mr. big news | Horse Racing Free Tips

‘You Always Have That Dream’: Calhoun Looking Forward To Saddling Mr. Big News In Preakness

Bret Calhoun has accrued 3,192 victories and $86 million in purse earnings – both ranking 28th all-time in North America – in 26 years of training horses. The 56-year-old Texas product has won 42 graded stakes and 302 stakes overall.

But showing how difficult it is for the overwhelming majority of horsemen to even get a horse to the Triple Crown, Calhoun only last year had his first Kentucky Derby (G1) starter in Chester Thomas' By My Standards. This year he and Thomas had their second Derby starter in Mr. Big News, whose rallying third now is giving the men their first horse in the Preakness Stakes (G1).

“It's exciting. You always have that dream to have a Triple Crown horse,” said Calhoun, whose large stable is a force in Kentucky, Texas and Louisiana. “The horses that I've had the opportunity to train for years haven't necessarily been 3-year-old classic types as far as pedigree or conformation, really. I always would have loved to have competed in the classics but never thought it was realistic until here recently when we got just a little bit better caliber of horses that had talent and could develop into that kind of a horse.”

The like-minded Thomas appreciated Calhoun's work with 2-year-olds and began sending him horses a few years ago at the same time he was going to the sales to upgrade his stock. Another major client, Texan Tom Durant, was doing the same.

“Obviously it gives you a little bounce in your step to know you have those kinds of horses in your barn,” Calhoun said at Churchill Downs.

The son of a Texas school teacher who also owned and trained horses, Calhoun opened his own stable in 1994. His first graded-stakes score came in 2003 with Toby Keith's Cactus Ridge in Chicago's Arlington-Washington Futurity (G3).

A critical career move came in 2007 when Calhoun began a Churchill Downs-based division in Louisville for spring, summer and fall. Three years later, he won a pair of Breeders' Cup races with Chamberlain Bridge in the $1 million Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1) and Dubai Majesty in the $1 million Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) on her way to the female sprinter championship.

Finding the right 2-year-old to join the Triple Crown trail the next spring proved more elusive.

When By My Standards won the Louisiana Derby (G2) at 22-1 odds off a maiden victory, it was Calhoun's biggest victory with a 3-year-old. The Kentucky Derby didn't turn out well, an 11th-place finish in a roughly run race played out over a horribly muddy track, but By My Standards has emerged among this season's top older horses. When By My Standards got a break after the Derby last year, Calhoun and Thomas' Mr. Money picked up the slack by reeling off four graded-stakes victories.

Thomas, the Madisonville, Ky., entrepreneur who races in the name of Allied Racing, looked like he had several promising 3-year-olds in the spring. Others seemed more advanced, but Calhoun and Thomas believed the Giant's Causeway colt would thrive at the longer distances.

Mr. Big News finished fifth behind stablemate Mailman Money's fourth in a division of the Fair Grounds' Risen Star (G2). In only his third start, Mailman Money lost by only 2 1/4 lengths with a wide trip.

When it came time to enter the $1 million Louisiana Derby, staged right after COVID-19 began shutting everything down, Mailman Money got in the race and Mr. Big News landed on the also-eligible list, needing a scratch to run.

“We felt (Mailman Money) deserved to run, but honestly we were desperate to run Mr. Big News because he was doing so, so well,” Calhoun said. “At the last minute we decided to run Mailman Money and not Mr. Big News. And of course Mailman Money didn't run well that day and Mr. Big News worked incredible that next day. I was just sick that I didn't run him.”

With Keeneland canceling its spring meet and options shrinking, Mr. Big News was sent to Arkansas for the $200,000 Oaklawn Stakes, which offered a fees-paid spot in the Preakness Stakes to the winner. That non-graded race on April 11 was positioned on what normally would have been the Arkansas Derby, which was moved to the first Saturday in May after the Kentucky Derby was delayed until Sept. 5.

“Things are a little backward this year,” Calhoun said. “It's interesting because Mr. Big News won a stakes at Oaklawn that won a berth into the Preakness. At that point in time, I don't think we even knew when the Preakness was going to be run. We didn't know if this horse was going to be that caliber or not. Typical situation, improving 3-year-old, and here we are running Oct. 3 and he's moved forward, improved and taken us there.”

Albeit not directly. A sixth in Keeneland's Toyota Blue Grass (G2) rescheduled for July 11 seemed to derail Mr. Big News' Derby hopes. The new Plan B was to run on the new Derby Day, but in the Grade 2 American Turf.

“The Blue Grass was supposed to be his litmus test to figure out if he belonged with the upper echelon of the 3-year-olds,” Calhoun said. “Gabe (jockey Gabriel Saez, who was serving a suspension) wasn't able to ride him that day. Mitchell Murrill rode him well but didn't give him the type of trip that he prefers.

“We did get a little bit discouraged about moving on to the Derby, but we weren't discouraged with him. We thought it would be a safer play to take a little bit of a lower road. Lo and behold, the Derby doesn't overfill, gives us an opportunity to run. We were very confident in him getting a mile and a quarter. So we took our shot and it worked out well.”

Calhoun is realistic about the Preakness and making up 3 1/4 lengths on Kentucky Derby winner Authentic — as well as impressive Blue Grass winner Art Collector, who missed the Derby with a foot issue.

“We've got to be better, honestly,” Calhoun said. “We've got to improve, and Authentic has to either regress a little bit or have some kind of trip that's unfavorable to him and favorable for me. He was very impressive Derby Day. He earned it. He set hot fractions and finished up well. So there's a margin there that we're going to have to find a little more horse.”

Still, he says Mr. Big News has given him “every indication” that the colt is doing as well as he was heading into the Derby. And if Mr. Big News makes headlines in the Preakness?

“That's just another step forward in your career, kind of the pinnacle,” Calhoun said. “It's what I think every trainer and owner in this business strives for, a Triple Crown victory.”

The post ‘You Always Have That Dream’: Calhoun Looking Forward To Saddling Mr. Big News In Preakness appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Authentic Draws Post Nine; 11 Entered In 2020 Preakness Stakes

Kentucky Derby winner Authentic will be the 9-5 morning-line favorite in Saturday's Grade 1 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico, and drew post nine of 11 in the 1 3/16-mile contest. Hall of Famers John Velazquez and Bob Baffert will team up again to try to win two of three legs of this unique 2020 edition of the Triple Crown.

Second choice on the morning line at 5-2 will be Blue Grass Stakes winner Art Collector, who missed the Kentucky Derby with a minor cut to his hoof suffered on Monday of Derby week. The talented colt is fully healed, according to trainer Tommy Drury, and will break from post position three under regular jockey Brian Hernandez, Jr.

Trainer Ken McPeek will send out the Kentucky Oaks runner-up Swiss Skydiver from post position four in the Preakness Stakes, and the filly will get a new pilot in jockey Robby Albarado. She was tabbed at 6-1 on the morning line.

Baffert will also enter Kentucky Derby late scratch Thousand Words, who flipped over in the paddock and broke the wrist of assistant trainer Jimmy Barnes. The difficult colt will be ridden by Florent Geroux from post position five, and is 6-1 on the morning line.

Kentucky Derby runner-up Tiz the Law decided to skip the Preakness, but third-place finisher Mr. Big News will enter the classic for trainer Bret Calhoun. The late-running colt will break from post two and is 12-1 on the morning line.

Additionally, trainer Steve Asmussen will send out three entrants in the 2020 Preakness Stakes: Excession (Post 1, 30-1), Max Player (Post 8, 15-1), and Pnuematic (Post 10, 20-1).

The full field, with jockey, trainer, and morning-line odds, is as follows:

Excession – Sheldon Russell – Steve Asmussen (30-1)
Mr. Big News – Gabriel Saez – Bret Calhoun (12-1)
Art Collector – Brian Hernandez, Jr. – Tommy Drury (5-2)
Swiss Skydiver – Robby Albarado – Ken McPeek (6-1)
Thousand Words – Florent Geroux – Bob Baffert (6-1)
Jesus' Team – Jevian Toldeo – Jose D'Angelo (30-1)
Ny Traffic – Horacio Karamanos – Saffie Joseph, Jr. (15-1)
Max Player – Paco Lopez – Steve Asmussen (15-1)
Authentic – John Velazquez – Bob Baffert (9-5)
Pneumatic – Joe Bravo – Steve Asmussen (20-1)
Liveyourbeastlife – Trevor McCarthy – Jorge Abreu (30-1)

The post Authentic Draws Post Nine; 11 Entered In 2020 Preakness Stakes appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Preakness Notes: Alborado To Ride Swiss Skydiver; Ny Traffic ‘Most Likely’ To Run; Authentic Breezes Monday

Peter Callahan's Grade 1 stakes-winning filly Swiss Skydiver will compete in the 145th Preakness (G1) at Pimlico on Oct. 3, trainer Kenny McPeek confirmed Sunday.

Veteran jockey Robby Albarado will replace Tyler Gaffalione on the millionaire filly. Albarado won the Preakness in 2007 aboard future Hall of Famer Curlin.

When she goes to the gate at historic Pimlico Race Course, Swiss Skydiver will be the 55th female to run in the Preakness. The most recent of the five filly winners of Maryland's Triple Crown classic was Rachel Alexandra in 2009. Her success against males in Baltimore helped her capture the 3-year-old filly title and the Horse of the Year Award.

McPeek had talked about the 1 3/16-mile Preakness as a possibility for Swiss Skydiver since the summer and decided to send her in against males for a second time when she worked five furlongs in 1:00.80 at Churchill Downs Saturday morning. In June, the chestnut daughter of Daredevil won the Santa Anita Oaks (G2), her third straight victory. In her first attempt against males, she ended up second to Preakness prospect Art Collector in the July 11 Blue Grass Stakes (G2). On August 15 at Saratoga, she won as she pleased in the 1 1/4-mile Alabama (G1). Three weeks later, she was second in the Kentucky Oaks (G1).

“I know she will make the distance without any problem,” McPeek said. “I think she will like that racetrack. Of course, she has raced everywhere. Whatever racetrack she has raced over she has handled great. It was a tough call between racing against straight 3-year-olds or older fillies and mares or turf, which was briefly thought about. I think she will handle it fine.

“My preference would have been if they wrote a race back like the Alabama back for this week. But that doesn't exist. There are no 3-year-old filly Grade 1s. She gets a little bit of weight off and she's continuing to do good,” he added.

A victory against the boys would greatly enhance Swiss Skydiver's quest for year-end honors.

“I think if she wins a race like this you've got to include her possible Horse of the Year,” McPeek said. “She's danced every dance and she's been hickory and she had entertained the fan base like probably no filly in years. I think it's a chance to make history.”

The other dirt option for McPeek prior to the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) at Keeneland on November 7 was the Spinster (G1) on Oct. 4, also at Keeneland.

Preakness entries will be taken Monday. Swiss Skydiver will ship to Maryland from Kentucky on Tuesday.

“It will be interesting to see where she draws,” McPeek said. “I think she runs better from the outside and I think drawing the one-hole cost her the Oaks. I think she got pinned down in there and if my rider had stayed inside he probably would have won. But he went around. Hindsight is 20/20. It is what it is.”

Ny Traffic Likely for Preakness Following Sunday Breeze
Ny Traffic breezed a half-mile in 48 seconds at Churchill Downs Sunday morning to the satisfaction of trainer Saffie Joseph Jr., who stopped just short of committing the Haskell (G1) runner-up to Saturday's Preakness.

“Most likely he's going to go, but tomorrow we'll make the decision,” Joseph said. “We were very happy with the work.”

Ny Traffic's half-mile clocking was the second-fastest of 88 recorded at the distance.

Sunday's workout was his first since finishing eighth in the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby (G1), in which he was a forward factor early before weakening in the stretch. He exited the Derby with a cut in his left front ankle.

The son of Cross Traffic had previously lost by a nose to eventual Kentucky Derby winner Authentic in the July 18 Haskell at Monmouth Park.

Derby Hero Authentic Slated to Breeze Monday at Churchill
Following more stakes success at Santa Anita on Saturday, Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert flew from California to Kentucky Sunday morning to check on his Preakness candidates Authentic and Thousand Words.

Authentic, Baffert's record-tying sixth Kentucky Derby winner, is scheduled to work Monday morning at Churchill Downs. Thousand Words, a three-time stakes winner, had his final Preakness work Saturday.

“All good. He came out of it really well,” Baffert said about Thousand Words. “He's on course.”

Baffert said he will make the final call on his Preakness horses Monday morning before entries close. The post-position draw is set for noon.

In the Preakness, Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez will ride Authentic and Florent Geroux will ride Thousand Words.

Saturday afternoon at Santa Anita, Baffert saddled the 1-2 finishers in the Chandelier Stakes (G2), Princess Noor and Varda, before saddling the top two finishers in the Awesome Again (G1), Whitney (G1) winner Improbable and heavy favorite Maximum Security, winner of the Pacific Classic (G1).

Art Collector on Track for Trip to Pimlico
Bruce Lunsford's Art Collector, winner of the $200,000 Ellis Park Derby and Keeneland's Blue Grass (G2) in his last two starts, did a combination of walking and jogging at Churchill Downs under Welter Davilla Sunday morning.

“I just wanted to let him move around a little without actually training,” trainer Tommy Drury said.

Art Collector, a son of 2006 Preakness Stakes winner and 3-year-old champion Bernardini, worked a half-mile in 48 seconds on Saturday.

Lunsford, Drury and jockey Brian Hernandez are shooting for their first Triple Crown win, with Drury making his first start in the series. Lunsford has never had a Preakness starter, but his horse Vision and Verse was second by a head at 54-1 odds in the 1999 Belmont Stakes (G1) won by Lemon Drop Kid.

Allied Racing's Mr. Big News, the Kentucky Derby third-place finisher at 46-1 odds, jogged a mile Sunday morning under regular exercise rider Tony Quinones. Mr. Big News is to fly to Baltimore Tuesday. He's trained by Bret Calhoun and will be ridden by Gabriel Saez. Calhoun, Saez and Allied Racing's Chester Thomas all are seeking their first wins in the Triple Crown series, with the trainer and owner set to participate in the Preakness for the first time.

The Steve Asmussen-trained trio of Pneumatic, Max Player and Excession all galloped Sunday. Winchell Thoroughbreds' Pneumatic, winner of Monmouth Park's Pegasus Stakes, is training at Saratoga, with George Hall and SportBLX Thoroughbreds' Max Player and Calumet Farm's Excession at Churchill Downs.

Max Player was fifth in the Kentucky Derby in his first start under Asmussen's care after finishing third in both Saratoga's Travers Stakes (G1) and Belmont Park's Belmont Stakes (G1). Excession makes his first start since finishing a good second to the highly regarded Nadal (since sidelined) in Oaklawn Park's Rebel Stakes (G2). Pneumatic was fourth in the Belmont Stakes before earning his first stakes triumph in the Pegasus.

Asmussen, who recently became only the second trainer to win 9,000 races, is seeking a third Preakness victory, following Curlin in 2007 and Rachel Alexandra in 2009. Both horses went on to be Horse of the Year, with Curlin also earning that title in 2008.

Godolphin's homebred Jim Dandy (G2) winner Mystic Guide breezed five furlongs Sunday in 1:01.60 over the main track at Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md. Trainer Mike Stidham has all but ruled out the Preakness.

“The work went great. It was on a wet track but he handled it really well. We were comfortable with it being a safe track to work on,” Stidham said. “He just went evenly and finished up nice with a good gallop out, but we're pretty much focused on skipping the Preakness and going into the Jockey Club.”

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Mr. Big News Breezes for Preakness

GI Kentucky Derby third-place finisher Mr. Big News (Giant’s Causeway) put in his final work for next weekend’s GI Preakness S. Saturday with a half-mile move in :50.40 (59/68) at Churchill Downs.

With regular exercise rider Tony Camacho in the saddle, the bay went in splits of :13.20 and :25.40 with a five-furlong gallop out of 1:03.20, according to Churchill Downs clocker John Nichols.

“He left the pole really strong, which is how he was working before the Derby,” trainer Bret Calhoun said. “We only wanted an easy work and I told Tony to go in :49 or :50 and gallop out well. He’s been fit after just running in the Derby and it’s been very promising how strong he’s acting in his works after the race.”

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