As long as there are horses with a chance, he will never come.
It's been 11 years since 88-year-old trainer D. Wayne Lucas won the Preakness Stakes with Oxbow. Many thought the man who dominated Thoroughbred racing in the 1990s would never return to the winner's circle of Triple Crown racing. But Lucas' optimism blooms anew each spring. He feels bad if he doesn't participate in big races.
Lucas missed out on 2023, but brought two leading horses to Pimlico this year, Say's the Gray and Kentucky Derby 17th finisher Just Steel, in hopes of winning the Preakness as the No. 7 favorite. Neither of them were favorites, but Lucas felt that way under the circumstances. In the right scenario, he could compete with Derby champion Mystic Dan and the rest of a solid eight-horse field.
On Saturday, She's the Gray won his 149th Preakness start, and his relentless efforts paid off as he surged to the front in the straight line and stayed there for longer than anyone but his trainer expected.
“It's similar to the first one. It really is,” Lucas said as he descended the muddy path with the help of a cane, his only obvious concession to age. “It never gets old at this level.”
The win was also popular among rival trainers like Bob Baffert and Kenny McPeek, who have traded wins and good-natured words with Lucas for decades. Mr McPeak congratulated both riders immediately after the race, even though the Derby champion had just finished runner-up after a valiant effort.
“He’s a guy I’ve always looked up to,” McPeak said. “If I’m going to get hit, I don’t care if he hits me.”
“I'm in awe of what he's accomplished,” said Baffert, who still has one Preakness win compared to Lucas' eight. “I can't imagine myself training at 88 years old. … He still has it. He's still a great trainer.”
Lucas joked that there's only one reason his peers give him hugs and favors. They probably want me to retire. ”
Not likely.
“This helps me get up in the morning,” said Lucas, boasting of his 2-year-old class, who is already aiming for next year's Triple Crown.
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In another sense, it was a populist victory.
Jaime Torres, 25, was riding in his first Triple Crown race, five years after watching a race on TV in his native Puerto Rico and thinking it might be fun to be a jockey. The day before the Preakness, his family surprised him by showing up in Baltimore.
“I have no words,” Torres said, comprehending what had just happened.
Seize the Gray also gave the thrill of a lifetime to 2,570 owners who paid $127 to buy a piece of him through MyRacehorse.
“Can you imagine how many people would enjoy this?” Lucas joked.
But inevitably it was the trainer known as “The Coach” who took center stage. With his distinctive cowboy hat and the pony he still rides in the morning, Lucas trained his top trainers, including Todd Pletcher, Ciaran McLaughlin, Mark Henning, and George Weaver, and set the template for modern thoroughbred training. He is a great person who set it up.
He won his first Preakness at the Codex 44 years ago and has saddled 46 horses in the race over the years.
Lucas had to overcome multiple obstacles to get back into the Preakness winner's circle. Derby champion Mystic Dan, a muddy field, and well-rested Chad Brown-trained Tuscan Gold and Baffert-trained Imagination challengers.
Lucas' horse overcame them all.
Competitors were not surprised that he came out on top. They were just surprised he stayed there considering his best win to date was the Pat Day Mile on the undercard of the Derby.
“I thought I'd corner him,” McPeak said.
2024 Preakness Stakes Race | Photos
Brian Hernandez Jr. rode Mystic Dan very skillfully in the Derby and thought he was in position for another win.
“When I went out, Baffert’s horse was [Imagination] It dies and I walk out of him and I'm like, “Okay, let's go.'' I’ll just rush to him and I’ll be able to corner him,” Hernandez said. “But when we cornered him, Lucas' horse galloped again. Our horse was running. We couldn't corner him today.”
Mr Lucas said he wasn't worried once he saw Says the Gray cruising across the Pimlico mud.
“I knew they were going to charge at us, but I thought he had a great chance to sway the race,” he said. “I thought his action on the backside was beautiful. I knew he was controlling the truck.”
He grabbed a 2 1/4 length win in 1:56.82 and paid $21.60 on a $2 bet, $8.40 on a $2 bet and $4.40 on a $2 show. Mystik Dan, the 5-2 favorite, paid $4.20 and $2.80. Third place Catching Freedom paid $3.20.
Says the Gray's victory ended his chances of winning the Triple Crown for a sixth straight year. In 2018, Justify was the last horse to win both the Derby and Preakness. Since Justify completed his quest, 17 horses have won 17 Triple Crown races.
Preakness 2024 Live Broadcast: Seize the Gray Wins Preakness
As sometimes happens on Preakness Saturdays, the weather got into character. Who can forget American His Pharaoh gliding over a swamp left by a severe thunderstorm in 2015? The muddy scenario was believed to favor Mystic Dan, who will run one of the best races of his life on the hills of Arkansas in the Southwest Stakes on February 3rd.
In reality, bad weather was a variable that none of the Preakness trainers invited. “We won't know until they come out of the gate,” Baffert said when asked how the $2 million race will change.
As far as we know, this wet Preakness will be Pimlico's last, at least if the state's $400 million plan to rebuild the track goes as planned. Next year's 150th Preakness trip will take place against the backdrop of an active demolition site, with the wrecking ball expected to swing later this year or early next year. The race will move to Laurel Park and return to the new, hip Pimlico in 2027.
Trainer Lucas acknowledged that Pimlico needed renovations, but said he hoped the essence of the Preakness – the low-key camaraderie between trainers kept in the same stable – would remain the same.
“This was a special place, not just for me, but for a lot of the trainers,” he said.
As Oxbow's 2013 victories fade further into the past, did he ever think he would return to the winner's circle? He said he simply needed time to find someone willing to fund a hunt for a yearling horse. Now that he has that backing, he has no plans to stop winning.
“There's no reason we can't come here,” he said.
Baltimore Sun Media reporter Sam Cohn contributed to this article.
156th Belmont Stakes
Saratoga Racecourse, New York
Saturday, June 8, approximately 7 p.m.
tv set: NBC
Preakness 2024: All winners of Saturday's race program at Pimlico