I had a very early start, 5 A.M. to be exact, just to make sure I caught the morning workouts for many Thoroughbreds and especially, the undefeated, McCraken. McCraken moved into a barn at Keeneland Racetrack on 3/16/17 after missing the Tampa Bay Derby on 3/11 due to an ankle injury he sustained on 2/28. He currently holds seventeenth place on the Kentucky Derby leaderboard due to the points he received when he won the Sam F. Davis stakes. McCraken is the probable morning-line favorite in next weekend’s Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland. He looked like a real champ this morning when he was feeling frisky at bath time after 4 furlongs at :49.40.
McCraken is a 3 year-old colt sired by Ghostzapper. He is KY bred and owned by Whitham Thoroughbreds. His dam is Ivory Empress. McCraken has won all 4 of his career starts, 2 were graded stakes. He is trained by Ian Wilkes and his regular jockey is Brian Hernandez, Jr. Hernandez just won the Louisiana Derby, at Fair Grounds, yesterday with Girvin, who now holds 1st place on the KY Derby leaderboard.
The KY Derby is approaching quickly, 5/6/17, and there are not many more qualifying races left. This coming Saturday features 3 of the final 5 prep races. These are the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, the Santa Anita Derby at Santa Anita Park and the Bluegrass Stakes at Keeneland. Keeneland holds its Spring meet 4/7 thru 4/28. Day 2 includes the 93rd running of the G2 Blue Grass Stakes. KY Derby points and a purse of $1 million dollars are on the line in this 1 and 1/8th mile (9 furlongs) dirt race. The probable contenders are by name and rank on the KY Derby leaderboard:
- McCraken 17
- Tapwrit 6
- Wild Shot 23
- Irap 26
- Practical Joke 12
- It’s Your Nickel unranked
- J Boys Echo 7
McCraken didn’t work until 8:30 A.M. today. A large crowd assembled to see him. I thoroughly enjoyed watching as he ran a half mile then galloped out to 6 furlongs in 1:13.80 minutes. He did not appear challenged by his exercise. It was a lot of fun to watch Hernandez ride him and I especially liked the bath time and interview sessions that followed. Hernandez and Wilkes were enthusiastic in their responses and Wilkes was happy with the fan crowd that McCraken brings.
I’ll be cheering for McCraken in the Blue Grass Stakes and I’m on pins and needles to see how the KY Derby leaderboard changes next weekend. It makes me very happy that live racing returns and all that the industry brings to my hometown for the month. Check back for plenty of posts and pictures from Keeneland over the next few weeks! Also, enjoy a video clip of McCraken’s bath today!
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