Last year, in the weeks leading up to the Kentucky Derby, I wrote a post entitled "Who will Calvin Borel ride in the 2011 Kentucky Derby?" Borel, undoubtedly the most famous jockey in the country when it comes to the Kentucky Derby, has won three of the last five runnings of the prestigious race, and his rail-skimming rides have become legendary.
If you will recall, there was quite a bit of mystery leading up to last year's Derby in regards to who the master jockey would ride, for after disappointing performances in the prep races by potential mounts such as Elite Alex, Borel found himself without a mount and diminishing opportunities to secure one.
Fortunately, his agent Jerry Hissam was able to get his star jockey aboard longshot Twice the Appeal, upset winner of the Sunland Derby (gr. III). But although it was nice to see Borel not get left out of the race which has made him famous, it was somewhat disappointing when Twice the Appeal ran a non-threatening tenth, despite Borel keeping his mount along the rail in customary fashion throughout most of the race.
Although the results were indeed not what many were hoping for, the anticipation and excitement generated by Borel's quest for a mount could be felt in the air as the Derby approached. News of how the Derby horses were training almost seemed to take a back seat to the goings-on regarding Calvin.
In fact, my above-mentioned post discussing who he might ride -- even though I was ultimately wrong -- became the most popular piece I have ever written for this blog. And even though this year's Derby is still more than five weeks away, I already sense that there may be some interest in who the master will be riding on the first Saturday in May. So without further ado, allow me to compile a list of Borel's possible Derby mounts . . .
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Let me begin by creating a list of prominent Derby contenders that have been regularly ridden by a single jockey:
Hansen - Ramon Dominguez
Union Rags - Julien Leparoux (He has actually only been ridden by Leparoux once, but Leparoux will be aboard in the Florida Derby (gr. I) and, we assume, the Kentucky Derby as well)
Creative Cause - Joel Rosario
Daddy Nose Best - Julien Leparoux
Secret Circle - Rafael Bejarano
Dullahan - Kent Desormeaux
Prospective - Luis Contreras
El Padrino - Javier Castellano
Alpha - Ramon Dominguez
Rousing Sermon - Joseph Talamo
Castaway - Rafael Bejarano
My Adonis - Elvis Trujillo
Battle Hardened - Julien Leparoux
Brother Francis - Victor Espinoza
Mr. Bowling - Robby Albarado
Gemologist - Javier Castellano
Scatman - Luis Quinonez
Mark Valeski - Rosie Napravnik
Bodemeister - Rafael Bejarano
Obviously, it is possible that Borel could find himself aboard one of the above-mentioned colts in the Kentucky Derby. After all, as talented as Javier Castellano is, I doubt that he will be able to ride both Gemologist and El Padrino in the Kentucky Derby, especially if they fail to draw adjacent post positions. :)
Likewise, with Julien Leparoux almost undoubtedly going to ride Union Rags in the Derby, this would leave Daddy Nose Best without a rider. And lucky Rafael Bejarano will get to choose from three potential Derby horses.
But what if Calvin Borel doesn't secure one of those mounts? There are obviously other horses out there. Below is a list of additional Derby contenders and the jockeys that they have been ridden by recently:
Howe Great - John Velazquez, Edgar Prado
Sabercat - Corey Nakatani, Gerard Melancon, Angel Serpa, Channing Hill
Liaison - Rafael Bejarano, Martin Garcia
Went the Day Well - John Velazquez, Javier Castellano, Edgar Prado
Isn't He Clever - Luis Contreras, Alejandro Medellin, Corey Nakatani
Optimizer - Jon Court, Carlos Marquez, Jr., Terry Thompson, Robby Albarado
I'll Have Another - Mario Gutierrez, Julien Leparoux, Joel Rosario
Lucky Chappy - Alan Garcia, Javier Castellano, Joel Rosario, Ramon Dominguez
Longview Drive - Martin Garcia, Joel Rosario, Russell Baze
News Pending - Kent Desormeaux, Rajiv Maragh
However, the above list is a bit deceiving. Some of those horses have riders that will most definitely be aboard them in future starts. For example, News Pending was ridden by Kent Desormeaux when he ran second in the Fountain of Youth Stakes (gr. II), and by Rajiv Maragh previously. It has since been announced that Maragh will be back aboard for the upcoming Florida Derby (gr. I), lending to the belief that Maragh will ride the colt in the Kentucky Derby as well.
Aside from News Pending, it's fairly safe to say that Lucky Chappy (Alan Garcia), I'll Have Another (Mario Gutierrez), and Went the Day Well (John Velazquez) have all found themselves their Derby riders.
That would narrow the list down to these horses:
Howe Great - John Velazquez, Edgar Prado
Sabercat - Corey Nakatani, Gerard Melancon, Angel Serpa, Channing Hill
Liaison - Rafael Bejarano, Martin Garcia
Isn't He Clever - Luis Contreras, Alejandro Medellin, Corey Nakatani
Optimizer - Jon Court, Carlos Marquez, Jr., Terry Thompson, Robby Albarado
Longview Drive - Martin Garcia, Joel Rosario, Russell Baze
Obviously, if John Velazquez rides Went the Day Well in the Derby, this would leave the mount on Howe Great available -- which would, I assume, go to Edgar Prado, who rode the colt to victory in the Kitten's Joy Stakes earlier this year.
Who would ride Liaison in the Derby, should the colt get there, remains a mystery. Rafael Bejarano was the colt's regular rider, but jumped ship and rode Bodemeister against the colt in the San Felipe Stakes (gr. II). Thus, Martin Garcia was aboard Liaison in the San Felipe. But Rafael Bejarano is already the regular rider for not only Bodemeister, but Secret Circle and Castaway as well. Assuming the rider were to stick with Bodemeister in Kentucky, this would leave Secret Circle, Castaway, and Liaison all without riders. Obviously, Martin Garcia could ride one of them, but that would still leave two jockey-less. Could Borel be hired?
As for Sabercat, there hasn't really been any rhyme or reason as to his riders. Gerard Melancon rode him to victory in the Delta Downs Jackpot Stakes (gr. III), but Corey Nakatani was aboard for his poor showing in the Rebel Stakes (gr. II). Assuming that Sabercat continues onward to the Arkansas Derby (gr. I), I would assume that Nakatani will retain the mount, seeing that he rode Nehro in the Arkansas Derby and Kentucky Derby for Sabercat's trainer Steve Asmussen last year.
Isn't He Clever finished second in the Sunland Derby (gr. III) with Luis Contreras aboard, but Contreras is already the regular rider of Prospective. Alejandro Medellin rode him to a pair of victories in the Borderland Derby and Riley Allison Futurity, but has been passed up for bigger name riders each time the colt ran in a graded stakes race. Would this happen again if the colt is pointed to the Derby?
Optimizer's regular rider as a two-year-old was Robby Albarado, but this year, the colt has been ridden by three different jockeys. Jon Court, who rode the colt to a strong second-place finish in the Rebel Stakes, probably has the best chance at retaining the mount in the Arkansas Derby and Kentucky Derby.
Longview Drive has been ridden by three different riders during his career, but Rosario already has a Derby mount in Creative Cause and Garcia will most likely be aboard something from Baffert's barn. This leaves Russell Baze as a potential rider for the colt, who will be competing in the Santa Anita Derby (gr. I) on April 7th.
But there is one colt that I have refrained from mentioning thus far. If you have been following the races closely, perhaps you have already guessed who this colt is.
The horse's named is Take Charge Indy. As a juvenile, he was ridden every time by jockey James Graham. However, when sent to Florida for the winter, Borel was able to secure the mount and rode the colt to a strong second-place finish in an allowance race behind subsequent Risen Star Stakes (gr. II) winner El Padrino. Take Charge Indy will be competing in the Florida Derby (gr. I) next Sunday, and will have Borel in the saddle. Should Take Charge Indy perform well -- finishing in the top three -- then all of lists and analysis above may be rendered completely useless. Take Charge Indy would be Borel's definite Derby horse.
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In conclusion, it would appear as though Borel isn't going to have any trouble finding a Derby horse this year. Not only does he already have a potential good one lined up in Take Charge Indy, but there are plenty of other contenders that could be in need of a new rider for the Derby. Certainly Alpha is a possibility, seeing that his regular rider is also the regular rider of juvenile champion Hansen. And Gemologist or El Padrino are certainly possibilities, depending on which one Castellano chooses to ride in the Derby. After all, both of those colts are trained by Todd Pletcher, whose lone Derby win came when his colt Super Saver was ridden to victory by Borel himself.
Now, I shall take a moment to mention one other colt that Borel could potentially ride. This colt is Najjaar, who has been ridden by Calvin on several occasions in the past, including a 6th-place finish in the Southwest Stakes (gr. III) earlier this month. The son of Jazil possesses an extremely powerful late run, which he used in the Southwest to close from 11 1/4 lengths behind at the eighth pole to be beaten just 4 3/4 lengths at the finish. The Arkansas Derby is scheduled to be his next start, and if the additional distance enables him to finish in the top two, Borel could actually find himself with multiple mounts from which to choose!
-Keelerman
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