I'll Have Another

The second leg of the US Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland, in the USA is scheduled to be run this weekend. With the weatherman promising sunny skies and a temperature around 25° Celsius, the track should be fast and provide all the 11 contestants a fair chance.

A few hours before that event gets under way, all eyes of turf enthusiasts around the world will be focused on the return to action of the world's highest-rated horse, Frankel (Galileo – Kind, by Danehill), who makes his seasonal debut on Saturday, May 19^th, in the 1 mile JLT Lockinge Stakes at Newbury in England. Trained by Sir Henry Cecil, the Juddmonte standard-bearer gave his connections a scare when suffering a soft tissue injury recently, but has bounced back and recorded splendid workouts, so should be hard to toss.

Old rivals, Excelebration (by Exceed And Excel) and Dubawi Gold (by Dubawi), are in the field, aiming to spoil Frankel's hitherto unblemished 9-for-9 record. Both are fit with recent runs under their belts – but it is doubtful if they can bridge the class gap. New opponents include Strong Suit (by Rahy), but he will take part only if the ground is good. Logically speaking this trio is running for place money, and it would be unwise to oppose the rare talent embodied in Prince Khalid Abdullah's champion.

A few hours later on the same day – at 6:18 p.m. EDT – across the Atlantic, half a dozen seasoned customers exiting the Kentucky Derby will clash with five three-year-olds that opted to skip that high-profile event on May 5^th. Notable absentees from the list of Preakness acceptors are Hansen, who is reverting to sprinting, and Dullahan (third in the Kentucky Derby) and Union Rags, both awaiting the Belmont Stakes in June. Even without them, Derby form is well represented by four of the first five home, namely I'll Have Another (by Flower Alley), Bodemeister (by Empire Maker), Went The Day Well (by Proud Citizen) and Creative Cause (by Giant's Causeway), who finished in that order.

Trainer Doug O'Neill opted to move his Derby-winning colt I'll Have Another early to Pimlico so that he could get used to the atmosphere at that facility. In previous years, most trainers had elected to remain at Churchill Downs until just before the second leg. It's about a twelve-hour van ride between the two tracks.

Bob Baffert's Bodemeister has been installed the favourite at 8-to-5, the consensus being that he will be able to carry his speed to the wire in a race that is half a furlong shorter. No doubt the fact that Baffert has saddled five previous Preakness winners entered the equation of the odds-makers. Recent runnings of this race suggest that that the winning move is made midway around the far turn and that a runner needs to be on the lead or within 3 lengths of it at that time. This is not a race for late-closers who come from way back.

Last year, Shackleford sat a close second, never more than half a length behind Flashpoint, before asserting his superiority and the late-finishing Animal Kingdom could not catch him. However, the connections of I'll Have Another are confident their colt can be positioned closer to the lead than in the Derby. His handler ventured: “It’s in Mike Smith’s hands to set the pace (on Bodemeister). For whatever reason if he breaks slow or decides not to go, we’ll take the lead and take it from there."

Barry Irwin of Team Valor, part-owner of Went The Day Well, said "This horse, I think he could have won the Derby if he had broken right, but he didn’t. Once he broke bad, he caused himself a whole bunch of trouble. We have to make sure the horse gets out of the gate (quickly) this time. If he does, I think we’ve got a good shot. This horse has an enormous amount of ability. He can really run."

The shortest-price from amongst the quintet aiming to capitalize on the anticipated chink in the armour of those who ran in the Derby – a mere fortnight gap between two strenuous races – is Teeth Of The Dog (by Bluegrrass Cat), and he is at 15 to 1. Winner of a maiden and third in the Resorts World Casino New York City Wood Memorial Stakes, he will probably find the race "a bridge too far". Another of this bunch, estimated to start at 20 to 1, is Zetterholm (by Silver Train) from the barn of trainer Rick Dutrow, Jr. Owner Tony Grey said "If we're ever going to beat the likes of Bodemeister and I'll Have Another and Went the Day Well, it's going to be off two weeks' rest off the Derby. We're rolling the dice." The other three newcomers to the classic trail are all 30 to 1 longshots.