynter, a newcomer to the 3-year-old elite ranks, was a horse that Baffert thought very highly of but didn't think was ready to take on the best. But after an impressive win at Pimlico on Preakness Day, the  trainer decided Paynter was his Belmont horse.

Not long after Paynter won on Preakness Day, Bodemeister suffered his second straight nail biting defeat to I'll Have Another. The Preakness looked to be a perfect place for Bodemeister to turn the tables on the Derby winner as he was the lone speed but I'll Have Another proved to be too good.

The same scenario developed in the Belmont as jockey Mike Smith, who was also aboard Bodemeister in the Derby and Preakness, sent Paynter right to the lead and tried to slow down the pace as much as he could. It looked to be working as he looked comfortably in front for three quarters of the race. But, Union Rags, much like I'll Have Another did in the first two legs of the Triple Crown, wore down the Baffert trainee in the final strides.

“Is there a Triple Crown for seconds? I need a Triple Crown for second," Baffert said. "I really thought he was going to win today. He was doing so well. I just feel bad for [owner] Mr. [Ahmed] Zayat. The poor guy, he’s been tortured on this Triple Crown. Turning for home, I knew we had the horse to do it and that horse snuck up on him there. He’s still a young horse, still learning how to run. It’s over. When you get beat, you get beat.”

Upon reflection Baffert should smile widely about his Triple Crown performance. Any trainer in the world would be thrilled to have a chance to win any Triple Crown down the home stretch. It is very easy for a highly successful trainer to take that for granted but despite those tough defeats, Baffert's place among racing best all-time trainers is secure.

He already has won three Kentucky Derbys and five Preakness Stakes among many other elite races he has captured. And although he may have a restless night sleeping after suffering his third straight gut wrenching Triple Crown loss, he shouldn't want to trade places with anyone. Most trainer would want his "problems."

 

Belmont Post Race Quotes

BELMONT STAKES (G1) ALSO-RAN QUOTES

Bob Baffert, trainer of runner-up Paynter (No. 9): “Is there a Triple Crown for seconds? I need a Triple Crown for seconds. I really thought he was going to win today. He was doing so well. I just feel bad for [owner] Mr. [Ahmed] Zayat. The poor guy, he’s been tortured on this Triple Crown. Turning for home, I knew we had the horse to do it and that horse snuck up on him there. He’s still a young horse, still learning how to run. It’s over. When you get beat, you get beat.”

“[Jockey Mike Smith] will probably take a lot of heat for [letting Union Rags up the rail]. It’s a jockey thing. He didn’t want to give up the rail. But you know what, he did a tremendous job. The outside horse had that horse trapped. Johnny [Velazquez], you have to give him credit. He was patient and he just waited. He knew sometimes that happens in these big races.”

“There were no excuses. The first quarter was a little quick, but he had to use him a little bit to get him over because we wanted to get him on the lead and shut down the [No. 2] horse [Unstoppable U] immediately, because I figured he was in there as a rabbit for the other horse [Atigun]. Once he did that, he slowed them down and was in a perfect spot. He did all I could ask for. I had him ready. The crew did a great job, Jimmy Barnes and everybody. We had him ready, and we really thought today we were going to get it done. Unfortunately, we came up short, but we got beat by a nice horse.”

“He’s a really good horse. I really like this horse a lot. I wanted to win one of these races so badly, I’m telling you. My crew deserves it more than anything; they work so hard. And Mr. Zayat, he needed to win one of these. Poor guy. He really deserved it. It’s a shame. It looked like we had it. It looked like it was ours. I really felt like I was going to win the Belmont. It was snatched away again.”

“We were always really high on this horse. It just took him a little bit longer to come around. The horse is really green. He ran a hell of a race.”

“We’ll probably look at the Travers, something at Saratoga, something like that.”

Mike Smith, rider of runner-up Paynter (No. 9): “He ran tremendous. I’m such a perfectionist. [Union Rags] just shouldn’t have gotten through on me. I’d like to see what the outcome would have been if he wouldn’t have. I haven’t had the chance [to talk to Bob Baffert]. I’m sure he doesn’t want to speak to me right now.”

Ahmed Zayat, owner of runner-up Paynter (No. 9): “Heartbreaking defeat. A heartbreaking defeat. He ran his guts out. It’s just his fourth race. What do they call that race, the ‘Test of the Champion?’ To go a mile and a half the way he did, in only his fourth race, I am very lucky to have him. I’m very disappointed we opened the rail for [Union Rags].”

“Not only that, today Justin Phillip [second in the Grade 2, $400,000 Woody Stephens] was winning for fun in crazy numbers and got beat. Sometimes when you run a lot of seconds, they say you tripped, or you got lucky. But my horses are showing up and running big. Somehow we are not able to close the deal.”

Ken McPeek, trainer third-place finisher Atigun (No. 4), sixth-place finisher Unstoppable U (No. 2): “Both horses were in contention turning for home, but the gray horse [Unstoppable U] needed the race. He didn’t have enough bottom under him. Atigun, he ran super. I was real pleased. He’s just maturing; he’s figured it out. He knows when to kick. Mr. Anthony [John Ed Anthony, Shortleaf Stable Inc.] is real happy. He’s a good man, and he’s good for the business.”

Julien Leparoux, jockey aboard third-place finisher Atigun (No. 4): “It was a very good race. There was a clean race for everybody, so that’s very important. For us, as the jockeys, for the people watching the race, it’s great to see a clean race. I hope everybody had fun today. We had a good trip. We stayed inside most of the trip. I could get him out around the turn, I thought I had a good chance to win, he made a nice move. He ran a big race, so that was good.”

Chad Brown, trainer of fourth-place finisher Street Life (No. 1): “He was in the right spot and that is where the horse wanted to be. He made a run, and he was good enough to get up to be fourth, but that was probably was as good as it was going to be today. He’s a horse that needs some pace to run at and I thought that with the blinkers on he would lay a little closer. I think he is more focused with them on, but he is a horse that comes from behind that needs some pace. In a mile and a half race we really didn’t get the pace that we needed to make the big run. We’ll probably keep him at a mile and an eighth to a mile and a quarter.”

Dale Romans, trainer of beaten favorite and seventh-place finisher Dullahan (No. 5): “He said he felt comfortable all around the backside. He felt he was relaxing in the right spot. Turning for home he just got to spinning his wheels. He said the track was pretty deep and cuppy. I don’t know. The race unfolded like it looked on paper to me. Paynter ran a big race, they all ran big, Union Rags ran big; we just didn’t have a finishing kick. This is a good horse, a very good horse. I was sure he was going to run a really big one. It’s disappointing.”

Was it the track?: “I’m not going to make excuses for him. I said all along I thought he could handle the dirt. I think it puts Union Rags in the picture for an Eclipse Award, I would think. There’s a lot of year left, and with I’ll Have Another out, it’s definitely in his own hands.”

Javier Castellano, rider of beaten favorite and seventh-place finisher Dullahan (No. 5): “I don’t think he really liked the track today. He’s the type of horse who likes the turf or Polytrack more. The track was a little deep today and he kind of struggled a little bit. He was in a great position and not too far back. I was right in mid pack which is right where I wanted to be. I was in a full drive and he never got a hold of the track. He never gave me the power and kick like he did at Churchill Downs [in the Kentucky Derby]. He was spinning his wheels.”

Who Saw Zenyatta Run?

Everytime you see Zenyatta run, it is hard not to remain in awe of one of the greatest thoroughbreds in history, regardless of gender.

The six-year-old mare ran her record to a perfect 17-for-17 with a gusty performance as she wore down St. Trinians in the final furlong to capture her third straight Vanity Handicap. Her win was even more impressive for a litany of reasons which included the fact she was giving a lot of weight to the rest of the seven horse field and her jockey, Mike Smith, kept her wide on both turns.

The one part that is a little disturbing to me is that only around 12,000 fans saw her awesome performance. That attendance figure is becoming more accepted as a good day but for a horse like Zenyatta in a market like Los Angeles, it is actually pretty sad.

What makes that attendance figure even worse is the fact that Hollywood Park offered a Zenyatta Bobblehead Giveaway. Those gimmicks used to help bring in a handful of extra people but even the allure of a "freebie" wasn't enough to catapult the crowd figures.

This sort of racing ambivalence in big city racing markets is becoming very commonplace. Huge markets like New York, LA, Chicago and Miami are drawing a fraction of the racing crowds they used to. Even in Louisville, home of the greatest race, getting people to the track has been an ongoing struggle. (Big exceptions, of course, are Derby Week, Friday night racing and the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend.)

Big city sports fans only seem to come out to the track when it's a big day (i.e. Belmont Stakes, Big Cap, etc.) but today should have qualified as one of those days. And those people who didn't make it out to Hollywood, missed out on a great race and an even greater horse.

For years, racing has been crying out for stars and we have two genuine ones in Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta yet why don't people come out to see them run on a consistent basis? Promoting the stars has been a challenge and the fact that Daily Newspapers have cut back their racing coverage significantly is a hindrance. But it's also incumbent upon the individual racetracks and the sport to promote when it's top notch stars run.

I don't know how much Hollywood Park promoted Zenyatta's appearance outside of the Bobblehead giveaway but you have to think it wasn't enough.

We are simply running out of time before both Rachel and Zenyatta are retired and racing loses another golden opportunity to win over new fans. We are very lucky that Zenyatta is still racing but the window is about to close as you have to assume that she only has three more races left before she is done.

And for those that didn't see her run, you have missed out. We may not see anyone like her for sometime.

Photo courtesy of Eclipse Sportswire - www.eclipsesportswire.com

Another Bad Ride Costs The Bird

In Saturday's West Virginia Derby, Mine That Bird was looking to regain some of his star status but a self-admitted bad ride by Mike Smith cost the Kentucky Derby winner that chance.

For the second time this year, I begin to wonder if Calvin Borel's absence on Mine That Bird cost the gelding a victory.

In the Preakness, Smith was unable to keep Mine That Bird out of trouble and then was forced to go seven wide on the final turn. He lost to Rachel Alexandra by just a length.

Fast forward to Saturday and Smith watched Big Drama jump out to a huge early lead and the Hall of Fame jockey grew impatient and began to ask the Derby winner for run on the backstretch to close the gap between himself and Big Drama. The move backfired as Mine That Bird was out of gas in the stretch and could not pass Big Drama and eventual winner Soul Warrior.

"It was just total rider error," Smith said. "I don't like the way I rode him at all....He needs that one short run and I used too much of him on the backstretch."

Kudos for Smith to owning up to his mistake. It's a breath of fresh air.

But now what next for "Team Bird?" Do they stick with Smith, who they have a two-race commitment from? Or do they search for another rider? (Garrett Gomez is available with the injury to Pioneerof the Nile.)

Apparently, Mine That Bird has to be ridden in a very specific way. Keep him along the inside with another horse to his outside in the back half of the field. Then, when the time is right, cut him loose for his one big run. Borel executed the plan perfectly in the Derby but no one has since.

The Travers is the next race on Bird's docket but it appears that only a near perfect ride will lead him back to the winner's circle.