BALTIMORE (AP) — D. Wayne Lucas tried to hold on to Gray after his horse won. Preakness Stakes And I was interrupted many times by words of congratulations.
“I think they're trying to get rid of me,” Lucas said. “They probably want me to retire. I don't think that's going to happen.”
Not when an 88-year-old Hall of Fame trainer continues to win big races.
Take control of the gray End kentucky derby winner Mystic Dan's Triple Crown winner won the Preakness in a telegraph race Saturday, giving Lucas his seventh victory in the race. best friend bob baffert.
“I'm the only one behind him. I already warned him,” Lucas said. “It never gets old at this level and I love this competition. I love getting in here with the other guys.”
The lean, gray colt took advantage of the muddy track, just as Lucas had hoped, and pulled off the upset with his second straight strong start, two weeks after going wild on the Derby undercard race at Churchill Downs. Starting off as one of the longest shots on the board at 9-1, She's the Gray took to the front as soon as she left the starting gate and never looked back, leading Mystic in 1 minute, 56.82 seconds. He finished 2 1/4 lengths ahead of Dan.
“I thought his action on the backside was beautiful and I knew he was controlling the track,” Lucas said. “I said, 'Watch out, he's not going to quit.'”
Mystic Dan finished second out of eight horses competing in the $2 million, 1 3/16 mile race. He won the Kentucky Derby by a nose but fell short of winning back-to-back titles, but he would be surprised if he ran in this race. belmont stakes June 8 at Saratoga Race Course.
“My stallion is a great stallion and I'm so proud of him,” trainer Kenny McPeek said. “Today wasn't his day, but he will live to race again.”
Says the Gray was a surprise winner of the Preakness, facing tougher competition than the May 4 Putt Day Mile. Given his connection to Lucas, it's no surprise that one of his horses is covered in a blanket of Black-Eyed Susan flowers.
In the 149-year history of the race, no horse has saddled more horses in the Preakness than Lucas since his 1980 debut and Codex win. This time there were two horses, Just Steal finished fifth, but Says the Gray, owned by 2,570 people in the MyRacehorse group, took the win.
“We couldn't be happier with any of it,” said Michael Behrens, founder and CEO of MyRacehorse. “We had some high expectations and this exceeded all of those expectations.”
Seize the Gray paid $21.60 for the win, $8.40 for the place, and $4.40 for the show. Mystic Dan paid $4.20 and $2.80 after finishing a head behind third-place Catching Freedom, who paid $3.20.
Baffert, who was aiming for his record-tying ninth Preakness victory, had planned to run two horses, but was the favorite on the morning line. Moot was injured Due to fever at the beginning of the week. Baffert's Imagination finished seventh.
“He's still learning,” Baffert said. “I think we're learning his style. Today I saw a lot of things that I can change going forward. I don't think he wants to run like that. There wasn't really a plan. It's Wayne or us. I thought so.”
Moose's absence made Mystic Dan the 2-1 favorite, but he and jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. completed a perfect Derby trip to win the race's first three-way photo finish since 1947. could not be reproduced. Instead, Jamie Torres rode Sheez the Gray to victory. Just two years after he started riding, he won his first Triple Crown race in any type of race.
“I'm speechless,” said Torres, who is from Puerto Rico and didn't start racing until he saw it on TV in late 2019. , help me. “
this is. . .was the last preakness Pimlico Racecourse will be held in its current state, as it was before demolition began on the historic but aging racetrack, and the 150th race is scheduled to be held next year even though construction is still underway.
That process is already well underway at Belmont Park, so much so that the final leg of the Triple Crown will be held at Saratoga for the first time, shortened to 1 1/4 miles due to the shape of the course. Kentucky Derby runner-up Sierra Leone, who is only half a step away from winning, is expected to headline the race, but Lucas said he is looking forward to seeing if She's the Gray will also run.
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