Jockeys Guild News and Articles

Walker, 52, seeks 3,000th career win as jockey

Walker was a perennial top-10 rider, while Smith represented several other top-shelf jockeys during the period. While both admittedly are in the twilight of their careers – they have spent more than 90 years between them at the racetrack – a common goal has brought the two together for one last fling.

“I’m here to help get Bobby to 3,000,” Smith said, referring to Walker’s quest for 3,000 career riding victories. “I think we are about 35 away.”

Smith, who has been in and out of retirement in recent years, dabbles with some lower-profile riders when he “gets tired of sitting around and not doing enough,” he said. His latest gig, however, has a different feel.

“I started hustling book when I was 19 at Hazel Park, and I’m 79 now,” Smith said with a wry smile. “It’s what I do.”

The list of jockeys Smith has represented is lengthy, but the rider he is most frequently associated with is Larry Snyder. The two spent 22 years together, with Smith responsible for booking the majority of Snyder’s 6,000-plus career victories. They led the country in 1969 with 352 wins.

Smith previously represented Walker three different times. The two teamed up at Remington Park in the early 1990s and also worked together at Detroit Race Course and Hoosier Park.

Walker’s return to Louisiana Downs in 2013 has brought the 52-year-old full circle. A native of West Monroe, La., Walker won his first career race on a horse named Markasian as an apprentice here Oct. 10, 1979.

“It does seem like a lot of years ago,” Walker said. “They have a way of getting away from you.”

One detects a slight sense of urgency in Walker’s pursuit of the 3,000-win milestone. The inspiration for his quest came after he lost close friend and fellow rider E.J. Perrodin to brain cancer last summer, not long after Perrodin won his 3,000th race. Walker spent several weeks at Perrodin’s bedside at the end.

“It’s a big motivation for me,” Walker said. “Tee Joe and I were tight for a long time. You hardly saw one of us without the other.”

Walker took the winter off after finishing up the Canterbury meeting last fall. The time away produced another reunion of sorts, as Walker was able to spend quality time with his daughter Brittany and son Aaron.

“It was great,” he said. “I galloped a few in the mornings to say fit and really came into this meet fresh.”

The tandem of Walker and Smith already has proven to be a force to be reckoned with this spring. Walker won twice last Friday and came within two noses of a three-bagger in the day’s final race. Walker and Smith have made no plans for later in the year, choosing instead to focus on the task at hand.

“We want to get the 35 wins and then go from there,” Walker said. “I’ve got my share of aches and pains, as we all do when we get older, but overall, I feel pretty good. My plan is to keep winning races. It just hurts a little more than it used to.”

Need for Speed at Evangeline

It’s all about speed Friday night at Evangeline Downs, with the Need for Speed Stakes. The $50,000 headliner drew 10 of the fastest horses on the grounds and will be run at five furlongs on turf.

Comisky’s Humor has been installed as the tepid 3-1 favorite. The Ron Faucheux charge drew the advantageous No. 1 post and will be reunited with Richard Eramia, who booted the speedy Sharp Humor gelding to three consecutive victories last winter at Fair Grounds.

Should the inevitable quick early pace unwind up front, Sweetsouthernmoon might be best equipped to pick up the pieces. The late-running 7-year-old is trained by Keith Bourgeois and will be ridden by Joe Patin.

Ex-riders race to fight cancer in Lady Legends

“It was about as tough as battling 11 other male riders in a race,” she said. “The odds are always stacked against you. Sometimes, you just have to approach it like you do riding: Just pick up the reins, take a tight hold, and hold on.”

Cooksey, 55, will literally be picking up the reins Friday at Pimlico Race Course for the fourth running of the Lady Legends for the Cure. She is one of eight retired female riders who will compete in a six-furlong allowance designed to raise awareness of the fight against breast cancer. It is the fourth race, and it has a post of 1:30 p.m. Eastern. Pimlico will match the ontrack amount wagered on the Lady Legends winner and make a contribution to the Komen Maryland Affiliate.

Cooksey won 2,137 races in her career, third all-time among female riders in North America. Her competition Friday is Barbara Jo Rubin, 64, who was the first woman to win a race in the United States, in 1969 at Charles Town; Abigail Fuller, 54, who was the regular rider of champion Mom’s Command; Mary Russ-Tortora, 59, who became the first female rider to win a Grade 1 in the 1982 Widener at Hialeah Park; defending champ Jennifer Rowland-Small, 60; Zoe Cadman, 38; Stacie Clark-Rogers, 48; and Cheryl White, 59.

“It’s a very well-bet race, and people really enjoy it,” Cooksey said. “It means everything to us. It gets the attention of the nation. Breast cancer is serious. One in three women are going to be diagnosed. It’s becoming very prevalent in younger women. It’s not your grandmother’s disease anymore.”

“It’s an important cause,” Rubin said. “We’ll make $100,000 for breast cancer awareness, just in this one race.”

Both Cooksey and Rubin have lost friends to cancer recently. Cooksey said she will be riding Friday in honor of Wende Bell, the 56-year-old wife of Darley America president Jimmy Bell, who died May 9.

The Lady Legends race also is a chance for fellowship among the fraternity of retired female riders.

“We all come from different parts of the country, and it’s a wonderful reunion every year,” said Rubin, who is based in Illinois.

Rubin trains horses and riders in dressage, and Cooksey is with the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission. Both said they begin physically preparing for the Lady Legends race months in advance.

“It’s not easy,” said Cooksey, who in 1985 became the first woman to ride in the Preakness, finishing sixth aboard Tajawa. “It’s not like we gallop every day. I start training at the gym and start going to the track exercising and breezing horses to get ready.”

“It takes two to three months, sometimes more, to get ready for this one race,” Rubin said.

Pimlico will “pink out” for Friday’s card, which is led by the Grade 2, $500,000 Black-Eyed Susan. The horses competing, as well as those used to pony runners to post, will all wear pink saddle towels, and for the first time, the starting gate will be pink for Friday.

Jockey Challenge series on Friday

Another rider-themed event at Pimlico on Friday is the Jockey Challenge. It pits eight riders over four races (the second, third, fifth, and seventh), with the winner to be determined based on points for finishes. Patrons can place win and exacta bets on the outcome of the competition. The wager closes before the second race, which is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. Eastern.

The riders set to compete are Forest Boyce, Javier Castellano, Kristina McManigell, Rosie Napravnik, Edgar Prado, Gary Stevens, Emma Jayne-Wilson, and John Velazquez. The group has won a collective 23,000 races, with mount earnings in excess of $1 billion.

The points structure is 12 for a win; 6 for second; 4 for third, and 3 for fourth. There also will be $34,000 in prize money awarded to the riders, on a tiered scale based on the points earned. The jockey who wins the competition, for example, will earn $12,000, and second is worth $7,000.

In a new wrinkle to the competition, the Jockey Challenge field of riders is equally divided among men and women. Pimlico also will keep track of which “team” earns the most points to award bragging rights in what is billed as the “Battle of the Sexes.”

The Jockey Challenge is in its fifth year at Pimlico. Past winners include Castellano and Kent Desormeaux.

◗ The riders involved with both the Lady Legends race and the Jockey Challenge will take part in an autograph session between 10-11 a.m. Friday at Pimlico.

ONDINE PROVIDES BEJARANO 3,000TH CAREER VICTORY

The milestone in the $54,000 allowance came less than 12 years after the 30-year-old native of Arequipa, Peru began his career. He won his first race – aboard his initial mount – Dec. 8, 2001 at Hipodromo de Monterrico in Lima.

A winner of four riding titles at Betfair Hollywood Park, Bejarano is the leading jockey at the current Spring/Summer meet. The 3 ¾ length length win by Ondine, a 3-year-old Medaglia d’Oro filly trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert for Peachtree Stable, was Bejarano’s 16^th as he attempts to defend his crown. He ran away with the 2012 Spring/Summer championship, finishing with 74 victories, 25 more than runner-up Edwin Maldonado.

“I’m so happy to do this in front of my friends and people who have always supported me, especially my agent (Joe Ferrer) and valet (Armando Sanchez),’’ said Bejarano. “I’ve had a lot of opportunities since I’ve come to California.

“I’m really happy for this moment. A week ago somebody told me I only needed seven or eight to get to 3,000, so I was starting to get excited and preparing for it. Nobody can get to 3,000 that easy and I’m really honored to be here.’’

The win  was the 571^st for Bejarano at Hollywood Park. He’s been a regular at the historic track since the 2007 Autumn meet.

CHANNING HILL CIRCLES BACK TO CHICAGO

        After starting his first Arlington International Racecourse meet in 2012, Hill made the difficult decision to curtail his tenure in early September to take advantage of a riding opportunity in Saudi Arabia.  It was a difficult decision for him, as he had gained the support of prominent horsemen in his first Arlington season and did not want to his first impression to be a capricious one.

        The Riyadh experience definitely generated some favorable aspects.  “Riding in Riyadh was great.  It was an experience I’ll always remember, and I’d do it over again,” Hill reflected.  “It was a really unique place.  The track was beautiful and the racing was awesome.  The king really puts everything into that place.”

        Still, it was not always sunny in the Saudi sands.  “It was a little boring sometimes.  I wish I could have brought Shelbi (his girlfriend and daughter of trainer Wayne Catalano) along with me to keep me company.  There are only so many rounds you can play on your days off until you start to think you’re a terrible golfer,” he frankly acknowledged.

After the desert experience dried up earlier than expected (prematurely ending in December because of circumstances out of his control), Hill took the long way around (the world) back to Chicago.

“I really like Chicago and I really liked Arlington Park and last year’s meet.  I knew it would be a little tough (coming back).  I also wanted to be closer to Shelbi,” he admitted. “Everyone’s really friendly, and I really enjoyed my meet last year.”

Hill is also thrilled to be back in the Windy City, itself.  “It’s more laid back here.  I love it. It’s like a big city with a small town vibe,” Hill said with a smile.

Coming back correctly is definitely going to require some support from the local horsemen.  After finishing the first four days of the 2013 meet in third place for both wins and earnings, it seems that he has been properly embraced.

“The big backing from Danny Peitz and Wayne Catalano is absolutely huge.  Also, people know me now and know that I’m here for the long haul, and I’m here to do well,” Hill humbly stated.   “Jimmy McMullen and one of his owners Vanessa (Nye of Voodoomon Racing Stable) have always been good to me, as well.  It’s been a lot more receptive this year.  People seem to know me more, and it’s more comfortable.”

        Though he may have been an Eclipse Award runner-up (2005 Outstanding Apprentice Jockey) and was successful for six seasons on the grueling NYRA circuit, Hill is concisely focused on improving his skills and achieving his goals.  “I want to just get better, as a whole.  I want to be better with my left handed whip, too,” he said.

        One renowned jockey whose skills inspire him is two-time Eclipse Award Outstanding Jockey winner and Hall of Famer John Velazquez, alongside whom he rode in New York.  “Johnny is the real deal.  He is a family man, a true professional. He has finesse and rhythm unlike anyone else.  Not only that – he has the best left handed whip I’ve ever seen.  He is a real role model,” Hill explained. 

Hill is aiming high this season, but definitely remains grounded.  “Obviously everyone wants to be leading rider.  I would love to win it – it would be such a great honor.  And, with a lot of the barns evenly distributed out there, it seems like almost anyone has a chance,” he said with an air of optimism.  When asked what he likes most about Arlington, Hill promptly said “All of it!  It’s a place that has everything for families, kids, adults – from the park to the apron.  The kids can go play at the petting zoo and the dad can go place some bets.  It’s a really top notch facility with a beautiful track and such a laid back friendly atmosphere.”

        A year and an intense amount of miles later, Channing Hill returns from around the world with the world ahead of him.  What better place to be for him than one with ‘International’ in the name.

Ryan Moore: Kentucky Derby was the best day's racing I have ever experienced

They say that the Melbourne Cup is the race that stops a nation, and it's obviously a very big deal in Australia, but this was something else I can assure you. No comparison at all.

I went to watch the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill on the Friday. There were 70,000-odd there and I said to myself "how the hell are they going to fit another person in here tomorrow, let alone doubling the figure?"

So quite how they got 150,000+ through the gate on the Saturday is anyone's guess.

But it just shows you how popular the race and the occasion is. Even just trying to get around Louisville on Friday night proved nigh-on impossible; the place was rammed and every restaurant and bar you passed was full to bursting. I have never seen anything like it.

I have been lucky enough to ride in many top races around the globe - in real racing hotbeds like Australia, Hong Kong and Japan - but the sheer atmosphere and occasion around the Kentucky Derby was staggering. Every single person in the town was just consumed by the racing.

And the horrendous weather just added to the sense of drama and theatre. It didn't stop raining all day on the Saturday. And when I say rain, I mean proper relentless and hard rain. It was like a horseracing equivalent of Glastonbury, about ten times over.

Riding at the meeting - and it was the first time I have ridden in the race - was a real eye-opener, I can tell you. And I loved it.

Talking of eye-openers, I must have broken my own personal record as I wore seven pairs of goggles in the Derby, with a couple of layers of clingfilm for extra protection thrown in on two pairs for good measure, and used them all.

In truth, it probably wasn't as bad as I would feared it would be, but it was still fairly horrific out there. But all credit to Lines Of Battle, as he ran a very brave race to finish seventh.

You obviously prepare horses for the kickback at home, but you just can't replicate those kind of conditions.

They went so fast early, that he simply couldn't go the pace. And when you can't go the pace, you get the kickback. And there was plenty of it in those conditions, believe me. So it was a couple of furlongs before he got used to it, and was able to pick up the bridle. And then he started to run his race.

He took me into the race nicely from that stage, and then ran on well in the straight to finish seventh. Well, I say ran on, it was probably just more him passing beaten and tired horses as they went so quick from the start.

But he was brave and battled well in conditions that he clearly hasn't experienced before and I was happy with him; in the circumstances, I thought that he ran a very good race.

I hope that Lines Of Battle will go onto better things this season. But, in terms of pure occasion, I doubt if I will.

Centeno Captures Riding Title at Tampa Bay

Since his return to the United States in 2003, it has been impossible to question Centeno’s commitment and day-to-day preparation. With 90 victories through Sunday, he has wrapped up his fifth Tampa Bay Downs jockey title, breaking a record he shared with Ronnie Allen, Jr., and William Henry.

Centeno capped his season with a hat-trick flourish, winning the fifth, sixth and seventh races Sunday.

Centeno won four consecutive titles at Tampa Bay Downs from 2006-07 through 2009-10, averaging an incredible 1.48 winners per performance. He set a track record during the 2007-08 season with 144 victories.

Thus far in 2013, Centeno has ridden 71 winners, which ranks among the top 20 in North America. He rode three stakes winners at the current meet, tied for the most of any rider, and his two Florida Cup victories gave him a record seven in the state-bred showcase.

T.D. Houghton collects 5,000th victory at Thistledown

Jeff Zamaiko Photography

Jockey T.D. Houghton is honored in the winner's circle at Thistledown after winning his 5,000th career race.

Houghton reached the milestone when he rode the 7-year-old gelding Mambo Galliano ($3.20) to a 6 ½-length victory in a $4,000 claiming race with his first mount on Thistledown’s card in race 2. He added victory number 5,001 with Storm Love ($6.40) in the first race on Saturday night’s program at Mountaineer Racetrack.

In joining Calvin Borel as jockeys to hit 5,000 this season, Houghton, 43, ranks 27th on the all-time list.  Just ahead of him is Borel at 5,012.

Houghton earned his 4,999th lifetime victory on Wednesday at Thistledown, and then went 0 for 5 Friday night at Mountaineer.

Houghton was a long-time dominant rider in Michigan, first at Detroit Race Course and later Great Lakes Downs and Pinnacle. When all of Michigan’s tracks closed, he rode at Tampa Bay Downs and Hawthorne.

Twice, Houghton’s long career was in jeopardy. Houghton sustained a brain injury during a spill at Great Lakes Downs in 2002. It took a year of therapy before he was able to resume riding.

In 2006, Houghton was among seven riders banned at Tampa following allegations of race fixing. Houghton has maintained his innocence and although never charged or indicted, he remains barred at Tampa and ineligible to obtain a license in Kentucky. He has ridden regularly at Mountaineer since 2009.

KENTUCKY DERBY UPDATE – FRIDAY, MAY 3, 2013

BLACK ONYX – At 11:30 a.m., Spiral (Grade III) winner Black Onyx was scratched from the 139^th running of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (GI).

  Stewards have decided that the No. 1 slot will be left open in the Kentucky Derby starting gate and the remaining 19 horses in the Derby field will start from the post positions they drew in Wednesday’s post draw.

Trainer Kelly Breen will address the media at an afternoon press conference in The Parlay Media Center.

CHARMING KITTEN/OVERANALYZE/PALACE MALICE/REVOLUTIONARY/VERRAZANO – “We’re 100% done. We’ll leave well enough alone from here.”

        That was trainer Todd Pletcher’s take on things surrounding his five Kentucky Derby (GI) entrants as they filed off the Churchill Downs racetrack Friday morning after turning in their final gallops prior to their Saturday date in America’s classic.

        The Pletcher quintet had taken advantage of the special Derby/Oaks training period that had been moved up to between 5:45 and 6 a.m. because of the early end of training on Oaks Day. In fact, they were among the first ones on the track and soon went about their business with a practiced precision.

        Coming out of the six-furlong gap on the Churchill backside, each backtracked left to the frontside under the iconic Twin Spires, then turned and broke off at the seven-furlong pole for a full tour of the strip supplemented by two more furlongs for 10-furlong gallops that they handled nicely.

        The quintet of bay colts consisted of Overanalyze, with exercise rider Obed Perez in the saddle; Palace Malice handled by Jake Nelson;Verrazano under Humberto Zamora;Revolutionary partnered by Nick Bush,and Charming Kitten steered by Patti Krotenko.

        Pletcher stationed himself just inside the gap on the racetrack and used his binoculars to take in the proceedings.

        Among the interested observers for the exercises was a 75-year-old gentleman wearing a bright red University of Arizona ball cap. It was J.J. Pletcher, the longtime trainer and father of Todd.

          Asked about his choice of headgear, the senior Pletcher noted his connection.

        “Didn’t go to the university,” he said. “But I paid tuition there for four years. (His son is a graduate of the school and its Racetrack Industry Program.) Liked to go visit him there; could get in some good golf. And they’ve got lots of fine golf courses in Tucson.”

        Todd Pletcher, who continues to be a big fan of the U of A sports programs, especially their high-flying basketball teams, has credited his father for many of the things he’s learned about training horses, lesson that he obviously learned quite well. It isn’t hard to argue that he is currently the most successful trainer in the country.

        Does Todd still lean on his father for training advice?

        “Oh, sure,” he said. “He and I bounce ideas off each other all the time.”

        With all the Derby heavy lifting accomplished, the trainer was asked if he had a chance to go back, would he liked to have done anything differently with any of his colts.

        “No, not really,” he said. “We laid out a plan to get here with them and it’s all come down pretty much like we hoped.” 

FALLING SKY– Newtown Anner Stud,James Covello andJoseph Bulger’s Falling Sky jogged once around the Churchill Downs track under exercise rider Cassie Garcea Friday morning.

        The prospect of rain Saturday doesn’t concern the son of Lion Heart’s connections.

“He ran on an off track as a 2-year-old, and he skips over this track,” said Reynaldo Abreu, assistant to trainer John Terranova. “He never galloped like this at Palm Meadows.”

By Lion Heart, who finished second behind Smarty Jones in the 2004 Kentucky Derby over a sloppy track, and out of a mare by Sea Hero, the 1993 Run for the Roses winner on a wet fast surface, Falling Sky is bred to handle mud.

Falling Sky won an allowance race over a good track at Gulfstream on Dec. 15. Luis Saez, who was aboard for that victory, will ride the winner of the Sam F. Davis (GIII) in the Derby.

FRAC DADDY/JAVA’S WAR – Magic City Thoroughbred Partners’ Frac Daddy and Charles Fipke’s Java’s War both jogged two miles the “wrong” way Friday morning with their regular exercise riders – Hugo Garcia and Marvin Abrego, respectively.

“Nothing complicated,” trainer Ken McPeek said of the exercise. “We wanted to save a little energy for tomorrow. They both had strong gallops earlier in the week and didn’t need to do much.”

The past performances of McPeek’s Derby starters don’t reveal much in the way of wet-track ability. Frac Daddy ran a solid second in his debut over a muddy Belmont Park surface, but that’s the only real experience either has had with off going. McPeek, for one, isn’t concerned about the rain being forecast.

“It’ll make the Derby that much more wide-open,” he said. “Both horses are doing well but how they handle it and what kinds of trips they get are completely out of control. They’re doing good and we’re pleased.”

GIANT FINISH – Sunrise Stable and Partners’ New York-bred colt Giant Finish went out to the track for the first time Friday at 5:45 a.m. Ray Handal, assistant to trainer Tony Dutrow, was aboard for the morning exercise.

        The son of Frost Giant was the last horse added to the Derby when defections opened a spot in the starting gate. He shipped from Elkton, Md., Wednesday night and arrived at Churchill Downs Thursday.

        Handal took the colt to the track when it opened for training and let him stand and look around for 10 minutes before making a couple of laps of the oval. 

        “He was a pro like we thought he would be,” Handal said. “We jogged him a mile and galloped him a mile and a quarter, just nice and easy and let him take everything in. He was good about it. No complaints.”

        Giant Finish’s lone race on a wet track produced his only off-the board finish, a fifth in the Damon Runyon for New York-breds on Dec. 9 at Aqueduct.

        “Actually, it was his poorest performance,” Handal said, “but there might have been other contributing factors: It was his first time against winners, stretching out, first time in stakes company. There were a lot of things going on there, and it was an off track. I don’t know if I could base him liking or not liking a sloppy surface off the one poor performance because there were so many other factors.”

GOLDENCENTS –  Led to the track from his Barn 45 headquarters by assistant trainer Leandro Mora,the Santa Anita Derby (GI) hero Goldencents was among the Kentucky Derby (GI) runners who took advantage of the early (5:45-6 a.m.) Friday training period for Derby or Oaks entrants.

        The bay son of Into Mischief jogged a half-mile under exercise rider Jonny Garcia, then went through a nice-and-easy gallop of a mile and a quarter, putting the final touches on his preparations for Derby 139 Saturday afternoon.

        “No, we won’t put him on the racetrack tomorrow morning,” said trainer Doug O’Neill, who was, of course, on hand to take in the proceedings. “We didn’t put I’ll Have Another out there race day last year and that worked fine.”

        I’ll Have Another captured Kentucky Derby 138 for the O’Neill barn, then went on to win the Preakness, too. His career was ended, however, prior to the Belmont Stakes when he sustained a leg injury and he subsequently was sold as a stallion.

        Goldencents, a winner of four of six starts, comes into the Derby off a 2013 California campaign in which he won two stakes – the Sham (GIII) and the Santa Anita Derby – and finish fourth in another – the San Felipe (GII).

        O’Neill was asked -- if he could -- would he liked to have gone back and done something differently with his colt.

        “You know, I think it has all worked out for the best,” he said. “Even the debacle in the San Felipe, I think that may prove to be a godsend. If he’d have won that race handily, I think we probably wouldn’t have run him again; we probably would have just trained him up to this race. Then maybe he’s going to be too fresh and you don’t know what’s going to happen.

        “But when he ran like he did that day (backing up in the stretch), we made some adjustments. We trained him differently and he responded. He’s really doing well and we’re feeling good about his chances. We think it is our time. We think it is us.”

        Goldencents will break from post eight in the 20-horse Derby field and be ridden by his regular jockey, Kevin Krigger.   

GOLDEN SOUL – After Charles Fipke’sGolden Soul capped his training for the Derby with a jog Friday morning under exercise riderEmerson Chavez, trainerDallas Stewart expressedsatisfaction with how the colt is going into the race.

“His energy has been good,” Stewart said. “He had some really strong gallops two or three days in a row. Now I feel like he’s doing well. His energy is good. He’s very sound.’’

Stewart didn’t speculate on how the race might unfold.

“I don’t know,’’ he said. “It’s probably going to be muddy, I guess. They’ll be enough speed. There always is. My horse is out of a Mr. Prospector mare, and they love the mud, so we’ll just have to see if it plays out like that. That’ll be the strength.

“We prepared well. We got lucky we got in the race, and that’s where it’s at. Let’s go get ’em, baby.’’

ITSMYLUCKYDAY – Trilogy Stable andLaurie Plesa’s Itsmyluckyday galloped 1 ½ miles under Peter Shelton Friday morning at Churchill Downs.

“Pete gave him a 12 on a scale from 1-10. He’s been doing that all along,” trainer Eddie Plesa Jr. said.

The veteran trainer was amused while watching an animated video posted on the Wall Street Journal mobile phone website. The video featured a preview of Saturday’s running of the Kentucky Derby. Itsmyluckyday won the race.

“I loved the ending,” Plesa said.

The track wasn’t wet in the video, but forecast showers for Saturday may mean an off track for the Derby a possibility.

“From my thoughts, I think Lawyer Ron handled it well. You’d hope he’d pass it along if that were the case,” Plesa said. (Lawyer Ron broke his maiden on a sloppy track and won a stakes on a good track). “I’ve been saying this all along: I just want everybody to have a fair chance to win.”

LINES OF BATTLE – The War Front colt Lines of Battle, owned by Joseph Allen, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith, completed his quarantine period and went to the track for the first time Friday morning.

        The UAE Derby (GII) winner shipped from Ireland and arrived in Louisville early Wednesday morning. He was confined to Barn 48 until he cleared quarantine.

        T.J. Comerford, assistant to trainer Aidan O’Brien said the colt did his exercise under Laura McInerney at about 6 a.m.

        “He walked, trotted for a mile and cantered for a mile,” Comerford said. “We did what we normally do at home and let him see what’s happening. It was grand. No problems.”

        Lines of Battle has no experience training or competing on a wet dirt track.

        Comerford said the Kentucky-bred has adapted well after his trip from Europe.  

        “We’re in the same position we’ve been with him,” Comerford said. “He’s good. We’re happy and we can’t have him any better. We just have to hope and see what happens tomorrow.”

MYLUTE – GoldMark Farm and Whisper Hill Farm’s Mylute “had his regular day” with a jog and a gallop at 5:45 a.m. under regular exercise rider Maurice Sanchez, according to assistant trainer (and the exercise rider’s wife), Kathy Sanchez.

        Mylute hasn’t raced on an off track but his pedigree suggests he could be one that wouldn’t be bothered by it. His sire, Midnight Lute, dominated the 2007 Breeders’ Cup Sprint (GI) over a sloppy track at Monmouth Park, winning by 4 ¾ lengths.      

        Mylute has two starts in 2013 and has been trained to peak in his third start off the layoff. 

        “Skipping the Lecomte and waiting for the Risen Star, having that break, that was all to set us up for his best effort here on the first Saturday in May,” said Todd Quast, general manager of co-owner GoldMark Farm.

        The past six Kentucky Derby winners all came into the race with two starts in that calendar year.

NORMANDY INVASION – Fox Hill Farms’ Normandy Invasion had an easy and uneventful visit to the track Friday, the morning after speeding up and running about three furlongs faster than the normal gallop.

        Trainer Chad Brown said his horse is fine and ready for the Derby.

        “He’s a sharp horse and he’s feeling good,” Brown said. “He’s sound and strong. Sometimes these horses do a little more in their training than you had planned on doing. That’s definitely the lesser of two evils than having a horse that is sore, doesn’t want to train and is hobbling around the track.

        “My horse is doing good. He trained a little more than I wanted yesterday; I compensated today and I just jogged him. He looks great. He’s going to run good.”

        Normandy Invasion doesn’t have any experience on muddy or sloppy tracks.

        “There’s not much you can do,” he said.  “I generally don’t train on wet tracks. I’m of the opinion that I don’t want to hurt my horses in the morning training. On behalf of my clients, I’m safe in training and just don’t train on wet tracks. I’m also of the opinion that they are either going to like the wet track or they’re not. I don’t know if you can teach them to like it. We’re going to find out with him.”

        Brown said he doesn’t have a feel for how Normandy Invasion will handle the expected wet track for the Derby.

        “He doesn’t give me a feel, one way or the other,” Brown said. “There are horses occasionally that will give me the feel if they would handle a wet track of not and I would have an opinion. This horse gives me no opinion. People tell me that his breeding for the mud is one of the highest in the race. Great. I love hearing that, but I don’t know how much I put into that all the time as a trainer. We have to keep our fingers crossed and hope for good weather, and if it’s not good weather hope he likes the mud.”

ORB – Stuart Janney III and Phipps Stable’s Orb galloped 1 ½ miles under exercise rider Jennifer Patterson Friday morning at Churchill Downs.

        Trainer Shug McGaughey had high praise for Patterson’s dedication while closely working with Orb all winter and spring and her contribution to the Florida Derby winner’s rapid development.

“When this whole thing started I wanted it to be all about her. She’s an excellent rider; she’s an excellent horsewoman; and she’s an excellent person,” McGaughey said. “I’m a privileged guy to have her.”

McGaughey expressed a level of uncertainty how his 7-2 morning-line favorite winner would handle a wet track should forecast showers materialize Saturday.

“Well, he’s never run on one. He trained on one here on morning and trained excellent. I don’t think it’ll be a problem,” McGaughey said. “But you never know in the afternoon what you’re going to get. Mud in his face isn’t going to bother him, because he’s gotten plenty of dirt.

“Like everybody else, I hope the track is fast and safe for everybody and nobody has any excuses and let the best horse win. We can’t control the weather. They say it might rain, so if it does, it does.”

OXBOW/WILL TAKE CHARGE – Trainer D. Wayne Lukas had his Derby duo -- Calumet Farm’s Oxbow and Willis Horton’s Will Take Charge – exercising comfortably early Friday morning

“The thing I was looking for this morning was the energy level, and I think I’ve got them peaking up pretty good,” Lukas said. “They were sharp out there this morning. I’d like to run it today instead of tomorrow, but they’re doing well.”

Under exercise rider Rudy Quevedo, Oxbow jogged a mile before completing his final prerace tune-up with exercise in the mile chute.

“I didn’t want him to get the full mile-and-a-half gallop, because he gets so aggressive in the last half-mile, so I did the mile, then I backed him up and took him in the chute and let him stretch his legs a little bit more there,’’ Lukas said.

Will Take Charge, exercise rider Taylor Carty aboard, jogged a mile and galloped a mile.

“I just didn’t want to do quite as much today. I want to get the energy level up,’’ Lukas said.

Lukas, participating in his 27^th Derby, said he’ll be sleeping well the night before the race.

“I don’t get up tight, don’t get excited, don’t even get excited when they go in the gate,’’ Lukas said. “ In fact, when we had that run of six in a row (victories in Triple Crown races), ABC came to me or NBA and they said, just be a little animated. You know, hug somebody or throw your hand in the air. They actually said this: ‘You’re bad TV on these races.’ ’’

Tabasco Cat’s victory in the Preakness in 1994 started a run of six consecutive victories by Lukas-trained horses in Triple Crown races.

VYJACK – Pick Six Racing’s Gotham (GIII) winner Vyjack walked the shedrow Friday morning, the day after he had a three-furlong blowout breeze under trainer Rudy Rodriguez.

        “It looks like he came out of the work good. He looks sharp,” Rodriguez said “That’s what I was looking for and so far this morning he looks very good.”

        Vyjack won his first four career starts then finished third, beaten a length by Verrrazano, in the Wood Memorial (GI) at Aqueduct. After the race, the gelding was found to have a lung infection. He spent a couple of weeks at Bruce Jackson’s Fair Hill Equine Therapy Center in Elkton, Md., where he spent time in the hyperbaric chamber.

        Rodriguez said Vyjack appears to be fully recovered from the issue.

“We’re looking forward to seeing him run again and hopefully everything is 100 percent,” Rodriguez said. “We don’t try to look for excuses, but that was an excuse.

        “He was in the chamber in Far Hill and we’ve scoped him a couple of times here and, thank God, everything is very, very good.”

        In his one start on a wet track track, Vyjack won an overnight stake at Aqueduct on Dec. 9 by 5 3/4 lengths.

Derby/Oaks Update

BLACK ONYX – Sterling Racing’s Black Onyx galloped 1 ½ miles during the Derby and Oaks session while under regular exercise rider Aurelio Gomez. Trainer Kelly Breen was concerned that with the largest throng of morning onlookers yet his Spiral Stakes (Grade III) winner might finally get fazed by all the attention. Turned out, there was nothing to worry about.

“He jogged along the outside fence like those people have been there every day of his life,” Breen said. “His attitude around here is so laid-back. Things could be a lot worse going in here. You could have a high-anxiety horse that’ll be in that one post for a long time, but he’s been soaking it in. He’s just laid back, like it’s his fourth Kentucky Derby.”

Breen is the one who will be represented in his fourth Kentucky Derby but that experience hasn’t helped to calm the nerves. The trainer joked that whatever his mellow horse has been taking, he could use some it himself.

        And yet, with all there is to worry about the week of the world’s most famous horse race, Breen refuses to lose sleep over Black Onyx’s post draw. Post No. 1 has come to be accepted as the most dreaded, even though it has produced eight winners, tied for second-most behind the 10-hole (nine winners). If the rail was good enough for Derby winners like War Admiral, Citation, Needles and, most recently, Ferdinand, then perhaps having the right horse is what really matters.

“It might not be an ideal post but I think we have a game plan,” Breen said. “The horse is doing well and horses have won from the one-post before. It has happened. It doesn’t concern me as much as you would think.

“There are things I’m seeing form the horse that have me at ease. You could have a super-nervous horse that’s anxious to go and you’re going to have to try to throttle him down. You’re going to have 150,000 people and this horse here, he’s like, it’s old hat.”

CHARMING KITTEN/OVERANALYZE/PALACE MALICE/REVOLUTIONARY/VERRAZANO – There was a one-Derby-horse-for-one-Oaks-horse swap at the Todd Pletcher barn Thursday morning, but otherwise the stable’s collection of Kentucky Derby (GI) runners turned in another good morning of training leading up to their runs in Saturday’s American classic.

        At the request of owner Mike Repole, Pletcher held back his Oaks filly Unlimited Budget when his three other Oaks fillies went out with the first set at 6 o’clock to train. Instead, the conditioner had his fifth Derby horse – Ken and Sarah Ramsey’sCharming Kitten – go early with the fillies, while Unlimited Budget went late with the colts during the 8:30-8:45 special training period for Derby and Oaks horses, thus allowing Repole to be on hand and watch his filly exercise.

        In the 6 a.m. session, Charming Kitten was handled by exercise rider Patti Krotenko for a mile and three-eighths gallop that started at the finish line and ended at the five-furlong pole. The son of Ramsey stallion Kitten’s Joy will be ridden by Edgar Prado Saturday and they’ll break from post 15 in the 20-horse field. The Blue Grass Stakes third-place-finisher has been listed at 20-1 in the morning line.

        Pletcher’s other Derby colts showed good energy in their training efforts and the conditioner gave them all a thumbs up following their exercise. Verrazano, listed as the 4-1 second choice in the Derby morning line, covered a mile and three-eighths under exercise rider Humberto Zamora. Louisiana Derby (G2) winner Revolutionary galloped a mile and a quarter for Nick Bush, while Arkansas Derby (GI) hero Overanalyze went the same distance for Obed Perez. Finally, Blue Grass Stakes second-place finisher Palace Malice galloped his 10 furlongs under Jake Nelson.

        The trainer re-emphasized he was quite happy with the Derby post draws for his colts (Revolutionary No. 3; Overanalyze No. 9; Palace Malice No. 10; Verrazano No. 14, and Charming Kitten No. 15.) and then answered a question about possible rain and the effects of an “off” track on his runners.

        “The possibility of rain doesn’t change anything we’ll do with them getting ready for the race,” he said. “That will all be exactly the same. As to how they might do, well, none of them have any experience on an ‘off’ track. I’ve never breezed one of them on one; just never had the opportunity to. But of all of them, I get the impression that Revolutionary might be the one to relish an ‘off’ track.”  

FALLING SKY – Newtown Anner Stud,James Covello andJoseph Bulger’s Falling Sky galloped 1 3/8 miles under exercise rider Cassie Garcea “as good as we could want it,” reported trainer John Terranova.

Falling Sky, who won the Sam F. Davis (GIII) at Tampa Bay Downs in his 2013 debut, has come up short after setting the early pace in his two most recent races, a third-place finish in the Tampa Bay Derby (GII) and the Arkansas Derby (GII). The 1 ¼-mile distance of the Kentucky Derby will be Terranova’s main concern Saturday.

“Obviously with all of them, and with him, maybe more so from what we’ve seen, distance is the question mark,” Terranova said. “We’ll see. He seems to love Churchill Downs. He trains brilliantly over the track, so we’ll see what he can do.”

Terranova may have lingering doubts about the Derby distance, but he remains very confident in the son of Lion Heart’s talent.

“We’ve obviously got some concerns, but at this point, I wouldn’t have changed anything we’ve done coming into the race. The horse gives us 100 percent. I have no doubts he’s a very good horse who will try and give us an honest effort. We’re just hoping for a nice clean trip and a little bit of racing luck,” Terranova said. “I think the post (No. 13) is fine. We drew outside some potential speed horses. I’m not concerned with the rain. An off track may actually help him.

        Luis Saez, who won an allowance race at Gulfstream aboard Falling Sky in December, has the Derby mount.

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FRAC DADDY/JAVA’S WAR – Magic City Thoroughbred Partners’ Frac Daddy and Charles Fipke’s Java’s War both came out during the Derby and Oaks training session for what trainer Ken McPeek described as “an easy day.”

Arkansas Derby (GI) runner-up Frac Daddy – consistently the more aggressive of the duo this week – jogged one mile and galloped one mile under exercise rider Hugo Garcia. Meanwhile, Blue Grass Stakes (GI) winner Java’s War jogged two miles with exercise rider Marvin Abrego aboard.

        Frac Daddy was outfitted with earplugs, which he has worn every day during training and will also wear to the gate Saturday.

        “It’s just to keep him calm,” McPeek said. “Every now and then he’ll hear a noise and he gets a little spooky. It helps him to keep quiet. He’ll probably wear them all the way to the gate on Saturday.”

        Once Frac Daddy arrives at the gate, the rider aboard his escort pony will be responsible for removing the earplugs.

GIANT FINISH – Sunrise Stable and Partners’ New York-bred colt Giant Finish arrived at Churchill Downs at 8:48 a.m. Thursday after a 12-hour trip from the Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md.

        Ray Handle, assistant to trainer Anthony Dutrow, accompanied Giant Finish on his journey and led the chestnut son of Frost Giant off truck to his stall in Barn 42. Handle, 24, stayed with Giant Finish in the back of the truck and said the colt handled the trip well.

        “He was so great about it. Just professional. That’s how he is about everything,” Handle said. “He’s a cool guy.”

        Giant Finish was third in the Spiral (GIII) at Turfway Park on March 23. When a few horses with more qualifying points were declared from the field this week and Giant Finish moved up to the 20th and final position, the ownership group decided to enter him in the Derby.

        While compiling a 2-1-1 record in his five career starts, Giant Finish has shown that he prefers being on or near the lead.

        “He’s a little bit of a one-paced type of horse,” Handle said. “He doesn’t really get tired, but he doesn’t have a great kick. He’ll probably be forwardly placed and hopefully he can out-stay them and be there at the finish.”

        Jose Espinoza will ride Giant Finish in the Kentucky Derby.

GOLDENCENTS – The Santa Anita Derby (GI) winner Goldencents continued to move forward toward his Saturday date with Kentucky Derby (GI) destiny with another good gallop at Churchill Downs during the special Derby/Oaks training period following the track’s morning renovation break.

        The bay son of Into Mischief first visited the paddock under exercise rider Jonny Garcia,then put in a strong gallop in the warm Kentucky sun. The horse’s trainer, Doug O’Neill, was a pleased observer, as was his rider, Kevin Krigger.

        Krigger, the only rider the horse has known in his six-race career, will break from post eight in the 20-horse Derby field and has been listed as the 5-1 third choice in the morning line.

        O’Neill had recovered from his golfing date Wednesday at nearby Valhalla Golf Club with two of his colt’s owners, one of them being University of Louisville NCAA champion basketball coach Rick Pitino.

        “Someone said they’d heard I’d shot 71,” O’Neill said. “I said ‘Yeah, but that was for the first four holes.’

        “But that’s a beautiful golf course; world class. Even though I don’t play much golf, it was a treat to play there. And Coach hits it pretty good. He’s a good golfer.”

        With rain forecast for Derby Day and the possibility of an “off” track looming, O’Neill was asked how he thought his charge might handle such conditions.

        “Well, he’s never raced on an ‘off’ track, so you can’t be sure about that,” he said. “But we breezed him on a wet track that had been sealed one time this spring at Santa Anita and he skipped right over it. He’s a sure-footed horse and nothing seems to bother him.

        “And from what I know about this track, it handles water real well. As long as we don’t have any gushers just before or during the race, I think we’ll all be all right.”       

GOLDEN SOUL – Charles Fipke’sGolden Soul hasn’t raced on an off track, and trainer Dallas Stewart said Thursday that he’d prefer dry conditions for the Kentucky Derby.

“I think most trainers are looking at the weather,’’ Stewart said. “I don’t know, are we fretting? Are we concerned? It is what it is, as they say. But I hope (rain) misses.’’

Golden Soul, by Perfect Soul out of Hollywood Gold by Mr. Prospector, hasn’t worked on muddy tracks but has galloped often in mud, Stewart said.

“He’s out of a Mr. Prospector mare. They tend to run well in the mud. Perfect Souls – I don’t really know.’’

The Churchill Downs track handles water well, said Stewart, who is based at the track. “It’s the best on training, this and the Fair Grounds, in my opinion. They do a great job. You know, we’ll just have to see if it rains during the races. …

“If it’s raining while we’re not training or racing, they keep it sealed, and the water runs off, which is good. We’ll just have to see. Nobody can predict the weather.’’

Perfect Soul galloped Thursday under exercise rider Emerson Chavez.

ITSMYLUCKYDAY – Trilogy Stable andLaurie Plesa’s Itsmyluckyday galloped 1½ miles under exercise rider Peter Shelton Thursday morning at Churchill Downs.

Itsmyluckyday will enter the Derby with a second-place finish behind Orb in the Florida Derby (GI) last time out. Trainer Eddie Plesa Jr. said the Gulfstream Park Derby and Holy Bull (GIII) victor will be better prepared for a rematch with Orb Saturday.

“The whole plan was to get him here on the first Saturday in May in the best possible condition he could be in, and part of that process was 62 days between the Holy Bull and the Florida Derby. As important as it was for us to win the Florida Derby, it wasn’t our goal. Our goal was always to win the Kentucky Derby,” Plesa said. “In my mind he probably wasn’t 100 percent fit for the Florida Derby. He was probably closer to 95 percent fit. When you’re running against a horse like Orb, you better be 100 percent fit.  So going into this race, I don’t think, I know my horse is 100 percent. It’s going to be an interesting race for everybody involved.”

Plesa raised the possibility that the early pace of the Derby may be slower than years past.

“Since the point system has been put into effect, it kind of takes a couple factors out of the race. Certainly, a sprinter is not going to be in this race and a filly isn’t going to be in this race. So with that being said, that does change the pace on paper,” Plesa said. “It looks like the pace may be a slower pace than we’ve seen in the past. As far as my horse is concerned, my horse has tactical speed and can do whatever needs to be done.”

Elvis Trujillo has the return mount aboard Itsmyluckyday.

LINES OF BATTLE – The well-traveled colt owned by Joseph Allen, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith, walked the shedrow in the quarantine barn Thursday morning.

        The Kentucky-bred son of War Front arrived from Ireland on Wednesday and entered the quarantine area at Barn 48. T.J. Comerford, assistant to trainer Aidan O’Brien said the colt will go out on the track under exercise rider Laura McInerney at about 6 o’clock Friday morning after clearing quarantine.

        “He walked this morning and he’ll walk this evening. That’s all we can do today,” Comerford said. “He’s not going to do a whole lot when he goes to the track, just canter around there. He’s got all his galloping done.”

         Lines of Battle earned his Derby qualifying points with a victory in the UAE Derby (GII) on March 30 in Dubai. He returned to O’Brien’s Ballydoyle training center in Ireland before his trip to Kentucky.

        O’Brien will not attend the Kentucky Derby. He has three starters in the 2,000 Guineas , the English classic Saturday at Newmarket: Christoforo Colombo, George Vancouver and Mars. He also has two fillies in the 1,000 Guineas on Sunday.

MYLUTE – GoldMark Farm and Whisper Hill Farm’s Louisiana Derby (GII) runner-up Mylute went to the track at 5:45 a.m. for some light exercise under regular exercise rider Maurice Sanchez.

        “We galloped two miles,” Sanchez said. “I warmed him up jogging one mile the wrong way, then the two miles. It was a nice, easy morning. He’s very relaxed.”

        Sanchez has played a major role in Mylute’s emergence as a Kentucky Derby contender. After finishing seventh in the Risen Star Stakes (GII) – the second in a three-race series of graded 3-year-old stakes at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots – trainer Tom Amoss and GoldMark general managerTodd Quast agreed that further adjustments to both his equipment and style might help the Midnight Lute colt realize his full potential.

        “In his training before the Risen Star he was very laid-back, very lazy,” Quast said. “That’s why we put all the equipment on him – the blinkers and the shadow roll. We did that on purpose, knowing that we were going to have a chargier horse. We put an aggressive gallop rider on him to train him in the mornings to get into him while he worked. In the Risen Star it was counter-productive and Shaun (Bridgmohan) had to fight him.

“But we knew we were only about 80 percent and we knew we were trying to peak in the third race off the layoff. After that race Tom and I decided we needed to adjust and what we did was take the blinkers off and put Maurice – a more mellow gallop rider – back on him. We went back to the slow, long-distance gallops, doing the works so they were slow early.”

Mylute stalked the pace in the Risen Star, laying fourth in the early going but leaving himself with nothing left to kick home. In the Louisiana Derby, having trained to relax early, Mylute was as much as 11 lengths off the pace down the backside and saved his best running for the stretch, collaring Revolutionary approaching the sixteenth pole but without quite being able to go by.

        “If you had to fault him anywhere it would be that he kind of hangs a little bit,” Quast said.

        However, Amoss tried to address that by setting up Mylute to pass horses in his last major work before the Derby, the half-mile in :47.80 on April 21.

        “He started eight lengths behind a pair and finished eight lengths in front,” Quast said. “He had his ears perked and went right on by.”

NORMANDY INVASION – Fox Hill Farms’  Wood Memorial (GI) runner-up Normandy Invasion schooled in the gate Thursday and had a spirited 1 ½-mile gallop with exercise rider Javier Herrera.

          The Tapit colt galloped in the middle of the track and was aggressive for two or three furlongs.

“After he stood in the gate he wanted out to go out and gallop a little strong, but he pulled up good and came back good,” trainer Chad Brown said. “That’s him. He’s really sharp right now. We’re happy.

        “His ended his gallop a little quick, but I’m OK with it.

        Normandy Invasion has a history of coming out of the gate slowly and Brown said the visit to the gate was a reminder of what is ahead.

        “In the Wood he did good after we stood him,” Brown said. “So we did the same routine that we did before the Wood.”

        Brown said he was satisfied with drawing post No. 5 for the Kentucky Derby and that position would give jockey Javier Castellano some flexibiity.

        “I’m not going to request that Javier put this horse in any specific spot. I want to leave it up to him,” Brown said. “I just want him to break cleanly and give him the option to put him where he wants.”

        Brown said the Normandy Invasion is handling the surface well.

        This horse is so sharp right now, you just have to hold him on the ground,” he said. “He’s really full of himself.”

        Describing the colt as “sharp” is a positive, Brown said 

        “If you’ve seen his other races and his come-from-behind style, this horse has been maybe a little lethargic early. It takes him a while to get interested and come with his late run,” Brown said. “Right now he really has running on his mind from the word go. We started to see that before the Wood and he placed himself in a good spot early and gave himself a chance to win. I think we’re going to see more of that in the Derby. I think he’s going to place himself in a good spot.”

        Normandy Invasion’s owner, Rick Porter, is hosting four World War II veterans with connections to Normandy for the Kentucky Derby. Porter said that Alan Reeves of San Diego, who saw action at Normandy, reached out to ask whether there would be any involvement with veterans with the horse. Porter liked the idea and has invited Reeves and three veterans of the D-Day landing at Normandy, J. J. Witmeyer of New Orleans and two Ohioans, Ray Woods and Bill Wilch, to be his guests for the weekend.

        “I just want to shake their hands, give them a Normandy Invasion hat and make them feel welcome,” Porter said.

        Porter said the project is likely to draw some attention to what happened when Allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944.

        “I’m hoping that it will bring some awareness to young people because so many people watch the Derby,” he said. A lot of young people don’t realize what the D-Day was and the Normandy invasion and I hope this brings some more focus to it.”

ORB – Stuart Janney III and Phipps Stable’s Orb, the 7-2 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, galloped 1 ¼ miles under exercise rider Jennifer Patterson Thursday morning at Churchill Downs.

Trainer Shug McGaughey, whose Florida Derby winner drew the No. 16 post position, has envisioned what jockey Joel Rosario might expect during the running of Derby 139.

“I think there’s going to be horses that show a little more speed than maybe it shows on paper. I’m just going to tell Joel to play the break and see what happens and try to hold some kind of position so when the time comes we got a chance to make that run,” McGaughey said. “Hopefully, he’ll get a clean trip around the first turn, which I think is very important. That’s where all the jamming up comes. Going down the backside, hopefully, he can ease in and save a little ground, but not be down in there and not be able to make a run when the time comes.”

One race prior to the Derby on Saturday’s card, McGaughey is slated to saddle turf star Point of Entry for a highly anticipated clash with Horse of the Year Wise Dan in the Woodford Reserve Turf Classic (GI). With so much attention focused on Orb during Derby week, the multiple Grade I stakes winner has been training at Churchill somewhat under the radar.

“He’s not under our radar,” McGaughey said. “We’re looking forward to running him. He’s been a great pleasure around here for us and he still is. I don’t know how he could be doing any better. We’ll see how it goes.”

OXBOW/WILL TAKE CHARGE – Four-time Derby winning trainer D. Wayne Lukas said he is weighing strategy for a race even before the post position draw is over.

“You know, when you’ve got five or six or seven holes sitting out there, you say, ‘You know what? I got so and so in hole five and so and so in seven, and six is still available; I’d like to get right between those two,’ ’’ Lukas was saying Thursday morning, “If you get the two – there’s not much speed (nearby)  – we can live with that. So you start analyzing it immediately.

“Of course, you lay awake all night and analyze it.’’

Calumet Farm’sOxbow, who generally shows early speed, drew No. 2, and Willis Horton’s Will Take Charge, a late runner, drew No. 17. Lukas said he’ll continue to weigh race plans for them until meeting with Gary Stevens, Oxbow’s jockey, and Jon Court, Will Take Charge’s rider, for strategy sessions.

“I get into it pretty good,’’ Lukas said of his strategizing. “Once I talk to Gary and Jon, I’ll pretty much turn them loose and say, ‘Look, this isn’t going to be a Hollywood script. I mean, this is not going to happen the way I’m describing it to you, but make the best of it. I always tell ’em at the end, ‘Hell, just do what you want.’

The sessions also will be for psyching up the riders, Lukas said.

“It’s the coach in me,’’ said Lukas, who was a basketball coach before becoming a trainer. “We have a little locker-room talk. You know, play ‘Rocky’ tapes and give ’em B-12 shots.’’

Oxbow, under exercise rider Rudy Quevedo, and Will Take Charge, with exercise rider Taylor Carty aboard, galloped Thursday.

VYJACK – Pick Six Racing’s Gotham (GIII) winner Vyjack worked three furlongs in :37 under trainer Rudy Rodriguez Thursday morning. Rodriguez had been planning to give the Into Mischief gelding a crisp little blowout a couple of days before the race and decided to do it on the fast track.

        “We’re happy. We’ve accomplished what we came to do,” Rodriguez said. “We did the three-eighths and galloped. I think we went very, very good, very comfortable.

        “I wasn’t worried about the time. It was a little maintenance thing that we were scheduled to do. I’m happy that we were able to do it. If it had rained, I may not have done it. Luckily, the track was in very good shape and we took advantage of it.”

Rodriguez said the short work was intended to put the horse on his toes two days before the race. It’s something of an old-school approach that Rodriquez learned from trainers he worked for during his career as a jockey and exercise rider, Dick Dutrow and his son, Richard Dutrow Jr., and the Hall of Famer Bobby Frankel.

        “I didn’t want to go to fast. I didn’t want to go and blow everything out of him,” Rodriguez said. “I wanted to sharpen him up a little bit. I think we accomplished that.”

KENTUCKY OAKS UPDATE – THURSDAY, MAY 2, 2013

BEHOLDER – Trainer Richard Mandella sent his Kentucky Oaks filly Beholder through a mile and three-eighths gallop Thursday morning, her last serious bit of training prior to her start Friday in the $1 million Kentucky Oaks (GI).

        The bay daughter of Henny Hughes, America’s 2-year-old filly champion in 2012, went through her paces during the special Derby/Oaks training period at Churchill Downs Thursday morning under jockey-turned-exercise rider David Nuesch, then returned to her temporary home in Barn 45.

        Prior to the exercise, Mandella, the Hall of Fame trainer who will be seeking his first victory in the Run for the Lilies, played host to a contingent of visitors that included University of Louisville football coach Charlie Strong and New England Patriots all-pro defensive lineman Vince Wilfork. The conditioner also fielded a few questions about his ace filly and her Oaks run.

        As far as her ability to run the nine furlongs of the Oaks:

        “Well, I remember last year it was a question of whether she could get six furlongs. And she did. And she got far enough in the Breeders’ Cup (mile and one-sixteenth). Every time I’ve asked her to do something, she’s done it. I really don’t think the mile and an eighth is going to make that big a difference. And, you know, I wouldn’t trade her for any of the others.”

        And would he have any special instructions for rider Garrett Gomez, the only jockey she’s known in her eight-race career:

        “I won’t have to say much to him. He knows her; he’s been on her in the afternoons and he’s breezed her some in the mornings. He also knows how I think. We won’t need to have any long conversations.”

        And would he do anything special with her Oaks morning:

        “I might walk her with a rider up around the barn, or I might put her out for a short gallop during the special time (5:45-6 a.m.) for Oaks and Derby horses tomorrow. I’ll play it by ear and decide in the morning.”

        Beholder is slated to break from post three in the 10-horse Oaks field. She is a 7-2 co-second-choice for the rich headliner.  

CLOSE HATCHES Juddmonte Farms LLC’s undefeated Close Hatches was on the track for a final contained gallop during the Oaks and Derby training session with regular exercise rider Joanna Trout aboard.

        With Bill Mott stablemate Flashy Gray officially declared from the Oaks, the outside filly Close Hatches will move in one stall in the starting gate and break from post 10.

        “If we had a choice we would probably take somewhere in the middle but Ron Anderson said he’s delighted with it,” said Juddmonte farm manager Garrett O’Rourke, referring to jockey Joel Rosario’s agent. “He’s probably spinning a little bit of positive into it, but you can sit outside of them and watch them.

“I heard Joel say that if they didn’t want to go (to establish the early lead) he would go, but I think that’s an unlikely scenario given that Beholder and Midnight Lucky drew inside. I can’t see them taking back.

“The worst-case scenario is that everyone has the same idea and then we all get hung wide on the outside but hopefully that won’t happen.”

        One piece of conventional wisdom regarding the Oaks and Derby is that the eventual winners can’t have any hiccups in the weeks leading up to their races. C