Many in horse racing would say trainer Larry Jones and part-owner Rick Porter, who are bringing Friesan Fire to the Kentucky Derby starting gate Saturday, are the sport's hard-luck connection.
But despite a fair amount of evidence to back that up, Jones and Porter would beg to differ.
The two saw filly Eight Belles tragically go down with two broken ankles after crossing the finish line second at Churchill Downs a year ago and get euthanized on the track, and this month they were forced to retire early Derby favorite Old Fashioned with a knee injury. Still, they see their glasses as far more than half full.
"It may look that way," Jones said of the hard-luck streak, "but we've been very fortunate to get to where we have been - to three Kentucky Derbys. There are people who work their whole lives aiming for the Derby and never get to one."
Even the first Derby appearance Jones and Porter made in 2007 could be viewed as something of a disappointment. With Hard Spun, they finished second behind Street Sense. Two weeks later at the Preakness, they were third with Hard Spun in a race won by the great Curlin. Even before that, Porter had Rockport Harbor, who was 4-for-4 as a 2-year-old in 2004 but never made it to the Triple Crown campaign because of a foot injury.
"We've had a lot of good luck, we've had a lot of bad luck, but to get there, believe me, it's not all skill," Porter said. "We had bad luck with Rockport Harbor, we had horrendous luck last year [with Eight Belles] and now Old Fashioned. But I know we belong this year with Friesan Fire, just like we did last year."
The notion of luck, fate, providence - whatever one chooses to call it - is not lost on Jones. It was a stroke of bad luck that led to the good luck that paired him with Porter and launched him into the big time.
"In 2005, a tornado came through Ellis Park, Ky., where we were headquartered," Jones said. "And that essentially wiped us out.
"We thought this was the worst thing that could possibly happen. But then we packed up and moved to Delaware Park, and that put me right under Rick Porter's nose, and here the first horse that comes through is called Hard Spun. So there was a plan in place long before that tornado."
With Friesan Fire, Jones and Porter have one of top five or so contenders in what could be a 20-horse field. The bay colt has three straight wins in stakes races, including the Louisiana Derby.
