On to the Belmont 2018 - who's bandwagon are you on? post KD and Preakness

Wow! That’s some horse! No mud on that white blaze!

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Oh, and I just downloaded American Pharoah for free! Thanks Audible

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if you have an audible account, go to it and buy American Pharoah for $0.00. I just did.

Ah poop, missed it. Can someone point me to the replay? TIA

Poor Mendelssohn really got smashed around. I think he just threw up his hooves and said that’s enough.

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Pay attention to the early fractions and how hard the leader is working while Justify looks like he’s loping along in second with almost a slack rein laying down a 22 and change quarter and half in 45. Same thing when Good Magic briefly looked like he might catch him on the turn, MS just showed him the stick and he shifted gears breezing away like it was nothing. And what a Pro attitude wise, mannerly in the parade, walking out on a loopy rein during the interview with DB. Reminds me of another one on that. Never hurts when they look that gorgeous either.

Thats one efficient mover too. Like oil on water. If he comes out ok and goes to the Preakness, wonder if he’ll have any serious competition. Interesting breeding on him, not the usual suspects of recent years. And quite nice. Too bad Scat Daddy is gone but that female side is sharp.

IMO Bolt d’Oro looked like he’d had enough keeping up in that slop but wonder if Mendelssohn is OK. He was probably backing off the wall of screaming people a bit in the gate, broke a tick after the others and got positively crushed between one falling way inside and several veering out. Thought he’d go down for a split second. Ouch. That was ugly.

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NBC has it on their web site

the horse has an amazing natural balance you can clearly see. Efficient , all I see is exceptionally good , efficient movement

I can’t wait to see the replay!!!

I can’t wait to see the replay!!!

By the way, considering the mass of partners in Justify, how do you pick which silks to use? Do they take turns in order of starts, or run in the home state silks, Winstar being in Kentucky, or what? Are there any official rules on that, or do the partners just work it out however they wish?

http://www.nbcsports.com/kentucky-derby

Here you go…

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So we know the first 1/4 & the 1/2 went in a pretty quick time, even with the slop, but the finish time was rather moderate at 2:04.20
Does anyone have the rest of the splits?

LaurieB, I watch TVG until about 10 minutes before post time and then switch to NBC (as, IMO, all the “fluff” that NBC stuff into their coverage makes me nauseous :frowning: ). What’s his name, Johnny Wier… just too weird for my taste… I wouldn’t like that hair regardless of who was wearing it.

Twin Spires and NBC control the 3 TC race cards. Today, the TVG staff was set up at Keeneland, not even at CD. What was funny (at least for me), once the Derby had been run, the last two CD races were on TVG2.

Good race. Wondered how the sloppy track would affect the outcome. I would agree, anyone who was caught behind the 8 ball at the break would be in trouble just with all the kickback in their face. Mike S really hustled Justify out of the gate. I was surprised at the fractions for the first quarter and first half and figured the leaders would fade.

Justify just hung in there.

I suspect if he had not been hustled to the front, the results may have been really different but that’s why Mike gets paid the big bucks (yes, I know, % but on good horses :wink: )

There was sure some bumping and banging in the aux gate and far outer positions in the main gate. Mendelssohn just didn’t get much of a change. Nor did some of the other horses that were participants in the bump-fest.

My Boy Jack… what can I say… bet down from 1/30 to second betting favorite. Having said that, he did really well given the class of competition he faced today.

Wonder who will be in the Preakness gate in two weeks :slight_smile:

Holy cow, look at that slop—! I was down there last weekend and the weather then was stunning. (Good for Rolex, at least.)

Jusitfy says, “I don’t like getting my face dirty.” :lol:

The partners work it out any way they want to.

Interesting note on silks: Bolt D’Oro ran not in the silks of his owner/trainer (Mick Ruis) as he had in his previous races, but instead in the silks of B.Wayne Hughes who had recently purchased the colt’s breeding rights for his Spendthrift Farm. Ruis made the gesture because Mr. Hughes is older and Ruis thought that he (Ruis) would be likely to have more chances to see his own silks in the Derby in the future.

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I just loved how he came out of the gate, with Mike Smith hustling him, and said, “you want me to take you to the front? Gotcha!” And then, when he was coasting along with that gorgeous balanced loping stride, and you realized just how fast they were going, he was so settled. Then, when challenged, he said, “No. You are not going to pass me. Period”.

Mike is the master, but that is one incredibly talented and well managed colt. Who knows what he really has “under the hood”? Those were some really nice colts out there today, and regardless of whether he ran as a two year old, he ran all over them.

Felt awful for Mendelssohn. Nice colt who may have had his confidence really shaken by an awful day.

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Very nice gesture on behalf of Mr Ruis. Classy.:slight_smile:

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My Boy Jack was flying on the outside, I have no idea how he got so much traction on that surface, was caught behind, swung in, swung out and finally room to run on the far outside, he passed a bunch of horse in the final 3/16s. I hope he is fine, he was my personal favorite because I just love the brothers Desormeaux and cannot warm up any longer for Baffert. Have to admit being very happy that a horse won who did not run as a 2 year old and that jinx was broken. Justify is a gorgeous animal very beautiful to watch so grudging hats off to Bob B. Hope all are well the day after running in that mess, notice there was no slop or no really splashy slop on the surface so it was packed and floated to death. Always worry about their eyes too at the very least.

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It was funny how just before the race, the reporter asked Mike Smith when he was going to retire. Justify had the best trip. And how crazy is it that the favorite wins and another top choice finishes second and the exacta pays $70??!!! I’m not complaining!

Talk about a good race for bettors!