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Kentucky Derby 137 Recap2011 Kentucky Derby Recap with Facts and Figures, Trivia and Connections Quotes
Animal Kingdom Powers to Kentucky Derby Win Team Valor International's Animal Kingdom, in his first race on dirt and only his fifth start, won the Kentucky Derby over by 2 3/4 lengths over Nehro. The son of Leroidesanimaux (BRZ) became the first horse to win the Derby off only four prior starts since Exterminator in 1918. Big Brown won the 2008 Derby with three prior starts. After breaking from post 16 and racing from well off a moderate pace set by Shackleford, Animal Kingdom took command at mid-stretch and drew off by 2 3/4 lengths. Nehro, who sat closer to the pace, came up second, a neck ahead of Mucho Macho Man. Shackleford hung on for fourth after setting fractions of :23.74, :48.63, 1:13.40 and 1:37.49. Animal Kingdom was timed in 2:02.04. The top six finishers all broke from double-digit gate numbers: the 16, 19, 13, 14, 11 (Master of Hounds) and 12 (Santiva). Animal Kingdom was sent off at 20-1 odds and paid $43.80 to win, $19.60 to place and $13.00 to show. Nehro returned $8.60 and $6.40. Mucho Macho paid $7.00 to show. The winner was ridden by John Velazquez, who only yesterday lost his mount on the scratched Uncle Mo. The mount on Animal Kingdom was seemingly opened up when Robby Albarado, who was originally named on Animal Kingdom, broke his nose after being dumped from a horse in a Wednesday post parade. Velazquez was named on Friday. Albarado wound up riding on today and won the Grade I Humana Distaff aboard Sassy Image. Archarcharch, who broke from post 1, sustained a bilateral condylar fracture to his left front leg at or near the end of the race. The injury isn't life-threatening, according to Dr. Larry Bramlage, and there will be a surgery with the insertion of screws. Whether Archarcharch will ever race again isn't known yet. Winning trainer Graham Motion declined to say whether Animal Kingdom would go to the Preakness. Barry Irwin, head of Team Valor, spent time during the post-race news conference chastising race tracks that he said don't treat racing partnerships fairly. He also criticized the turf press for not paying more attention to Animal Kingdom before the race. Those remarks were preceded by Irwin saying that he was surprised Animal Kingdom won the Derby. Animal Kingdom began his racing career under the care of trainer Wayne Catalano in September at Arlington Park. He was entered in a turf race, but it came off that surface onto the synthetic track where he finished second to Willcox Inn. In October, he broke his maiden on Keeneland's synthetic surface. After an extended break in which he was sent to Motion's barn, Animal Kingdom won an allowance on the turf at Gulfstream Park, and he won his Derby prep race, the Grade III Spiral Stakes, on Turfway Park's synthetic surface. Animal Kingdom is out of Dalicia (GER), by Acatenango (GER). He was bred in Kentucky by Team Valor. Equibase chartNBC Feed of Kentucky 137 Video 2011 Kentucky Derby Facts, Figures
Winning Connections of Animal Kingdom
The Top Five Finishers
Times, Conditions
Animal Kingdom's Internal Fractions: He went the first quarter mile of the Kentucky Derby in :24.44, the second quarter in :25.44, the third in :24.72, the fourth in :23.44 and the final quarter mile in :24.00. Purse: $2,171,800. First $1,411,800; second $400,000; third $200,000; fourth $100,000; fifth $60,000 Payoffs
Animal Kingdom: $43.80 to win, $19.60 to place and $13.00 to show
Future Pool 1: $6.20
Finish position, Name, Finish Margin
TRIVIA
Battle of the Maker Horses
Derby Kitten finished thirteenth, Twinspired finished seventeenth
Repole/Pletcher's Other Horse
Finished twelfth
Calvin Borel
Finshed tenth at 11-1 odds
Best, Worst in Proportion to Odds
Best finish of a low-odds horse: Nehro, 8-1, was second
Worst finish of a low-odds horse: Dialed In, favored at 5-1, finished eighth
Best finish of a high-odds horse: Animal Kingdom won at 20.90-1
Worst finish of a high-odds horse: Comma to the Top finished last at 35-1.
Worst relative performance other than Dialed In: Pants On Fire was ninth at 8-1.
Best relative performance other than Animal Kingdom: Shackleford was fourth at 23-1
Highest odds in the field: Decisive Moment was 39-1 and finished fourteenth.
Final Odds of the: Florida Derby winner: Dialed In, 5-1
Wood Memorial winner: N/A
Santa Anita Derby winner: Midnight Interlude, 9-1
Illinois Derby winner: N/A
Arkansas Derby winner: Archarcharch, 12-1
Blue Grass Stakes winner: Brilliant Speed, 27-1
Show Bet in Derby The show payoffs were quite good as usual: Animal Kingdom, at 20-1, paid $13.00 to show. Nehro, at 8-1, paid $6.40 to show. Mucho Macho Man, at 9-1-1, paid $7.00 to show.
Closer That Couldn't Get There
Dialed In was nineteenth and last after six furlongs and finished eighth.
Closer That Got into the Picture
Aminal Kingdom was tenth after six furlongs.
Winner Lengths Off the Pace
At a quarter mile: 6 lengths At a half mile: 6 1/4 lengths At six furlongs: 6 lengths At one mile: 2 3/4 lengths
KENTUCKY DERBY CHART BY POST POSITION
POST-RACE LOSING TRAINER QUOTES STEVE ASMUSSEN (Nehro, second) – "The little horse just ran unbelievable. I'm very proud of him. Congratulations to the winner, but, for Mr. Zayat and his family, I sure would've loved to have won it but I was very excited he ran second. There was way less pace than I thought there would be and thank goodness Corey (Nakatani) was smart enough to take advantage of that."KATHY RITVO (Mucho Macho Man, third) – “He’s only going to get better, he’s only a June 15 foal. He’ll come back hopefully in a couple weeks if he comes back good, and we’re ready to go. “He was fabulous today. It went just the way we thought it would be. He gave it his all. He finished up well. Rajiv (Maragh) said he finished up well. It was really exciting. When I saw him turn for home and he was running, I was jumping around and cheering him on.” DALE ROMANS (Shackleford, fourth) – “I’ve been talking all week that when a race is packed with speed, people often end up taking back and not wanting to go. We thought it might play out like it did. He fought. He tried to fight down the lane. I’m very proud of him. I’m not saying we can’t run a mile and a quarter some time, because we ran a mile and a quarter today faster than all but three horses. I’d love to go to the Preakness. We’ll talk to the owners.” AIDAN O’BRIEN (Master of Hounds, fifth) – “It was a great race for his first time on dirt. We're delighted." EDDIE KENNEALLY (Santiva, sixth) – “He had a decent trip and didn’t get beat that far. Shaun (Bridgmohan) was happy. He tried hard, so no real excuses.” TOM ALBERTRANI (Brilliant Speed, seventh) – “He's come back fine so far. He's in a good shape. He ran good." NICK ZITO (Dialed In, eighth) – “He was in the back of the pack. He was dead last and they just never came back. They went 1:13 and never came back.” KELLY BREEN (Pants On Fire, ninth) – "He never stopped running. He never stopped trying." JEFF BONDE (Twice the Appeal, 10th) – “We wound up splitting them. We broke pretty good, lay on the fence, came out for a run and then just couldn’t get there. It wasn’t our day.” KIARAN MCLAUGHLIN (Soldat, 11th) – “He came back from the race in good shape, he just was flat the last part. Congratulations to the winners, John Velazquez and Graham Motion, who are great people and very deserving. We’ll fly out Monday and head back to New York.” TODD PLETCHER (Stay Thirsty, 12th) – “I thought we had a real good trip. He just didn’t have that big punch. We didn’t have any visible excuses.” MIKE MAKER (Derby Kitten, 13th/Twinspired, 17th) – “Our two just got outrun from what I could see. Not our day.” JUAN ARIAS (Decisive Moment, 14th) – “I’m very pleased. We had to change the way he runs, but there’s nothing we can do about it.” JINKS FIRES (Archarcharch, 15th) – “I just don't know. I need to talk to (jockey) Jon (Court). All I could see what he got shuffled back, but that's what we were afraid would happen.” BOB BAFFERT (Midnight Interlude, 16th) – “He broke well but then he got pinched back and after that he never got to running. Victor (Espinoza) said he was out of horse early. Just one of those things. It wasn’t his day, maybe the inexperience and the big crowd got to him.” KATHLEEN O’CONNELL (Watch Me Go, 18th) – When the 19 (Nehro) broke out we should have been able to save ground but instead we went up there on the outside. It’s unfortunate, but we’ll live to fight another day. Look what happened to Archarcharch. My hearts bleeds for him (trainer Jinks Fires). PETER MILLER (Comma to the Top, 19th) – “It appears my horse chipped his left ankle. We could see it when we brought him back. I believe we will have Dr. (Wayne) McIlwrath from Colorado State University take it out in the next little while. Then he’s got to go on the sidelines for at least 60 days. This isn’t the end of the world and hopefully it won’t be too bad. My horse tried; he always tries and for the first mile of the race he was right there. In the end it looks like we do have a real good miler or mile and a sixteenth horse. We got to run in the Kentucky Derby. How special is that?”
POST-DERBY LOSING JOCKEY QUOTES
“I've got to thank Steve and (assistant) Scott Blasi. They got this horse here and it's a pretty tough campaign just getting here, to have enough graded earnings. For him to run this big in this race is impressive." You seemed to sense right out of the gate that the pace wasn't hot. “That's my job is to sense it and to know how fast I'm going and that's why I was where I was. I knew if I slowed him down anymore than what I already was he's going to bunch up his stride and he's not going to run the race that I need he thinks to run to keep going. It didn't set up for us, he ran a great race, the winner was just a little bit better today. I ended up having a great trip with the outside post that we had. It's difficult when you're out that far to save as much ground as we did. He ran a tremendous race." And how did he finish once you assumed the lead? He just kept running. He keeps grinding and he keeps going once he's got that cruising speed and the way the race set up there was no pace so it didn't set up for his style. I was wanting it to go 22 and change and 46 and change. I imagined sitting eight, nine lengths back and tucking in where I want to be. It ended up being no pace like I thought might happen so I got lucky enough to make the right call. He ran a tremendous race.” RAJIV MARAGH (Mucho Macho Man third) – “I had a great trip. My horse gave me a great feeling all around the race track. At every point in the race that I needed something from him, he gave it to me. He was just third. He ran 110 percent. He kept coming on all the way through to the wire. He ran an amazing race.” JESUS CASTANON (Shackleford, fourth) – “It was an easier pace than some expected, but we were willing to take it. He led on his own and ran really, really big. I rode him a little bit away from the gate and he did the rest on his own. When they came to me, he picked it up really nice and gave me a good run down the stretch. I’m very happy with his run and he’s improving, this horse. He’ll be better and better down the road.” GARRETT GOMEZ (Master of Hounds, fifth) – “I really like him. It was a great run for his first time on dirt. We had a really good trip. Who would have thought they would slow it down to 48 and change. Down the backstretch they threw the airbrakes on and it cost us. We were at the mercy of the pace. He ran sensationally through the dirt. I’m looking forward to riding him in the Belmont Stakes." SHAUN BRIDGMOHAN (Santiva, sixth) – “I thought we had a phenomenal trip. Hard to believe. We saved ground, but today just wasn’t his day to win. He didn’t disrespect himself at all. He ran pretty well and was right there.” JOEL ROSARIO (Brilliant Speed, seventh) – "I had a good trip. My horse after the first turn was a little bit aggressive. I just tried to hold him back a little bit and take my time on the inside but I couldn't. Maybe that doesn't happen and I can finish maybe third or something like that. But I got a good trip. I got on the outside, probably a little wide but for the Derby you got to make sure you don't get stopped or anything like that. Whatever you can find where you're clear you have to take." JULIEN LEPAROUX (Dialed In, eighth) – “He had a good trip. It went the way we planned it in the back, but they didn’t back up to us today.” ROSIE NAPRAVNIK (Pants On Fire, ninth) – "I couldn't have wished for a better trip. We had to adjust minimally into the first turn but we were in a good spot and he ran so well. He galloped out past them. I think the best feeling was when I just kind of tapped him to see what I had about the 4 1/2 and I angled him out to the outside and I had some left and I was like, 'Oh boy, I wonder where we're going from here.' " CALVIN BOREL (Twice the Appeal, 10th) -- “No excuses. He tried. He gave me a little spurt, but it wasn’t to be.” ALAN GARCIA (Soldat, 11th) – “Everything was good with him but by the three-eighths pole, he was done but hopefully we will do better next time." RAMON DOMINGUEZ (Stay Thirsty, 12th) --“I’m happy with his effort. He tried hard. We just couldn’t get there. No excuses.” JAVIER CASTELLANO (Derby Kitten, 13th) – “I was in a good spot most of the way and had a good trip. My horse’s style is to race from far back and that’s where we were early. My horse didn’t handle the dirt and he’s probably better on turf or Polytrack.” KERWIN CLARK (Decisive Moment, 14th) – “It was all right, but we were stuck down on the inside. I really thought coming to the top of the stretch that he’d show more speed. He tried he really did.” JON COURT (Archarcharch, 15th) – “He just didn't feel comfortable in the last 16th. I never was really comfortable in the race. My saddle slipped coming out of gate. I don't know why, because the equipment was on perfectly. He had never felt like that underneath me, so I had the vet take him back as a precaution. He just didn't pull up comfortably enough." VICTOR ESPINOZA (Midnight Interlude, 16th) – “He come out of the gate good but he just didn't have enough. By the five-eighths pole I had no horse. I had a good trip actually but I was surprised I didn't have enough. He got a little bit warm before we went into gate, the crowd noise might have bothered him a bit but we had no excuse." MIKE SMITH (Twinspired, 17th) – “I had a great trip, but maybe he just didn’t handle the track. No other excuses.” RAFAEL BEJARANO (Watch Me Go, 18th) – “I am disappointed he didn't run better.” PATRICK VALENZUELA (Comma to the Top, 19th) – “I had a perfect trip. He just can’t go the mile and a quarter. I can’t complain.”
Post-Race Transcript THE MODERATOR: Thank you for joining us. We have the connections of the Kentucky Derby winner, Team Valor International's Animal Kingdom. We have the winning connections including the chief executive officer of Team Valor International and the founder of that organization, that's Barry Irwin. Just to his right is Graham Motion, now a Kentucky Derby winning trainer, and after a incredible turn of events in the last 24 hours, John Velazquez is a Kentucky Derby winning jockey and our connections are here to celebrate with us. You truly have an international organization. You came excruciatingly close to winning this race in 1997, and just give us what's running through your mind right now accomplishing this goal. BARRY IRWIN: First of all, I've only won a couple of really big ones and when it happens, it's just surreal, is all I can tell you. You see it and you know what happened, you're there, but it's just hard to process. So that's my immediate thought.
The other thought is, I like to try to make history if I can, and we made a lot of history today. This is the first horse that came to win this race with only four previous races, since Exterminator in 1918, the first horse to win after a six‑week layoff since Needles in 1956 so that means a lot to me.
The MODERATOR: Your thoughts as you came storming home; were you able to follow him throughout the race and keep up with him all the way around?
BARRY IRWIN: I couldn't see a whole lot from where I was sitting, so I picked him up just before the eighth pole, I saw him storming, and my wife was going crazy, so I knew we were alive.
The MODERATOR: Let's go to your trainer, Graham Motion, he's been here a couple of times and looked like he was going to be here with two horses in the Derby. Now you win this race with Animal Kingdom, congratulations, and your thoughts on this it accomplishment and what this horse has accomplished this afternoon? H. GRAHAM MOTION: Somebody said, are you surprised to win with a second‑tier horse, and I said, I'm not sure we would categorize him as a second‑tier horse. He's been an extraordinary horse to train in the morning. What Barry said to me, I was running Animal Kingdom with him, I liked Pluck but this one is special. He's done everything. He's just a very special horse and I was so impressed with how he handled everything today.
Johnny said both him and the horse were so relaxed. Johnny said I was relaxed but I think that was more for show. He's just a very special horse.
THE MODERATOR: Johnny, a lot of unusual stories on jockeys getting to the Winner's Circle on Derby day and yours will go right up there with them. It looks like you lost mount on one of the favorites, and now you pick up the mount on Animal Kingdom a few hours later and now you're in the Winner's Circle. Can you describe what this moment is like and over the last 24 hours?
JOHN VELAZQUEZ: Guess it was meant to be. A lot of things happen for a reason. People came to me and said, three years, back to back, and I guess it was meant to be for you no matter what. It had to happen the way it happened today. And you know, it's a little strange because one of our own jockeys got hurt and that's how I picked up the mount, but I definitely have to say thank you to the whole partnership, Barry, Graham, for giving me the opportunity and thinking of me, thinking of me and giving me the opportunity to ride the horse and it worked out really, really well for us.
THE MODERATOR: John, did you have trouble at any point? What were your thoughts during the race and was there any point where there was some suspense? JOHN VELAZQUEZ: We talked about it before the race and the whole thing we wanted to do, basically get some sort of position and stay out of trouble. That was our thing. Hopefully we get a clean trip without having so much trouble and even we save a little bit of ground but not so much where we get into attack or get into trouble
He did everything so good and he gave me so much confidence going into that first turn and he was going well the whole way around, you know, it's like you have to have the horse to get out of trouble and to get the spot that you want, and he did that. And when I asked him to run, he was there for me. And it's a feeling that is, you can't describe it, and obviously coming to the Derby and riding this horse like this, and he's doing everything that you are asking for, and it's amazing.
THE MODERATOR: Barry, before we open up for questions, you stopped by my office earlier today to watch a race at Belmont Park that you won, with a horse related to your Derby winner and you walked out of the office you said, "This could be a lucrative day." Talk about that story. BARRY IRWIN: Earlier today at Belmont, we won a grade‑three bogay (ph) handicap with a mare named Daveron. I bought her as a yearling in Germany, and then later, when the dam of Animal Kingdom came up for sale at auction and I noticed it was the same family as Daveron and I bought her and her first foal was Animal Kingdom.
Let me say one other thing. I think this was a big weekend for the partnerships, Peachtree, Todd (ph) won a race today we won this. I hope these racetracks pay attention to the partnerships and treat us a little better than they have been treating us.
JOHN VELAZQUEZ: When he came today, I talked to him and just asked how he felt. I didn't think he was coming to ride today. The only thing he said to me, "You're riding a good horse."
Q. When we talked two weeks ago, you said you'd have to be an idiot not to be concerned that the horse had not run on dirt and I said, I know you're not an idiot. When did you realize that the horse could, in fact, handle this today over the last couple of weeks? BARRY IRWIN: We only had one chance, and that was that one Saturday when he worked. He had a very strange preparation for this. He had one work in Keeneland where he probably worked a mile in 1:37 when he was supposed to go three quarters and then the next work, we worked ‑‑ the next workout was one of our horses that he could go on the dirt, but he just couldn't go on the poly, and then our horse went too slow. And then he came here and his dirt work was a real eye‑opener and that's what gave us the confidence to go ahead.
If he had not done that, we would have skipped the Derby. We would not have run in the Derby just for the sake of being here, believe me.
BARRY IRWIN: I don't think I need to. I think the people that hear that, they will know exactly what I mean. It does not require elaboration.
BARRY IRWIN: Were we going to make the change no matter what?
BARRY IRWIN: Well, what happened was, Graham and I talked about it, and our decision the night before, the night before Friday, was that if Robby rode on Friday that we were going to go with him. But if he didn't, we would consider that to be a telltale sign. We thought that was just a risk that we were not prepared to take, and you know, when Johnny came open, we decided to go with him. We just didn't dump Rob just to get Johnny. I wouldn't do anything like that. I like Robby. He's won a lot of good races for us. He's a hell of a pro, and this thing just came up bad, and believe me, we will find a way to make this up to Robby.
JOHN VELAZQUEZ: Well, you definitely feel bad. In this business, it's a roller coaster, basically, and I've been on the other end as well, that I've been hurt, and I've seen the horses I've been riding and winning. So I've seen it a lot. But I told Robby, don't worry, if we win this race, I'm going to take care of you. H. GRAHAM MOTION: Yeah, it really has been an extraordinary week. I felt really good about running both these horses. I remember talking to David Grening on Sunday after I worked at Toby's Corner and that was the last of the three horses that I was running this weekend and I felt probably about as good as I've felt for a long time about anything. Walking in the barn on Monday morning, and I had even had a good night's sleep that night I think finally and I walked in Monday morning and David took me aside and he said, this horse, he's not right. I about fell over. That's about as tough a blow as you can get the week of the Derby.
So, I mean, it was an odd conversation for me to get on the plane on Tuesday, to come here with what I felt was a very light horse in the Derby but still to have a sense of disappointment.
JOHN VELAZQUEZ: Well, he does everything great. No bad habits. He handled everything very good today. He was very professional today, definitely. H. GRAHAM MOTION: Barry and I always talk about what we are going to do with the horses. Barry has been in the game a long time. He's probably more knowledgeable than I am about it. So it was something we discussed. We felt a conservative way to come back was to get him in a grass race. You know, it's been well publicized that our original idea was to run the Rushway (ph) because we really felt that if we were going to run him in the Derby, he ought to have two preps, the Rushway and the Blue Grass.
Once he won the Spiral, Barry and I talked about it and I just said, if we are going to go to the Derby with what I felt was a very light horse, I just couldn't see putting him through another race. We knew he was a very good horse. And we took the conservative route and that's how it worked out and I'm glad we did it and hopefully that will help us two weeks from now. JOHN VELAZQUEZ: Like I said before, I talked to Graham and the whole thing was try to get to a clean race as we possibly can.
H. GRAHAM MOTION: We just felt the most important thing about this race was having a clean trip. When he drew the 16‑hole, we talked last night and we talked in the paddock, I just felt that having a clean trip was the main objective and that was how it worked out. JOHN VELAZQUEZ: Like I said before, I loved the horse going to the Derby and I handle it just the same way. It was not meant to be, and I was ‑‑ I didn't want to hang myself. And that was it. And I talked to the owners. I can't believe what happened again this year, but I prepare myself for the race anyway. I started race and I know the horses going into the race. The only thing I needed to do was pull back and watch this horse race and see a little bit about him.
I read the form. I know where I like to be. After talking to Graham, I felt we were very comfortable. He really gave me a lot of confidence off the horse and that's the main point of that. Once we talked in the paddock again that, we like to have a clean trip and we would like to take some ground, but the objective of the race was try to give him a good ride and a clean trip.
H. GRAHAM MOTION: You'd better believe it, but it's still the Derby. BARRY IRWIN: Well, I've been through economic downturns before, so I know what needs to be done. And we took some steps in the last year and the last six months, I would say, without wanting to sound too crazy, that I know we have made more money than any other partnership. But we might have made more money than most American stables in the horse business by selling horses around the world. I sold a horse named Gitano Hernando to the president of Chechnya. I sold part of a filly for a record price to one of the richest families in South Africa. We sold part of Pluck to a syndicate in Australia.
So our company is thriving. We don't have any trouble selling our horses out. But I know that other people are struggling, because the economy just sucks, you know, and until it comes back, it's going to be tough for everybody. BARRY IRWIN: Well, it's a combination of things. This is my 25th year racing horses for a syndicate. I started in 1987. And I've done this a long time. I'm 68 years old. I've reached the point where I still want to work hard, so then I don't want to have 18 trainers. I don't want to hear stories from 17 trainers every day. Unless you're there and you have one guy on your team that's on your side, you're not going to get the truth. And I reached the point where I was fed up with it. I also wanted to have my horses trained off‑site from the racetrack, because racetrack life for a horse isn't any good. And we found Fair Hill, which is, I wouldn't say it's a paradise for horses, but it's the closest thing to a European training center that we have in America. We have had horses with Graham for the last three years. I asked him early last year if he would train horses for us on a private basis. He didn't want to do it. So we waited about six, seven months, after he had a little more chance to work with me, and I asked him again, and he decided to do it, and then we decided to go that way. It's hard to find one guy that can train every kind of horse, but I think Graham comes pretty darned close. We gave him a young two‑year‑old by the same sire as Animal Kingdom and he ran second is first time out of Keeneland, four and a half furloughs. Any guy that can win a Derby and run a horse four and a half furloughs is my kind of guy.
H. GRAHAM MOTION: Seems like it was a pretty good decision on my part. (Laughter).
H. GRAHAM MOTION: Will I be on the ground? I had not really thought about that. Right now the plan is for the horse to leave Tuesday morning. That was always my plan, so I think I'll stick with it.
H. GRAHAM MOTION: I'm on a flight at eleven o'clock tomorrow morning, so I guess that's what I'm doing. Better ask my wife.
Q. Do you think you'll be at the barn tomorrow morning?
H. GRAHAM MOTION: I'll be at the barn. H. GRAHAM MOTION: Probably very early. Q. Barry, you've sought out international breed lines in your racing operation a lot. Is there any reason you've done that, and do you think anything from South America or Germany has contributed to Animal Kingdom? BARRY IRWIN: Well, I've always liked international racing, even when I was a turf rider. It's more interesting. I'm the kind of guy that gets bored very easily. I need a lot of different things to do. Following international racing is a lot of fun. I also think that we have not done enough importing of horses and blood lines from other places where horses don't run on drugs and horses legs are not manipulated and horses, basically, are bigger and tougher, stronger and sounder. And we have won a couple of big races now in the last six months, we won the Breeders' Cup with a horse that was out of a mare that I brought from South Africa, and this is a horse that I bought in Germany.
In Germany, you are not allowed to breed a mare that has ever raced on drugs, Lasix, Bute, nothing. So when you buy some stock from there, you know you're getting something good. So that's where I'm coming from. On this one, I actually brokered the deal to buy the stallion, Bobby Frankel was training him. I bought the mare. We bred him from one partnership and then we sold him at Keeneland. I bought him for another partnership. So we have had a hand in the whole thing.
JOHN VELAZQUEZ: I think I'm going to cross that bridge when we get there. No, seriously, I think this horse, the way it runs today, it would be a very hard decision from me to get off this horse to go to another one. That's just the way it is. Q. You've won big races and you've been a part of this race and all of the big races, but now that you've won it, what does this race mean to you and what do you think it will mean to you having won it? JOHN VELAZQUEZ: Honestly, this is the race that we all want. Anywhere in the world you go, they are asking you, have you been in the Derby and the second question after that, is have you won it.
It's a dream come true for all of us, obviously the jockey and the trainer and the owner. It's definitely one of those things that you have; now I can say I have a check mark on that one. I have that one. THE MODERATOR: You came so close in 1997 with Captain Bodgit and now you've won the Derby in front of the biggest crowd in the history of the race. It has to be a lovely marketing opportunity for your partnership and all partnerships. Do you think as the years went on that you were going to get to this opportunity, and now that you've got it, what can it do for you? BARRY IRWIN: Well, in 1997 when we ran Captain Bodgit, he was favored. I had utter confidence in the horse. I really did not think he would lose. I knew how good Silver Charm was and I knew that when you came to him, he just didn't quit. He had an extra little punch. And it was a tough race for me, because I like Alex Solis, he rode our horse, but Gary Stevens out‑rode him that day. He just took our horse's path on Silver Charm. Our horse had to just momentarily move out a little bit and it was enough to cost us the race. The combination of that, and Silver Charm being a tough horse, and it was very hard to get over it. But I was hoping I would be back again and be able to win it, and it happened. THE MODERATOR: How about the next two, you're the only one that can do it now and you've won it impressively. The Preakness and Belmont, what are the possibilities for this horse?
BARRY IRWIN: We'll talk about the Preakness. We'll talk about the Preakness, just put it that way. We'll see what we come up with. H. GRAHAM MOTION: I think it takes a certain kind of horse to do that, and I just felt confident that this horse could be a very, very special horse.n I think when you have a horse of that calibre, they can handle the switchover. BARRY IRWIN: You know, here is one of my pet peeves on turf writers. I can say this, because I used to be a turf writer. If a turf writer paid attention to a horse like this and just looked at the horse as an individual, and what he has done, I think they would have figured out why he was a buyable force, okay. This getting hung up on no turf horses have ever done this, no synthetic horses have ever done this, that kind of stuff; and getting bogged down in the statistics of the post position, no horse has ever won from the 19; maybe there's never a good horse in the 19, you know.
So all that stuff to me is nonsense. The only thing that counts is what has this horse done and how is he trained and what do the connections think of him. With this horse, this is nothing but positives. THE MODERATOR: We'll let you go to the party. Ladies and gentlemen, congratulations. FastScripts by ASAP Sports ...
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