Derby Winner

Derby winner Barbaro takes big step forward Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro is picking his own grass now. Nearly three months after shattering his right hind leg in the Preakness, Barbaro took his first steps outside late last week and grazed in the grassy area adjacent to the intensive care unit at the New Bolton Center, where he has been since the devastating May 20 incident at Pimlico Race Course. "I was at Saratoga, when Mrs. [Gretchen] Jackson called me and said, `You'll never guess where I am. I'm outside with Barbaro and he's eating grass!

Todd Pletcher is not a man who enjoys idle moments. Even when he's riding in the passenger seat of an SUV — as he was Wednesday morning, when he made the journey from Monmouth Park in New Jersey to Baltimore — he cannot sit still. He does not listen to music, read a book, gaze at the scenery or make friendly conversation with the driver, assistant Adriane Hall. Instead, Pletcher works. He cracks open his laptop, pulls up his weekly reports and his schedules, and dials up his clients.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. -- It seemed appropriate that moments before Lael Stable's Barbaro ran his unbeaten streak to five Saturday with a victory in the Florida Derby, the families of 1956 Kentucky Derby winner Needles were honored in the winner's circle at Gulfstream Park. Needles is the last horse to win the Kentucky Derby off a layoff of five weeks or longer. Now, a half-century later, Barbaro becomes the latest colt to try to pull off the feat. There is no denying Barbaro's quality.

ELKTON -- While other Preakness hopefuls await shipping to Maryland from various locations, undefeated Barbaro continues to bask in the pastoral setting of the Fair Hill Training Center. Trainer Michael Matz indicated yesterday that Barbaro will probably arrive at Stall 40 in the stakes barn at Pimlico Race Course, traditionally reserved for the Kentucky Derby winner, on Thursday or Friday, but declined to say whether the horse will get a look at the track before the Preakness. "I don't think it's a real need that we get on the track," Matz said after Barbaro galloped on Fair Hill's wood-chip surface in the midmorning mist.

Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom had another strong workout Tuesday, perhaps his most focused exercise since arriving in Maryland, despite the fact that it was raining at the Fair Hill Training Center. Instead of running him in the mud, trainer Graham Motion sent Animal Kingdom out on the Tapeta Footings synthetic track for the second straight day, but he instructed jockey David Nava to make Animal Kingdom chase after a series of horses staggered in front of him to get the Derby winner back into the groove of racing.

Kennett Square, Pa. -- The waiting game continued last night for Barbaro, his owners, his trainer and the doctors treating him. It has been a tumultuous week for the Kentucky Derby winner who pulled up in the Preakness, but yesterday his veterinary surgeon provided two separate encouraging updates that were markedly different in tone than the ominous prognosis he delivered Thursday. "His vital signs, including heart rate and pulse, remain good," Dr. Dean Richardson said in a statement released by the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine at 4 p.m. yesterday.

Kentucky Derby winnerAnimal Kingdom was made a 2-1 morning-line favorite Wednesday for the 143rd running of the Belmont Stakes after he drew the No. 9 stall in the post position draw. Animal Kingdom, who is conditioned by Maryland trainer Graham Motion, will have his work cut out for him as he tries to become just the 12th horse to win the Derby and the Belmont. Only four winners have come from that position since 1905. But Motion said he doesn't think it will matter much. When horses are running a mile and a half, post position is less important.

Mighty ran a Kentucky Derby-winning race when blazing from last to first in the Louisiana Derby. But that was last weekend. The horse who will win the Kentucky Derby is the one who runs a Derby-winning race May 6 at Churchill Downs. Mighty could be that horse. He could be good enough to duplicate, even improve upon, his Louisiana Derby effort seven weeks from today. But the challenge, and the beauty, of choosing the Kentucky Derby winner is trying to predict what he -- or she -- will do when racing 1 1/4 miles for the first time.

Around the stakes barn at Pimlico Race Course this week, they've been talking about Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro as if he were a worn-out basketball. Will he bounce or won't he? "We're all hoping he bounces," Like Now trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said. In horse racing, "to bounce" means to regress after a hard race. To listen to the horsemen sending their thoroughbreds to post in the 131st Preakness Stakes today against Barbaro, it would appear to be their best chance of beating him. "I think the big horses have a big, big chance to regress off two weeks' rest," McLaughlin said.

Smarty Jones was so quiet and calm that morning in the starting gate at Philadelphia Park that he might have dozed off. But then, suddenly, as if stung by a hornet, he reared and cracked his head on an iron rod at the top of the gate. As suddenly as he had gone up, he went down. He crumpled upon himself, his legs underneath his belly, blood gushing from his head. Pete Van Trump, who had been sitting on his back, hung on until his mount vanished beneath him. He slid his feet onto platforms on either side of the starting-gate stall, reached down and yanked on the reins, trying to rouse Smarty Jones.