Second that…
webcam
Well Lukas did all right by Spain, who raced through age five, so there’s hope.
Worth noting that Lukas also trained Birdstone’s sire Grindstone, who retired days after his 1996 Kentucky Derby win due to knee chips.
For webcam fans, the Thoroughbred Times reports in their coverage of the MTB transfer that the camera will also move along to the gelding’s new digs.
If the owners wanted to keep the “QH Brotherhood” thing going, Baffert was quoted as saying he liked MTB. Would rather he went there. Oooops! Just remembered–California, synthetic tracks.
However, MTB (unlike 80+ percent of the other TC candidates) managed to stay sound throughout last year, and it seems like since he’s small and compact built he may have more of a proprensity for staying sound than some of these tall, rangy thin-bones horses. Plus, his owners always seemed to be very fond of him. Good luck, little guy.
I feel bad for both of them, They obviously had a good working relationship…But change was on the horizon because things fell apart ofter the TC races. The fact that he is a gelding has everything to do with the fact he cannot proliferate so he must race…
Honestly, give the horse his due even though he cannot make you any more money as a racer…
I would take him and make him a nice little eventer! heehee!
[QUOTE=danceronice;4875963]
It was a looooong lately, though. He won the Derby, but it was all downhill from there. Something obviously wasn’t working.[/QUOTE]
I would say it was far from downhill after the Derby. MTB was a fast closing second to the great Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness and third in the Belmont. I think Chip did a good job with him.
[QUOTE=BabyGoose;4881566]
I would say it was far from downhill after the Derby. MTB was a fast closing second to the great Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness and third in the Belmont. I think Chip did a good job with him.[/QUOTE]
And what did he do after that? What has he done at all this year? It wasn’t a very good season post-TC. What was the plan?
Just for my edification- which horses who have competed in all three triple crown races, and won at least one, have had brilliant balances of their three year old campaigns?
I remember Secretariat was successful, but he was a law unto himself.
I still feel for Chip. He cares about his horse, first, and foremost. That is a really big deal to me.
Curlin comes to mind.
Yep. Another amazing powerhouse! :yes:
That’s one…
Winning Colors wasn’t too shabby.
A lot of them fall off the radar after the summer…and then head to the breeding shed…There maybe something to say about horses being worked more often to help them through this. I thought his workouts before the TC series were pretty long like 2 mile gallops and such then he sat around…maybe he lost interest who knows…He is still a Classic winner and was on the board in all three races. So many of them do not even run in all three…then most would get turned to the breeding shed…
Out of the 20 horses that run in the Derby how many of them even go on to have stellar careers by percentage and some do better as 4 years olds if they are allowed to race that old!
[QUOTE=ivy62;4881841]
A lot of them fall off the radar after the summer…and then head to the breeding shed…There maybe something to say about horses being worked more often to help them through this. I thought his workouts before the TC series were pretty long like 2 mile gallops and such then he sat around…maybe he lost interest who knows…He is still a Classic winner and was on the board in all three races. So many of them do not even run in all three….then most would get turned to the breeding shed…[/QUOTE]
Yeah, well, in this particular case, that was never going to be the case from the get-go. He’s a gelding. The only thing they can do with him is run him or sell him off. (I mean, you COULD pay for him to stand in a trainer’s barn and do nothing, but that would be pretty stupid.) The up side of a gelding winning classics is he’s probably going to stick around for a while.
Couple of thoughts. D. Wayne has a history of this, just ask Barclay Tagg (Roo Art) or Laura de Seroux (Azeri).
Also, MTB was trucked all over the country last year and Woolley was in the public eye, but the public will never know whether that was decided by Woolley or by MTB’s owners.
Trainers run where and when the owner wishes in many cases, and they run the horse or lose the horse. One very fine trainer of my acquaintance had a truly lovely regional SW whose owners wanted to run in a G1 at Saratoga over trainer’s objections; trainer was basically told the horse was running, he could saddle it and keep training or someone else would…
Personally my idea would be for him to go hang out with a teenage girl and get to be a little hunter til he goes on display at the KHP. I bet he’d actually enjoy that. maybe she could even put glitter on his hooves! Ha ha.
Poor fella. Sometimes it almost seems a bad thing to have success in one of the TC races. Look at Rachel going down now. it happens all the time and these trainers, godd, bad, or otherwise need to see more than $ signs!(owners too)
I don’t really understand the “poor fella”. Mine That Bird and Rachel may be more appropriately placed at roughly the G3 level these days…but that hardly constitutes grounds for retirement. For pete’s sake, of all the horses whose welfare I am concerned about, MTB and Rachel have it pretty darn good.
[QUOTE=danceronice;4881710]
And what did he do after that? What has he done at all this year? It wasn’t a very good season post-TC. What was the plan?[/QUOTE]
He ran all three TC races and did well in them all. His Derby run was amazing. My guess he was getting tired. He traveled a lot. I think the plan was to rest him a little this year hence the late start getting back to the track. The took him back home and let him be a horse for a few months. Good idea in my book. Since he is a gelding there is no rush to get him to the breeding shed. He could have several years of racing left, why rush him back.
It appears to me that Lukas is one of those types of trainers who would claim a guys last horse and put him out of business. There is no doubt in my mind that Lukas did some sneaking around to get this horse.
Not that I am in any way defending Lukas, but I thought the Azeri trainer-transfer had more to do with the legal battles between Michael Paulson and Madeleine Paulson. It was no secret those two hated each other’s guts.
[QUOTE=BabyGoose;4882782]
He ran all three TC races and did well in them all. His Derby run was amazing. My guess he was getting tired. He traveled a lot. I think the plan was to rest him a little this year hence the late start getting back to the track. The took him back home and let him be a horse for a few months. Good idea in my book. Since he is a gelding there is no rush to get him to the breeding shed. He could have several years of racing left, why rush him back.[/QUOTE]
The Triple Crown are only three races. He then placed third in the WV Derby, of all races (a Grade 2) two MONTHS after the Belmont, sixth in the Goodwood after MONTHS off, and ninth in the Classic a month after that. What on Earth was he tired FROM? That is hardly a difficult season strictly from the racing (unless they’re breeding complete weaklings these days.) If that is considered a difficult season for a Grade I horse then no wonder there hasn’t been a Triple Crown winner in more than thirty years. What the heck was he doing between races to get tired out?
I don’t think Lukas is a good fit for this horse. I predict he’ll be with a new trainer by this fall. Hope the little gelding proves me wrong.
