| |
Get ready to crown 'the great' Fusaichi
By Bill Finley
Special to ESPN.com
|  | | Kent Desormeaux knows he's got a shot at the Triple Crown aboard Fusaichi Pegasus. |
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Churchill Downs is usually pretty hungover the morning
after Derby Day, as tired people and tired horses struggle to get back to life as
they know it. It's always a long week, culminating in an exhilarating but
spending day, and these weary souls and, for some, weary livers want to
shut down.
But there was some giddy-up in everyone's step Sunday morning, a buzz
in the air on the backstretch of Churchill Downs. The Kentucky Derby is
yesterday's news, so the page was officially turned on this day to thoughts
of something even more special, the seeming inevitably that at last horse
racing will have a Triple Crown winner.
It was the Kentucky Derby that was supposed to be the toughest of the
three for (and we can now call him this) the great Fusaichi Pegasus. This
was were he was supposed to succumb to the hysteria and wind up in a straitjacket, where The Deputy and Jenine Sahadi could turn the tables, where Neil Drysdale's unorthodox training style might prove to be the wrong way to prepare a horse for a race that is so grueling.
Instead, the great Fusaichi Pegasus won by such ease that it was apparent
the other horses around him don't breathe the same air. He proved to be
the real deal, a much-hyped Kentucky Derby starter who exceeded every expectation and now heads to Pimlico with an air of invincibility surrounding his every move. It's about time. That hasn't happen since Spectacular Bid won the
Kentucky Derby in 1979, the last time a favorite won the race.
The winning margin of 1½ lengths is deceptive. It was the manner
in which he won. He seemed to glide by his rivals, not run past them. Jockey
Kent Desormeaux never so much as cocked his whip.
Horse racing is rarely a simple game. It's full of complexities and
uncertainties. Horses' performances can be as unpredictable as March
weather, one of the many reasons there are an awful lot of broke horseplayers
out there.
But sometimes it's as simple as this: Fusaichi Pegasus is far and away the best 3-year-old race horse in North America and there is simply no reason why he should lose in Baltimore or New York.
"I think you might have a Triple Crown winner at the other end of this barn," said Sahadi, pointing a few stalls down to where Fusaichi Pegasus rested. "I think the Preakness will be the easiest of any of the three for him. He's a raw talent and he just keeps getting better."
Sahadi has seen enough. She's taking The Deputy back to California and
will give him a month off and point for the Del Mar meet.
But others, perhaps gluttons for punishment, will take another shot
at Fusaichi Pegasus in Baltimore in the May 20 Preakness Stakes. It appears there will be a fairly small field, and that Fusaichi Pegasus will be 2-5 or
lower in the betting.
Among those likely to challenge him are Captain Steve, High Yield, Hal's
Hope, Snuck In, Red Bullet, Impeachment and More Than Ready. A few other
nobodies could still show up. Kentucky Derby runner-up Aptitude will wait
for the Belmont, as will Lexington winner Unshaded, who still must be supplemented to the Triple Crown.
"How do you beat him? You just have to keep going over there and trying,"
said High Yield's trainer Wayne Lukas. "You've got to be careful what you
say and I'm not trying to water down his performance, it was everything
it was built up to be.
"But it's not time for us to wave the white flag. It would be foolish to do that. The Triple Crown won't be a walkover. He'll
be tested again."
The only interesting new face in the Preakness mix is Red Bullet. Trainer
Joe Orseno has a talented horse who passed the Derby in order to be fresh
and ready for the Preakness. One problem: Fusaichi Pegasus blew his doors
off the one time the two met in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct.
Orseno thinks he can improve upon that performance because jockey Alex
Solis didn't follow instructions in the Wood. He had the horse too close
early and Orseno believes that's why Red Bullet didn't have any finishing
kick.
"Until I run against Fusaichi Pegasus and my horse has a chance to finish,
I'm not convinced he's unbeatable," Orseno said Saturday. "He was beaten
once (in his first career start), so he can be beaten again."
Probably. Some day. All horses lose, don't they? But in the Preakness
or in the Belmont? If he stays healthy, it's hard to imagine that anyone
can beat him.
There have been 11 Triple Crown winners, from Sir Barton in 1919 to
Affirmed in 1978. It's racing most exclusive club, but the membership list
is about to grow.
|
| |
