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Maryland Lottery To Sponsor Historic Pimlico Special

41ST RUNNING OF GRADE I RACE WILL FEATURE NINE RUNNERS FRIDAY AFTERNOON

     BALTIMORE, 05-12-08---The Maryland Lottery is again teaming up with the horseracing industry by sponsoring another exciting race during the prestigious Preakness weekend. Last year, the Lottery presented the inaugural Barbaro Stakes race. This year, the Lottery will sponsor the $250,000 Pimlico Special on Friday, one day before the 133rd running of the $1 million Preakness® Stakes, the middle jewel of the Triple Crown. Friday’s race will be televised live on ESPN 2 at 4:40 p.m.

     “The Lottery is thrilled to sponsor the Pimlico Special,” said Lottery Director Buddy Roogow. “The Preakness is such an important event in Maryland’s tradition and the Lottery is honored to be a part of it.”           

     Along with sponsoring the Pimlico Special, the Lottery will also be on-site Friday and Saturday at Pimlico.  Patrons can stop by the Lottery booth to play their favorite games, learn about current Lottery initiatives, and spin the wheel for prizes.

     The Maryland Lottery Pimlico Special is the second most prestigious race on the Maryland racing calendar, trailing only the Preakness, returns after a one-year hiatus.  Introduced by Alfred Vanderbilt in 1937, the Pimlico Special was the first major stakes race in the United States by invitation only. The 1938 running played host to one of America’s most historic moments when Seabiscuit upset War Admiral in the famed match race. The long-awaited winner-take-all showdown was named “Race of the Century” by Sports Illustrated in 1999 and forever immortalized in the movie Seabiscuit in 2003.

     “I think the Special is a very important part of Preakness weekend,” said Chris Dragone, Maryland Jockey Club president and general manager. “Having the Maryland Lottery associated with the Special proves the importance of our sport and this race in particular to the state.”

     Friday’s $250,000 Grade I race, that co-headlines Friday’s 13-race card with the $200,000 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes (Grade II). Nine older horses have been entered for the renewal of the race run at the Preakness distance of one and three-sixteenths miles with Todd Pletcher-trained A.P. Arrow listed as the 5-2 overnight favorite.

     A winner of more than $1.4 million during a 23-race career, the son of A.P. Indy is coming off a fourth-place finish to Curlin in the Grade I Dubai World Cup. In his only other outing this year, the grandson of Seattle Slew was a solid second, beaten only a half-length by Spring At Last, in the Grade I Donn Handicap at Gulfstream Park.

     "He came out of Dubai very well and he's training very well," said Pletcher, who is hoping for some pace in the race. "Lots of speed. A good pace up front could certainly help him." Ramon Dominguez will be in the irons.

     Grasshopper, trained by Neil Howard and to be ridden by Robby Albarado, is the 3-1 second choice as Howard seeks to become a two-time winner of the Special. Howard scored five years ago with Mineshaft.

     "This is a very nice horse, but a different type than Mineshaft," said Howard. "Mineshaft was a physical specimen, like a linebacker. Grasshopper is more like a wide receiver and a little more athletic. And Mineshaft was a little more accomplished at this time (in his career)."

     In 10 lifetime starts, the Dixie Union colt has won or finished second nine times and he was a close third after encountering trouble in the other race. In his only Grade I effort, he was second by a half-length to Kentucky Derby champion Street Sense in the Travers at Saratoga last August.

     Howard sent Grasshopper to Pimlico early to get him acclimated to the track and surroundings and isn't that concerned if the race is run on a less-than-fast surface. "I think he'll be fine if the track's a little off."

     At 9-2, Gottcha Gold is the third pick following an impressive score in the Grade III Skip Away Handicap at Gulfstream Park in March.

     "The Special wasn't our primary plan for him but when the Memorial Day Handicap's purse was cut (at Calder) and would no longer be graded we were glad to have the Special as an option," said Eddie Plesa, Gottcha Gold's conditioner.

     "I think he's deserving of starting in the race and will run well. He's a late developing horse. Last year was a banner year for him (more than $1 million in 2007 earnings)."

     Trainer Nick Zito will be represented by Wanderin Boy (8-1 odds) whose only start this year was a third over a sloppy track in the Grade III, Alysheba at Churchill Downs May 2. At age 7, Wanderin Boy is the group's senior citizen and Zito credits breeder Arthur B. Hancock III. 

     "Obviously, he's one of the better breeders today," said Zito, who said the horse "needed that race last time. He hadn't run in six months, so it was pretty good." Wanderin Boy was second to Horse of the Year Invasor in the 2006 Special and gets the riding services of Kent Desormeaux.

Another million-dollar winner, Student Council, who took the Grade I Pacific Classic last summer, will represent trainer Steve Asmussen at 6-1 while the local hopes will be carried by Ryan's for Real (10-1), who broke through with a victory in the Bill Hartack Memorial Handicap at Hawthorne last month. He is trained by Dale Capuano.

      Rounding out the field are Sir Whimsey (10-1), Temporary Saint (10-1), who are both two-for-three in 2008, and Xchanger, the only entrant with a win over the Pimlico strip. Xchanger, trained by Mark Shuman, set the early pace before finishing eighth in last year's Preakness and is listed as the longest shot in the Special lineup at 20-1.

$250,000 MARYLAND LOTTERY PIMLICO SPECIAL (GRADE I)

-MJC-