Derby winner I’ll Have Another 5-2 second favorite for Preakness
BALTIMORE — Doug O’Neill could have been insulted. The Preakness odds had just been announced and the Kentucky Derby winner was second favorite behind a horse he ran down and defeated two weeks earlier.
O’Neill smiled. He figured the handicapper at Pimilico Race Course was merely displaying reverence for Bodemeister trainer Bob Baffert rather than dissing Derby winner I’ll Have Another.
“Bob Baffert has won five of these,” O’Neill stated Wednesday. “I’ve never run a horse here. I totally respect that. I just hope anyone who bets Bodemeister is regretting it Saturday night.”
Baffert was asked whether being a five-time Preakness winner was an advantage.
“I’ve won it with the ideal horse. That’s why I’ve won it,” he replied. “That’s the ideal advantage you can have.”
And Bodemeister, who arrived at Pimlico on Wednesday, is in excellent shape.
“He looked great this week. He looks healthy,” Baffert said. “He doesn’t look like a horse that just ran a mile and a quarter.”
Despite losing the Derby to hard-charging I’ll Have Another, Bodemeister was installed as the 8-5 favorite in Saturday’s second jewel of the Triple Crown.
I’ll Have Another was a 5-2 pick on the morning line.
Baffert was delighted to receive the No. 7 post in the 11-horse field.
“With him, anything in the middle would be fine,” the Hall of Fame trainer said. “With the Preakness, you just do not want to be stuck on the inside where you have to use your horse a tiny bit. The Derby winner drew really well, also.”
I’ll Have Another will begin from the No. 9 post. The colt, who won the Derby out of the No. 19 post, will again be ridden by Mario Gutierrez.
“Anything with a nine in it, we feel very good about. We’re cool with it,” O’Neill said. “We talked about the possibility of being inside Bodemeister and really forcing our hand to push him early. Now it’s in Mario’s hands to still kind of push Bode, but we will be on the outside of him.”
The question is: Does Bodemeister have enough left to sprint to the finish in the 1 3/16-mile race?
“You cannot run as fast and as hard as he did and not have it affect you,” stated Barry Irwin, managing partner of Went the Day Well, who completed fourth in the Derby and is a 6-1 shot in the Preakness.
A victory would give I’ll Have Another the chance to become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978.
“I’m confident,” O’Neill said. “You never know. But as long as we continue to train like our horse is training, we will not be that far off Bodemeister. If anything Bodemeister might be behind us early.”
The odds were set by Pimlico Race Course handicapper Frank Carulli. The field is the smallest since 2007, when Curlin beat Derby winner Street Sense in a nine-horse field.
Also entered are Tiger Walk (30-1), Teeth of the Dog (15-1), Pretension (30-1), Zetterholm (20-1), Went the Day Well (6-1), Creative Cause (6-1), Daddy Nose Best (12-1), Optimizer (30-1) and Cozzetti (30-1).
Creative Cause trainer Mike Harrington, whose horse completed fifth in the Derby, was delighted with the No. 6 post.
“I do not think it affects our running style,” Harrington said. “With 11 in there, post position is not almost as important as the Derby. The middle is great. You could not ask for anything better.”
Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas has a long shot with Optimizer, but spoke optimistically after getting the No. 10 post.
“I love it. I love the horses inside of me,” Lukas said. “I love the whole thing. If they gave me a pick, I would have picked that one. It turned out great. Every time they drew another one, it looked better.”
Random News
- Scores die as Syrian forces attack cities
- Hollywood Walk of Fame's lack of minority stars
- Find your next career here
- Robert Pattinson causes a stir at a deli
- Cover story: Extreme TV pushes the limits
- I determine on my own endeavoring to just like all belongings Marc Jacobs generates that there, might be understanding, When i do not.
- NATO apologizes for Afghan civilian deaths
- Student accused of plotting to bomb Bush home
- Come with us on our next casino visit to play blackjack
- How Has Web Hosting Changed in Recent Years?
Submited at Thursday, May 17th, 2012 at 12:00 pm on Sports by Alina
Comment RSS 2.0 - leave a comment - trackback
