Essential Quality, Mandaloun, Helium Among Kentucky Derby Runners Returning To Work Tab

Several locally based contenders from the recent $3 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (Grade 1) returned to the work tab Saturday and Sunday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.

Trainer Brad Cox was not represented in this year's Preakness Stakes (G1) but his Derby duo of Godolphin's Essential Quality and Juddmonte Farms'' Mandaloun both recorded easy half-mile moves early Saturday morning. Essential Quality worked in :50.80 while Mandaloun breezed in :48.20.

Cox and Godolphin reported following the Derby that Essential Quality would be considered for the third jewel of racing's Triple Crown, the $1.5 million Belmont Stakes (G1) on June 5. A next race option for Mandaloun is still to be announced.

Another Derby runner that recorded a Saturday work was D J Stable's $400,000 Tampa Bay Derby (G2) winner Helium, who cruised an easy half-mile in :48.80. Trainer Mark Casse's local assistant David Carroll reported the colt could target the $150,000 Matt Winn (G3) on May 29 at Churchill Downs.

One of the few horses to close significant ground into the pace of the Kentucky Derby was Bernard Racing, Tagg Team Racing, West Point Thoroughbredsand Terry Stephens' O Besos. The Orb colt worked a half-mile in :49.20 Saturday with jockey Marcelino Pedroza in the saddle. Trainer Greg Foley reported several options are being considered for the 3-year-old but a decision has not been made final.

On Sunday, M Racing Group's $250,000 Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) winner Like the King returned to the turf to work five furlongs in 1:02.40 under jockey Tyler Gaffalione with trainer Wesley Ward watching from the grandstand. Ward reported the son of Palace Malice could be considered for the $150,000 Audubon, run at 1 1/8 miles over the turf.

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Derby Diary: It’s a Wrap

“That's it, time to go home.” – Unnamed Churchill Downs usher, at approximately 7:15 pm EST.

I let those words pass through me after watching our horse Helium run his eyeballs out for over nine of the 10 furlongs, in arguably the most important races of his (and my) career.

A few minutes prior I felt like I was living in an alternate universe. I was so excited when Julien Leparoux guided Helium out of the starting gate to sit a mere 2-3 lengths off the eventual winner, Medina Spirit, cruising the first four furlongs in about 47 seconds. Helium sat chilly for another three furlongs until Two-Year-Old Champion Essential Quality loomed outside of him, when Julien had to ask for more from our colt. To my amazement, Helium initially surged forwardly with that rival and heading into the top of the stretch, it looked as if our boy was in real striking distance of the leaders. At that point I was so laser focused on our maroon and white silks that it seemed as if time was slowing down, even if I could feel the adrenaline in my veins surging. For a few more moments, I honestly thought that Helium was going to hit the board in the Kentucky Derby.

And just like that, all the weeks of planning, strategizing, organizing, corresponding, talking, interviewing, packing, traveling, and handicapping washed away as Helium faded to an eighth-place finish.

Of course, there are many silver linings to this story–first and foremost is that we actually ran a horse in the Kentucky Derby. Helium improved as a racehorse and showed that he can compete with some of the most talented three-year-olds in the country.

So, despite not hitting the board in Saturday's race, I am pleased to report that I did manage to cross some bucket-list Items off my list.

  • Successfully managed a horse into the Kentucky Derby.
  • Spent quality time with my family and friends.
  • Received countless emails, texts and direct messages from well-wishers. I cannot thank you all enough for that.
  • Inspected and evaluated our 2020 and 2021 foal crops.
  • Made the fabled pre-Derby pilgrimage from the barn area to the paddock with my father and best friend.

On the flight home from the Kentucky Derby, I couldn't help thinking that emotional hangovers are worse than physical ones. When you consume a bit too much alcohol, you can drink tons of water, throw down a few Advil and even make yourself regurgitate in order to rid yourself of any toxins. But it will take a longer period of time to purge myself of the internal questions about how we could have given Helium a better chance to place in the Derby. This certainly was a great learning experience, and one that I will never forget.

Final thought: I realize how special it is to have one of this year's Kentucky Derby entrants and really tried to embrace every moment of it. I want to thank Sue Finley and everyone at the TDN for providing me with the opportunity to share my inner thoughts with you. And as the Churchill Downs usher so eloquently put it: “That's it, time to go home.”

 

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The Haiku Handicapper Presented By Form2Win: 2021 Kentucky Derby

Time to analyze the 2021 Kentucky Derby field, in post position order, in the form of Haiku; a Japanese poem of 17 syllables, in three lines of five, seven, and five.

To read previous editions of The Haiku Handicapper, click here.

#1 – Known Agenda
A nightmare post draw
Torpedoes a true win threat
Still play underneath

#2 – Like the King
His road to Churchill
Traversed over Tapeta
Hard to envision

#3 – Brooklyn Strong
A last-minute call
When does that idea work?
Won't be on tickets

#4 – Keepmeinmind
Soph slump in effect
Likes the track, but that feels like
A lifetime ago

#5 – Sainthood
Recovered nicely
After Turfway donnybrook
He'll pass a few late

#6 – O Besos
Won't be knocked around
He'll earn his graded stakes due
In the months to come

#7 – Mandaloun
Early momentum
Was doused by a Fair Grounds dud
Rebounds don't win here

#8 – Medina Spirit
Couldn't seal the deal
Once he got the starting gig
On Baffert's depth chart

#9 – Hot Rod Charlie
The parts appear there
Just not sure how much I trust
The Fair Grounds prep route

#10 – Midnight Bourbon
Last two running lines
Have the same end: Outfinished
Leave him on the shelf

#11 – Dynamic One
Rapid improvement
Might not take home the roses
But wait for the Spa

#12 – Helium
Has seen Thanksgiving
As much as he's seen a race
Since mid-October

#13 – Hidden Stash
A late-stage grinder
Can't hang with mid-tier hopefuls
Not a potent blend

#14 – Essential Quality
The unbeaten champ
Does little else but ace tests
Why would he stop now?

#15 – Rock Your World
Turf-to-dirt success
We'll know all we need to know
After the first turn

#17 – Highly Motivated
Nearly nipped the champ
A breakout win's imminent
Worth a small “win” share

#18 – Super Stock
Surprised at Oaklawn
Breaking his “check-getter” cred
Can't get too enthused

#19 – Soup and Sandwich
An uncommon sight
An Into Mischief that's gray
Might grab a mouthful

#20 – Bourbonic
Long-priced Wood winner
Needs the home stretch seas to part
Tough “win” strategy

Prediction
Champion retains
“Quality” resume grows
Then nine, seventeen

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Derby Diary: Destination Louisville

We departed New Jersey today-destination Louisville. The flight took almost two hours and thankfully was without incident.

But, in reality, the journey to this time and place began almost 40 years ago when my dad tore his Achilles while playing tennis. Back then, the best way to treat a ruptured tendon was to be placed in a cast from your ankle to your upper hip and keep your body as immobile as possible. Well, anyone who knows my dad understands that this directive was going to be short-lived. As someone once said to me decades ago, “Your father's mind is as active as a long-tailed cat at a rocking chair convention.”

So, after a few days of restlessness, my mother instructed me (at the age of nine) to take my dad out of the house. Anywhere out of the house was fine as far as she was concerned. So, I pushed my father in his wheelchair around the block a few times until a neighbor mercifully stopped us to talk about the weather, sports, the new house being built at the end of the street, etc. When those topics were exhausted, our neighbor asked if we wanted to join him at Monmouth Park – he had a $5,000 claimer who was the favorite.

The short story is that the horse won, we got our pictures taken in the winner's circle, cashed a few tickets and killed a hot summer day. On our ride home, I could see the wheels of my father's brain spinning. For the remainder of the summer, he pored over the IRS tax code seeking feverishly for horse-related depreciation schedules, hobby-loss rules, and passive vs. active definitions–yes, it's as exciting as it sounds.

That summer begat the beginning of two successful businesses-D.J. Stable and the Green Group. The former is our family-owned racing and breeding operation. The latter is my father's tax and accounting firm which specializes in the horse industry.

Technically the two businesses are mutually exclusive. But there is so much cross-over due to both groups being actively involved in our boutique industry. There are countless times when we attend sales seeking our next potential Grade I contender and end up consulting with a Green Group client about their taxes or reviewing a business opportunity. The bottom line is that we basically eat, drink, and sleep the horse business. We have found that it is the ultimate challenge trying to (as we call it) sweep the ocean back with a broom.

So now I sit here in a hotel room in Louisville, Kentucky on the last Thursday in April (not the same sexy ring as the first Saturday in May) and reflect on all the twists and turns through which our Thoroughbred career has taken us. What if my dad had not torn his Achilles tendon? What if our neighbor's claimer failed to hit the board? What if my father's interest that summer had turned to baseball instead of horse racing? What if we had not met Aron Yagoda, Mark Casse, Bo Hunt, Dr. Pugh and Susie Hart, Jeff Hayslett, the Taylor brothers from Taylor Made Sales, Bill Betz, Kim Valerio, and countless other people who have had such a positive impact on our success? What if last year's two-year-old sales were not delayed and someone else bought Helium? And finally, what if we ran out of luck, money and/or patience before we bought or bred Graded winners like Do It With Style, November Snow, Songandaprayer, Jaywalk, etc.?

The above life moments all lined up this way for a reason. So far it launched two successful businesses, provided my family with a remarkable shared interest, and presented countless opportunities for excitement (and heartbreak). Hopefully there will be more flights to Breeders' Cups, Oaks, Derbies and other Graded Stakes that I can share with my family. But for right now, I'm going to enjoy this one.

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