Draw for the Derby Proves to Be Lively Affair

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Bob Lively, one of the owners of Windward Passage, left the Kentucky Derby Museum even before Wednesday’s post-position draw, his premature departure unrelated to the darkening skies, flashes of lightning and tornado watch for the Louisville area.

Lively, incensed that Danthebluegrassman, the last-place finisher in the Santa Anita Derby and trained by Bob Baffert, had become an 11th-hour entry for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, thereby precluding Windward Passage from running, seemed to be forming a funnel of his own as he marched toward the parking lot.

“Where did [Danthebluegrassman] finish at Santa Anita?” Lively said, not expecting an answer. “I don’t think he even finished the race. He’ll go off at 99-1 in the Derby. They’ve got no business running, and to wait until the last minute to decide is an insult to all of the people, partners included, who are in town to see my horse run.”

With more than the 20-horse Derby maximum hoping to run, repercussions were inevitable. The nationally televised draw, instead of focusing on the horses that are running, highlighted the ones that are out.

On Wednesday morning, trainer Patrick Biancone announced that Mayakovsky wouldn’t run, which appeared to clear the way for Windward Passage. Winner of the Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park and a dead-heat third-place finisher in the Arkansas Derby, Windward Passage also would have been a Kentucky Derby longshot, though not as high as Danthebluegrassman, who is listed at 50-1, tied with three others for the high price on the morning line.

The most important horse that didn’t get in was Sunday Break, a close third-place finisher in the Wood Memorial. He would have been rated at 10-1 or 12-1--the sixth choice--by Mike Battaglia, the Churchill Downs linemaker.

When the Derby is over-subscribed, Churchill determines the 20 starters by the highest career earnings in graded stakes races. Windward Passage was tied with Wild Horses for the No. 20 spot, each horse having $100,000, but Wild Horses was declared a starter because of the tiebreaker--most purses in non-graded stakes. Besides Sunday Break and Windward Passage, other potential starters not making the cut were U S S Tinosa and Straight Gin.

Battaglia made Harlan’s Holiday, the Blue Grass and Florida Derby winner, the 9-2 favorite, followed by Wood Memorial winner Buddha and Santa Anita Derby winner Came Home, both 5-1; and the Irish-based Johannesburg, winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, and Medaglia d’Oro, second in the Wood, each at 6-1.

Battaglia said that he made his line before the post positions were drawn and didn’t change the numbers afterward. Harlan’s Holiday, whose trainer, Ken McPeek, was the seventh horseman in line as Churchill’s racing office conducted the order of the draw by lot, chose No. 14, the last stall in the main starting gate. Horses in stalls 15 through 20 will break from an auxiliary gate.

Starting from the auxiliary gate used to be considered a disadvantage, but in five of the last seven years the Derby winner has come from either No. 15 or No. 16. The last time 20 horses ran in the Derby, in 1984, Swale won from the 15 hole.

Of the other favorites, Buddha, with trainer James Bond getting the first pick, will break from No. 10; Came Home has 15, Medaglia d’Oro 9 and Johannesburg the inside. Only one horse--Ferdinand in 1986--has won from the No. 1 post in the last 38 years.

Mike Pegram, the owner of Danthebluegrassman and winner of the 1998 Derby with Real Quiet, said that the decision to run his colt was made by Baffert, after a sharp workout Tuesday. Jorge Chavez got off Danthebluegrassman after a 1:114/5 clocking for six furlongs and reportedly said: “This horse ought to be in the Derby.”

Baffert and Pegram discussed the options at dinner Tuesday night, and when Baffert found Wednesday morning that Danthebluegrassman bounced back well from the workout, he green lighted the colt. But word of Danthebluegrassman’s entry didn’t leak out until shortly before the draw. Windward Passage’s trainer, Steve Asmussen, had waited until Wednesday to hire Richard Migliore to ride his horse. Baffert was able to sign up Kent Desormeaux, who rode Real Quiet and also won the 2000 Derby with Fusaichi Pegasus. Desormeaux became available when U S S Tinosa was unable to draw into the field.

“I was surprised that Bob even brought the horse here after the Santa Anita Derby,” Pegram said. “But he broke bad and had a horrible trip that day, a trip that he brought on himself. He’s trained well and kept on getting better. I’m not going to apologize for running. You play the hand you’re dealt with.”

The year before Real Quiet, Baffert won the Derby with Silver Charm. In 1998, Indian Charlie, also trained by Baffert, went off at 5-2 and Real Quiet was 8-1. Indian Charlie finished third.

“Danthebluegrassman was still full of himself after that workout,” Baffert said. “A lot of my second-stringers end up beating my first-stringers.”

After the Santa Anita Derby, Baffert seemed to have no hope of having a Derby starter. He announced that Danthebluegrassman would probably run in the Lone Star Derby on May 11 in Texas. But now Baffert will have two starters, Danthebluegrassman joining War Emblem, who was bought, for a reported $1 million for the controlling interest, by Prince Ahmed Salman, Baffert’s richest client. War Emblem won the Illinois Derby on April 6.

At entry time, trainer Aidan O’Brien made a flip-flop of jockeys for his horses.

Gary Stevens will ride Johannesburg instead of Jerry Bailey, and Bailey will have the assignment on Castle Gandolfo. Mick Kinane, who’s ridden Johannesburg in all eight of his races--seven wins--is unavailable because he’s serving a seven-day suspension in England.

The forecast is for scattered showers today, dry Friday and then a chance of morning showers Saturday.

The high temperature Saturday is expected to be 75 degrees, with a fast track likely.

Bella Bellucci, the 3-1 second choice for Friday’s Kentucky Oaks, won’t run because of a bad blood test.

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Kentucky Derby Field

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