The Preakness Stakes returned to its traditional spot on the calendar – the third Saturday in May – and delivered a feel-good story amidst a dark cloud hanging over the result of the Kentucky Derby two weeks before.
Rombauer, a product of the small breeding program of John and Diane Fradkin, rolled past Midnight Bourbon and Medina Spirit in the stretch to give trainer Michael McCarthy his first classic win in his first attempt and jockey Flavien Prat his second following a score aboard the elevated-by-DQ Country House in the 2019 Kentucky Derby.
McCarthy and the Fradkins didn’t agree on the trainer’s belief that they should take a shot at the Kentucky Derby – the homebred son of Twirling Candy had sufficient points to do just that – but the owner won out and the decision paid off. Rombauer won the $1 million Preakness by 3 1/2 lengths to end any hopes that Medina Spirit’s connections had of going to Belmont Park with a possible Triple Crown on the line.
Medina Spirit’s apparent Derby win still hangs in the balance as officials, horsemen and fans await the results of a split-sample test.
Bob Baffert didn’t show at Pimlico for the Preakness but he did make it to late-night TV with a parody as part of Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update. He won’t go to New York next month, not because he doesn’t have any runners for the Belmont Stakes Festival but because NYRA said thanks but not thanks with a temporary ban on the Hall of Fame trainer.
There’s plenty to unpack from a memorable few days in Baltimore but we’re ready to turn the page and look ahead of the rest of May, Memorial Day Weekend and the Belmont Stakes come June 5. See you soon.
Worth Repeating
“I didn’t know I had this many friends.”
Preakness winning trainer Michael McCarthy as his phone blew up in the post-race interview room
“Sure is.”
Trainer Mike Maker, after NBC’s Kenny Rice commented about his good day after back-to-back wins in Friday’s Black-Eyed Susan and Pimlico Special
“That’s your boy right there. Look at his ears … it’s a good omen.”
Clark Brewster, attorney for Amr Zedan, walking with his client and Medina Spirit from the stakes barn to the paddock
“Go Medina.”
Fan on the sparse Pimlico apron during the walkover
“How many hands is Medina, can you guys tell me?”
Another fan to Medina Spirit’s small entourage. We estimate the son of Protonico is more than 15 and not quite 16 hands
“He didn’t stop he just got beat. He kept running he still finished third. Most horses at the quarter-pole like when they get passed, they just give up and he kept running. You gotta give it to him.”
Jockey John Velazquez on Medina Spirit
“I was rooting for him if we couldn’t do it.”
Trainer Todd Pletcher on winning conditioner and former assistant Michael McCarthy
“I am at a loss for words.”
Jockey Mike Smith on ninth-place finisher Concert Tour
“I might get some stalls.”
Trainer Mike Maker, after winning his third of four stakes in the Grade 3 Maryland Sprint with Special Reserve
“We want to win big races on big days, and races that matter. Win percentage doesn’t mean anything if you can’t win the big ones.”
Trainer Ron Moquett after sending out Firecrow to upset win in the Jim McKay Turf Sprint
“He will be if I run him.”
Trainer Brad Cox on whether he still believes his first impression of Essential Quality as a ‘Belmont horse’
“The only thing that could have been better is a dead heat.”
Trainer Steve Asmussen after his 1-2 finish in the Chick Lang with Mighty Mischief and Jaxson Traveler
“I knew Steve [Asmussen] would be tough. When he comes, he brings good horses.”
Trainer Anthony Farrior on Hemp, third in the Chick Lang
“My horse, he ran, not 100 percent, he tried 200 percent.”
Jockey Javian Toledo on Hemp
By the Numbers
26: Small cans if paint strewn on the ground under the winners’ stand weathervane while owners John and Diane Fradkin’s colors were painted after Rombauer won the Preakness
1.5 million: Dollars paid for Hip 211, a colt by Quality Road from the family of A.P. Indy and Summer Squall, by West Point Thoroughbreds during Monday’s opening session of the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May sale of 2-year-olds in training.
8.6 million: Viewers during peak of NBC’s coverage of the Preakness Stakes. The broadcast featured an average of 7 million viewers, the best rating since 2018.
15,826,500: Dollars spent on 170 horses during Monday’s Midlantic May opening session, up 25.3 percent from last year’s first session.
$112,504,509: Record total handle on Saturday’s 14-race Preakness Day card at Pimlico, topping the previous mark of $99,852,653 set in 2019.
Stable Tour Update
The Fasig-Tipton Stable Tour, which appears in every edition of The Saratoga Special and ran in our limited run of The 2020 Special last year during the height of the pandemic, saw another classic winner touted before he made his 2-year-old debut last July.
Trainer Michael McCarthy made his Stable Tour debut in the July 4, 2020 edition of The 2020 Special, just ahead of sending a contingent to Keeneland for its short summer meet and after recovering from his own bout with COVID-19. He talked about 27 horses, including Grade 1 winner Ce Ce, stakes winners Rushie, Speech and Smooth Like Straight, fan favorite Ohio and to that point, the unraced Rombauer. The Twirling Candy colt posted his first breeze at Del Mar July 3 and here’s what McCarthy said:
“Has trained forwardly, was unfortunate, came up with a little bit of a foot bruise at Santa Anita, will run either 5 1/2 on the turf or a mile on the turf at Del Mar. Looks like he could be useful early.”
McCarthy stuck to that assessment and Rombauer proved him right, winning a 1-mile maiden race on the grass July 25 at Del Mar. He finished sixth, beaten just 2 lengths, in the 1-mile Del Mar Juvenile Turf Sept. 7 before being transferred to the main track and a runner-up effort 19 days later in the Grade 1 American Pharoah at Santa Anita.
By rough count that’s three classic winners who appeared on our pages before their big wins – Wonder Gadot, after her Queen’s Plate win and before the Prince of Wales in 2019; and Tiz the Law, who appeared as a 2-year-old in 2019 and before his win in last year’s Belmont Stakes.
High(ish) Security
Here’s something viewers watching the Preakness at home missed …
John Fradkin finished up his remarks, thanking those who played a part in Rombauer’s Preakness victory, from the winner’s stand just as a would-be animal rights protestor tried to steal the moment Saturday at Pimlico Race Course.
Decked out in khaki shorts, red short-sleeved shirt and a fluorescent safety vest, the male intruder ran onto the winner’s stand and put his face right in front of an NBC camera. He stood just a few feet from Larry Hogan, Maryland’s governor who many think will make a run at the Republican presidential ticket in 2024, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, 1/ST Racing’s Belinda Stronach, John and Diane Fradkin and NBC’s Ahmed Fareed. Looking into the camera, he shouted “no more death races, no more death races, no more death races” before being grabbed by the neck by security and quickly walked off out of sight.
Police handcuffed the intruder on the ground by fence separating the winner’s area from the 1/ST Chalet just past the finish line. Minutes later he was stuffed in a black SUV and driven off the grounds.
If you watch John Fradkin’s acceptance speech to the very end of NBC’s video you can catch the first moment of “no more…” before it cuts off.
Handicapper’s Report
ST Publishing’s eight handicappers – sort of like two four-packs of IPA, right? – returned for more swings at the Black-Eyed Susan and Preakness Day cards and Rob Whitlock came away as the leader.
Rob picked six winners, including four on Preakness Day, to give him 10 for the 2021 Triple Crown season. We count six cards (Friday and Saturday) as the season and two-thirds of the way through Rob, John Shapazian and Sean Clancy are tied at the top with 10 wins apiece.
None of the handicappers came up with Rombauer, one of three whiffs on Preakness Day along with The King Cheek in the Sir Barton and Special Reserve in the Grade 3 Maryland Sprint. Rob did come up with Mighty Mischief in the Grade 3 Chick Lang, Mean Mary in the Grade 3 Gallorette, T D Dance in the James W. Murphy and Somelikeithotbrown in the Grade 2 Dinner Party.
Tom Law – who tapped $21.60 winner Firecrow in the Jim McKay Turf Sprint – also came up with four winners on Preakness Day for five on the weekend. John, Sean and Jessica Paquette also picked five winners Saturday, while Paul tabbed four, Charles picked three and Joe took home two.
Now that you’re sufficiently confused with so many winners flying around, the overall leaders again are Rob, Sean and John with 10. Jessica is fourth with nine, Tom and Paul are tied for sixth with eight, Charles is seventh with seven and Joe trails with six.
Send Cash or Advice, ASAP
Speaking of handicappers, they might be able to pick winners but so far none are in the black after three rounds of the Bankroll Challenge.
Charles managed to hit three of his five multi-horse exacta bets on Preakness Day but still lost money. The biggest hit came with his $3 four-horse box in the Dinner Party and the Somelikeithotbrown-Talk Or Listen exacta returned $136.20 for his $36 wager. Charles finished down $11.20 on the day from the mythical $200 bankroll.
John scored $72 when he bet $40 to win on Mean Mary in the Gallorette, but his other plays lost and he finished down $128. Tom managed to cash on a place bet from his $20 to win and place on Vigilantes Play in the Gallorette, yielding $54, but he lost his other bets and finished down $146. Rob was blanked on the day.
The race for a positive return on investment continues with the Belmont Friday card June 4. Until then here are the standings:
1. Tom -$54.40
2. Rob -$96
3. John -$98
4. Charles -$288.80
