Just days before the Kentucky Derby, trainer Graham Motion lost his top contender, Toby's Corner, to lameness.
Just days before the Kentucky Derby, jockey John Velazquez lost his mount, Uncle Mo, due to internal problems.
Their chances of winning the 137th Kentucky Derby appeared to be all but lost. Graham Motion still had one contender, Animal Kingdom, but he would be a longshot. John Velazquez had no mount and wasn't likely to get one, for all of the other Derby contenders had already secured riders.
Or did they? Just days before the Kentucky Derby, jockey Robby Albarado was involved in paddock spill in which he broke his nose. He was scheduled to ride none other than Animal Kingdom in the Kentucky Derby.
The decision was made by Barry Irwin -- leader of Team Valor, the racing partnership that owns Animal Kingdom -- and Graham Motion to replace Robby Albarado with a different jockey.
They chose John Velazquez.
And so Animal Kingdom carried the hopes of two skilled veterans of the sport into the Run for the Roses. To win the Derby, he would have to overcome a great deal of history. The son of Leroidesanimaux had made only four starts, all of them coming on either turf or synthetic tracks. No Derby winner had ever won the Kentucky Derby without previously racing on dirt. Furthermore, no Derby winner had won the Run for the Roses off of a six-week layoff since Needles in 1956. Animal Kingdom, unraced since winning the Vinery Racing Spiral Stakes (gr. III) on March 26th, was entering the Derby off of a six-week layoff.
On May 7th, Animal Kingdom was escorted to the starting gate at the start of the long homestretch beneath the Twin Spires as a record crowd of over 160,000 fans cheered. Into gate sixteen he went, Velazquez in the saddle. His odds of winning were 20.90-1.
But apparently, Animal Kingdom missed the memo.
For a few brief moments, nineteen three-year-old colts stood in the starting gate, facing the long homestretch that would seem longer when they entered it for the second time nearing the end of the race. None of them had ever before traversed the mile and a quarter journey of which they were about to embark. Nineteen jockeys waited anxiously for the start of the race, fifteen of them attempting to win their first Derby. On board the chestnut colt in the sixteenth post position sat John Velazquez. Only he knows what was floating through his mind in those fleeting seconds before the gates opened. Perhaps he was thinking about his previous mounts in the Run for the Roses -- or the mounts that might have been. In 2010, he had been scheduled to ride heavy Derby favorite Eskendereya, but the colt was injured before the race. In 2009, he was scheduled to ride Florida Derby winner Quality Road in Louisville. But quarter cracks kept the colt from the starting gate on the first Saturday in May.
Now, Velazquez was sitting on a longshot who would have to buck years of history in order to win the Run for the Roses. Could it be done?
Suddenly the gates flew open and nineteen dreams set off on the longest journey of their young lives, the weights of the dreams of their owners, trainers, and jockeys culminating to much more than the 126 pounds upon their backs.
Quickest into stride was Shackleford, runner-up in the Florida Derby. Under Jesus Castanon, who was riding in his first Derby, the gray colt took the lead and dropped on to the rail. Tracking him in second was Comma to the Top, followed by Soldat and Pants On Fire. Decisive Moment was tucked into a good spot along the rail in fifth, with the well-regarded Nehro sitting on the outside in sixth. Mucho Macho Man had secured good position early while seventh, and longshot Watch Me Go was in eighth after a troubled beginning from post twenty. Santa Anita Derby winner Midnight Interlude, trained by three-time Derby winner Bob Baffert, was in ninth, just in front of Stay Thirsty. Santiva was eleventh.
And then there was Animal Kingdom, sitting about four-wide early on while twelfth. John Velazquez had guided him as close to the inside as possible, and had put his colt into a very good position in between horses as the field rounded the first turn. Far behind him was the favorite, Dialed In. The winner of the Florida Derby was nearly twenty lengths off the pace.
The opening quarter mile was run in a fairly quick 23.24, with Shackleford on top by a length. But although it seemed like a fast pace at first, it wasn't. The half mile was run in :48.63, with Shackleford actually extending his lead to a length and a half. The large colt, who had missed by only a nose in the Florida Derby, was being ridden perfectly by Castanon. The colt was on the lead, on the rail, conserving his energy for the grueling final quarter mile. He would be very difficult to catch if he continued to get away with such a slow pace.
In the meantime, Animal Kingdom was still twelfth, about six lengths from the front. He was bred to be a turf or synthetics horse, had been racing on turf and synthetics, but seemed to be taking to the Churchill Downs main track extremely well. With six furlongs left to run, I imagine that Velazquez was cautiously optimistic.
Up front, Shackleford was continuing with his game of "catch me if you can," running three-quarters of a mile in a pedestrian 1:13.40. It was the slowest pace in the Derby since 1947. Suddenly, Dialed In was no longer the horse to beat. The slow pace would seriously compromise his late run. All of a sudden, Shackleford went from a 23-1 shot to the horse to beat. He had been allowed to set a very easy pace while maintaining an easy lead. As the horses swept into the final turn, Shackleford was only beginning to shift into his best gears. The flying gray colt lowered his head and charged; daring his rivals to catch him.
But John Velazquez didn't ask Animal Kingdom to pounce. Not yet. Later, in the homestretch, he would guide his colt into the clear and ask him for everything he had. That time would come soon enough. For the moment, he was content to let his colt sit and wait.
But Corey Nakatani on Nehro was not. Perhaps he realized that Shackleford was setting a slow pace and would be tough to pass in the homestretch. Not wanting to leave his colt with too much ground to make up in the stretch, he asked Nehro to go. With an explosive run, the colt charged up on the far outside, confronting Shackleford as the field turned for home. A quarter mile of ground remained in front of them, and $1,411,800 hung on the finish line. But alongside the rich check waiting for the winner hung Derby glory; a spot in the history books alongside the names of Secretariat, Seattle Slew, Affirmed, Twenty Grand, and Exterminator. Alongside the names of Ben Jones, Lucien Laurin, and James Fitzsimmons. Alongside the names of Eddie Arcaro, Bill Hartack, and Willie Shoemaker. Anyone who has ever become involved in the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing has dreamed of winning the Run for the Roses. For the majority, it is nothing more than a dream. But for a select few, the dream becomes reality.
As Shackleford and Nehro entered the homestretch, locked in a thrilling duel, one can only imagine what their riders were thinking. Castanon had ridden a perfect race, and now his colt had the lead at the top of the Churchill Downs homestretch. Never before had he ridden in the Kentucky Derby. Would he win the country's biggest race on his first try?
Nakatani was surely thinking similar thoughts, but his situation was different from Castanon's. Nakatani was a veteran jockey; one who had ridden in many Derbies over the years but had never before crossed the finish line first. Would this be the year?
Behind them, John Velazquez had just made a decision. He was nearly ready to ask Animal Kingdom for his run. But he needed racing room. There were two openings -- one on the outside and one on the inside. If he was to take the inside route, he could save some ground -- ground that could potentially win or lose the race. But if he was cut off, his chances at winning the Derby were over. The outside route was safer, but covered more ground. It would be sickening to take the outside route, close furiously, and miss by a nose, knowing that if he had taken the rail he might have won. Velazquez chose to take the outside route anyway -- perhaps feeling the power that was beneath him in Animal Kingdom.
Thus to the outside Animal Kingdom flew. With a quarter mile remaining, John Velazquez asked Animal Kingdom for everything he had, and the colt began to respond. Three lengths in front of them was Shackleford, still gamely clinging to the lead. Although obviously tiring, his great heart enabled him to keep going. A lesser horse would have thrown in the towel when confronted by such as worthy challenger as Nehro. But Shackleford was no ordinary horse, and with tremendous courage he was turning back Nehro with only a furlong to go!
Behind them, John Velazquez implored Animal Kingdom for more. The colt was gradually cutting into Shackleford's lead, but not quickly enough! It appeared as though Shackleford would succeed in accomplishing the near-impossible -- going wire-to-wire in the Kentucky Derby. But then, from deep within his tiring muscles, Animal Kingdom summoned additional stamina. With the blood of the champion Leroidesanimaux flowing through his veins, he accelerated courageously. Inch by inch, then foot by foot, he charged after Shackleford. With only a hundred and fifty yards to go, he took over the lead as the screams of the crowd reached their crescendo. In the stands, a trainer watched in awe as the second-stringer in his stable took the lead in country's biggest horse race. A race that defines a career like none other.
Two men, thrown together by disappointment, had teamed up to make the best of the circumstances. A longshot named Animal Kingdom had carried their dreams to Louisville and into the starting gate for the Run for the Roses. When he crossed the finish line first, not only had he defeated his eighteen rivals, but he had defeated over a century of history. He had accomplished what few had felt him to be capable of doing, and in doing so he helped fulfill the dreams of John Velazquez and Graham Motion in dramatic, thrilling fashion.
The record books show that Animal Kingdom crossed the wire first in the 137th Kentucky Derby by 2 3/4 lengths. It had taken him 2:02.04.to complete his mile and a quarter journey. Behind him, Nehro came back on to finish second, while Mucho Macho Man narrowly edged out a tiring Shackleford for third. The colt that looked like a winner at the eighth pole finished fourth, beaten 3 3/4 lengths. But he had given it everything he had, and that's all you can ask.
Prior to the running of this race, the general consensus was that it was a nearly impossible race to handicap. Speed figures, video replays, and past performances are useful tools in handicapping horse races. But if you had handicapped the race strictly by best "feel-good" story, it would have been mighty hard to have not picked this winner.
-Keelerman
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