Big Brown is aiming to become the seventh Kentucky Derby champion in the past dozen years to capture the Preakness.
All previous six winners -- Silver Charm, Real Quiet, Charismatic, War Emblem, Funny Cide and Smarty Jones -- flirted with immortality before failing to become the 12th Triple Crown champion and the first since Affirmed in 1978.
Big Brown is the first winner since Citation in ’48 not to face any Derby runners in the Preakness because a fever sidelined fifth-place finisher Recapturetheglory.
There could be as many as a dozen challengers that didn’t race in the Derby, but such horses haven’t done well in the Preakness since the early ’80s.
During a four-year span, three such thoroughbreds wore the back-eyed susans: Codex, ’80; Aloma’s Ruler, ’82; and Deputed Testimony, ’83. Since ’84, only a pair of 3-year-olds that tried that strategy won at Pimlico as heavy favorites off their Derby victories went down to defeat.
In ’00, Red Bullet upset Fusachi Pegasus by three lengths. In ’96, Bernardini scored by 5 ¼ lengths as Barbaro broke down shortly after the start of the 1 3/16 miles.
Big Brown’s trainer and jockey have ties to the Old Line State. Conditioner Rick Dutrow Jr. was born and raised in Maryland, but has been based in New York for years.
His father won four training titles during the ’70s at Pimlico. “Every time Preakness would roll around Dad would win a race on Preakness Day,” he told Brisnet.com “Naturally I would like to won a race like that. It’s where I grew up.”
Dutrow’s older brother Tony was a top Maryland conditioner before moving his stable to Philadelphia Park four years ago.
Jockey Kent Desormeaux, who guided Big Brown in all three ’08 outings, won five Pimlico riding titles during the ’80s, plus an Eclipse Award for outstanding apprentice rider. He had nine mounts in the Preakness, winning aboard Real Quiet in ’98.Since the ’90s, I wagered on several winners of the Preakness who disappointed in the Derby: Hansel, ’91, who also won the Belmont; Timber Country, ’95; Louis Quatorze, ’96, who led at every call; and Point Given, who also captured the Belmont, ’01.
The Preakness, staged at seven different distances, has been run at 1 3/16 miles since ’25 when it was extended about 110 yards from 1 1/8 miles.
Last year’s record crowd of 121,263 saw Horse of the Year Curlin nose out Derby champ Street Sense. The winner covered the distance in 1:53 2/5, equaling the fastest Preakness timed recorded by Louis Quatorze in ’96 and Tank’s Prospect in ’85.
Another 3-year-old probably should have shared the record. On May 19, 1973, Secretariat broke alertly in the Preakness, but was taken back to sixth and last. Then jockey Ron Turcotte, sensing the pace was slow, gunned the Kentucky Derby winner to the lead.
At the half-mile pole, Secretariat was 2 ½ lengths in front. The Daily Racing Form chart caller described the early action:
“Secretariat broke well and was eased back and relaxed as the field passed the stands for the first time. He was guided outside two rivals entering the clubhouse turn and responding when Turcotte moved his hands on the reins, made a spectacular run to take command entering the backstretch.”
The margin didn’t change the remainder of the 1 3/16 miles. The Racing Form’s chart caller summed up the finish: “Secretariat was not threatened thereafter and confidently ridden to the finish.”
Pimlico’s infield telemeter displayed the time of 1:55. It was wrong. Some of the crowd crossing the track to reach the infield had damaged the electronic timer, causing it to malfunction.
Pimlico clocker E. T. McLean Jr. recorded a hand time of 1:54 2/5. However, two Racing Form clockers had the time at 1:53 2/5, which would have broken the track record of 1:54 set two years earlier by Canonero II.
In days following the race, CBS entered the controversy and displayed side-by-side taped replays of Secretariat and Canonero II showing Secretariat getting to the finish line first.
The hullabaloo lingered until the Maryland Jockey Club, responsible for maintaining Preakness records, recognized the track’s clocker hand-timed 1:54 2/5 as the official time.
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