River Thames Enjoying Good Week of Training
Asmussen: Post 8 ‘Very Good Draw’ for Clever Again

BALTIMORE – With the benefit of time – eight-plus days – after his second-place finish in the Kentucky Derby (G1), the connections of Journalism determined that he had answered all the questions about his readiness for Saturday’s 150th Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico Race Course.

The colt co-owned by Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Bridlewood Farm, Don Alberto Stable, Robert LaPenta, Elayne Stables 5 LLC, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith drew Post 2 Monday evening and is the 8-5 morning-line favorite in the nine-horse Preakness field. He spent Tuesday in transit from Louisville to Pimlico, where he was met by trainer Michael McCarthy.

Aron Wellman, president of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and managing partner of the ownership group, said it was vitally important to be patient last week and assess the Curlin colt. After the decision was made Sunday to move forward, Journalism was entered in a race that drew two other Derby runners, Sandman and American Promise, and six new shooters.

“From top to bottom, it's a very competitive field that we have a lot of respect for,” Wellman said. “Really our primary focus is on Journalism. We've been very, very intent on making sure that he's giving us all the right signs out of the Kentucky Derby, and he seems to have done that every which way, in terms of his appetite, his energy, his weight and his mindset. We wanted him to tell us that he was ready to go to Baltimore. We’ve got a master horseman in Michael McCarthy that's reading all those signs and hopefully reading them appropriately. We have total conviction that this is the right move for the horse, and we expect for him to be extremely live in the Preakness on Saturday.”

Sent off as the 3-1 favorite in the Kentucky Derby May 3, he encountered some traffic issues early on, leaving him farther back in the field than McCarthy had hoped. Jockey Umberto Rispoli was able to move him into a contending position in the second turn. He had the lead early in the stretch but was bested in a stretch duel by Sovereignty and finished 1 ½ lengths behind the winner.

Wellman chuckled at a question about how many calls he handled in the run-up to the decision to enter.

“The phone has been busy, but it’s certainly better than the alternative,” he said. “This is the time of year where you want to be busy and you don't want to be sitting in your office, staring at the walls, wondering, what are you doing with your life? You want to absolutely be fully immersed in Triple Crown season, and thankfully, Journalism has allowed us to be so.”

Sandman ‘Relaxing’ in New Digs at Pimlico Race Course

While a steady rain fell over Pimlico Tuesday morning, Sandman became acquainted with his new digs at the Preakness Stakes Barn. The seventh-place finisher in the Kentucky Derby (G1), arrived at 3 a.m. after a 12-hour van ride from Louisville, Ky.

“He had a bath, walked and seems to be happy,” said Shane Tripp, the New York assistant to Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse. “He is relaxing, had some peppermints.”

Sandman was laying down in his stall although he wasn’t sleeping, He then got up and looked around, taking it all in. Tripp anticipated that Sandman would get some sleep later in the day.

The gray colt, owned by D J Stable LLC, St. Elias Stable, West Point Thoroughbreds and CJ Stables, drew Post 7 for the Preakness and is the 4-1 second choice on the morning line behind Kentucky Derby runner-up Journalism (8-5).

“We are encouraged with how he came back from the Kentucky Derby,” Tripp said. “He has held his weight good.”

The son of Tapit has three wins in nine career starts. This year, he has one win in four tries, that coming in the Arkansas Derby (G1) at Oaklawn Park. He was also second in the Southwest Stakes (G3) and third in the Rebel Stakes (G2). Both of those races were at Oaklawn.

Tripp will be aboard Sandman when he makes his first trip to the Pimlico track at approximately 6 a.m. on Wednesday. Casse was expected to arrive in Baltimore Tuesday afternoon.

Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez will ride Sandman for the first time in the Preakness.

River Thames Enjoying Good Week of Training

WinStar Farm LLC, CHC Inc., Pantofel Stables LLC and Wachtel Stable’s River Thames has pleased Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher with his preparation for Saturday’s 150th Preakness (G1) at Pimlico Race Course.

“He’s had a good week. He had a good breeze at Belmont on Saturday and came out of it in good order,” Pletcher said. “His energy level is good. He’s coming up to it well.”

River Thames was withheld from the May 3 Kentucky Derby (G1) while being targeted Saturday’s Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. The son of Maclean’s Music finished second in the Feb. 1 Fountain of Youth (G2), a neck behind Derby winner Sovereignty, at Gulfstream before finishing third, beaten by three-quarters of a length, in the April 8 Blue Grass (G1) at Keeneland.

“River Thames will ship in Wednesday and do some light training Thursday and Friday,” Pletcher said.

Irad Ortiz Jr. has the call on River Thames, who is ranked third on the morning-line at 9-2.

Asmussen: Post 8 ‘Very Good Draw’ for Clever Again

Clever Again was expected to arrive from Churchill Downs in mid-afternoon Tuesday. After drawing Post 3 in all three career starts, the son of 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah drew Post 8 in the field of nine for the 150th Preakness Stakes (G1) – a starting position that delighted Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen.

“I think it’s a very good draw,” Asmussen said by phone from Louisville, Ky. “I like the two horses around him from a pace scenario. We expect him to break clean, with the other pace obviously to his inside.”

Arkansas Derby (G1) winner Sandman, seventh in the Kentucky Derby (G1), is a late closer who drew Post 7. Gosger, to Clever Again’s outside, is a stalker. Drawing the rail is 2-for-2 Goal Oriented, who led all the way to win a 1 1/16-mile allowance race on the May 3 Kentucky Derby undercard. No. 3 American Promise also has speed.

The outside post also allows jockey Jose Ortiz to clock heavy favorite Journalism, the Kentucky Derby runner-up who drew Post 2. For all the speed Clever Again has shown in his races, Asmussen expressed confidence that he’ll relax and be content wherever Ortiz wants the colt.

“He’s a really kind horse,” Asmussen said. “He’s always been a very good actor — very confident and feels good about who he is.”

In a bit of a statistical oddity, Clever Again broke in front from Post 3, going wire to wire in his two starts this year at Oaklawn Park, a 1 1/16-mile maiden race and the $200,000 Hot Springs Stakes at a two-turn mile. He made his first start going 4 ½ furlongs at Keeneland in April of his 2-year-old season, breaking in front and then going head-to-head with the filly Dreamaway before just missing at the wire.

Dreamaway went on to win Monmouth Park’s Colleen Stakes in her next start. Clever Again didn’t race again for 10 months but stretched out his speed all the way into the winner’s circle upon his return.

“We’re very excited about it,” Asmussen said of the Preakness, a race he won in 2007 with Curlin and in 2009 with the filly Rachel Alexandra, both future Horses of the Year and Hall of Famers..

Asmussen said he’ll be in Baltimore Friday. He has six other horses running in Pimlico stakes Friday and Saturday. Assistant trainer Darren Fleming, who was with Clever Again all winter in Arkansas, is overseeing the horses’ preparation in Maryland.

Lightly Raced Baffert Trainee Goal Oriented ‘Moving Forward’

During his Hall of Fame career, trainer Bob Baffert has made history at the Preakness. He’ll try to make a little more when the race is run for the 150th time on Saturday at Pimlico.

Baffert owns the record for most Preakness wins with eight.

If he is able to add to that total this weekend, he will carve another chapter into the Preakness archives.

Baffert-trained Goal Oriented only has two starts on his resume, a rarity for horses running in the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. Two other horses in this year’s Preakness field – Clever Again and Gosger – have started three times.

The inaugural winner of the Preakness, a horse named Survivor, had two starts when he claimed the prize in 1873. In recent years, Early Voting (2022) and Cloud Computing (2017), both trained by Chad Brown, had three career starts before winning the Preakness. So did Bernardini, who won the Preakness with his fourth start in 2006.

“We have always been very high on him and always thought he was a good horse,” Baffert said. “And he’s undefeated!”

That he is.

The son of Not This Time, owned by SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Stonestreet Stables LLC, Dianne Bashor, Determined Stables, Robert E. Masterson, Tom J. Ryan, Waves Edge Capital LLC and Catherine Donovan, broke his maiden April 25 at Santa Anita coming from off the pace. He then won a first-level allowance at Churchill Downs over a sloppy track on the Kentucky Derby (G1) undercard, going gate-to-wire to win by three quarters of a length.

“He is a big, strong horse, but he’s still learning,” Baffert said. “His first out, he was behind horses and didn’t like the kickback too much. We took him to Louisville, and he came back, and it was not really taxing on him. He is moving forward.”

Flavien Prat, who rode him in the second start, will return for the Preakness. They will start from the rail post position.

Baffert last won the Preakness in 2023 with National Treasure, who broke from the rail post position. Last year, Baffert’s Imagination finished seventh in the Preakness. In his career, Baffert has saddled 26 Preakness horses, second only to fellow Hall of Famer D. Wayne Lukas, who has 48.

Baffert arrived in Baltimore on Monday; Goal Oriented followed on Tuesday.

Heart of Honor Seeking to be First European Preakness Winner

British-based UAE Derby (G2) runner-up Heart of Honor, who will attempt to be the first European horse to win the Preakness Stakes (G1) Saturday, was introduced to the Pimlico surface Tuesday morning under assistant trainer Jimmy McCarthy.

“He had a canter,” said McCarthy, who was aboard the colt. “Well, I jogged a mile, galloped a mile, as you say. We ‘canter;’ you ‘gallop.’ He stretched his legs.”

Trainer Jamie Osborne, an internationally prominent steeplechase jockey during his riding career, and his 23-year-old jockey daughter, Saffie, were flying Tuesday and expected to be at the track Wednesday morning, the trainer said in a text. Joining them on the flight were owners Jim and Claire Bryce, who will run a horse for the first time in the U.S.

Saffie Osborne made history last year when she became the first female jockey to win a race at Dubai’s Meydan Racecourse.

The nearly black Heart of Honor — who has a splash on his forehead that looks like it could be a heart colored by someone who didn’t completely stay in the lines — cleared quarantine at Churchill Downs’ Kentucky Import Center. He trained Monday morning at Churchill and then vanned to Baltimore. While he can train with the general horse population, Heart of Honor remains in isolation for his Maryland visit.

McCarthy reported that Heart of Honor shipped well. “He seems all right so far,” he said. “Obviously he’s a little bit edgy in different surroundings. He went to Churchill, spent a few days there and moved again. But, on the whole, he takes it pretty well.”

He said Heart of Honor would stay on pretty much the same schedule as Tuesday, when he went to the track at 7:30 a.m.. As far as how he seemed to handle the track, “you won’t know that until race time, really,” McCarthy said. “I’m not going to be pressing any buttons between now and then, just giving him exercise.”

Overnight and morning rain left the track wet, a new experience for Heart of Honor. He faced no off tracks in Dubai, McCarthy said. “To be honest, when it rains there for a couple of days, they shut the track anyway. There was very little rain there this winter.”

While born in Great Britain, Heart of Honor could have just as easily been Kentucky-bred. His dam, the Chilean mare Ruby Love, had been bred to the late Kentucky sire Scat Daddy and was carrying Heart of Honor when she sold for $90,000 at Keeneland’s 2021 November sale and was transported to Great Britain, where she gave birth. Ruby Love went 3 for 3 in her native Chile before being sent to the U.S., where she had two off-the-board finishes for Maryland-based trainer Arnaud Delacour.

Heart of Honor is a son of the Lane’s End stallion Honor A.P., the 2020 Santa Anita Derby (G1) winner who finished fourth in the Covid-delayed Kentucky Derby (G1). Honor A.P. is a son of 2015 older-male champion Honor Code, himself a son of 1992 Horse of the Year and Hall of Famer A.P. Indy. Honor A.P.’s dam is the multiple Grade 1 winner Hollywood Story. The female family includes Hall of Famer Serena’s Song.

McCarthy said Osborne bought Heart of Honor and some other horses with the idea of Dubai’s dirt racing in mind. The colt started off on the synthetic track at Southwell in England, finishing second. His next five races were in Dubai over the Meydan Racecourse dirt, with a pair of wins before three straight seconds in stakes company. The last was a scintillating stretch run in the UAE Derby, which he dropped by a nose to Admire Daytona.

Saffie Osborne will ride Heart of Honor for the third straight race in the 1 3/16-mile Preakness.

Lukas: American Promise Better Now than Before Derby

When discussing the field for the 150th Preakness (G1) Saturday, Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas acknowledged Tuesday morning that Journalism, the 8-5 favorite after finishing second in the Kentucky Derby (G1), was the horse to beat.

“Journalism jumps off the page,” Lukas said. “No question about that.”

Several minutes later, though, Lukas, 89, made the case that Journalism wasn’t a lock to win the 1 3//16-mile Preakness.

“I think Journalism is beatable,” he said and offered some reasons why.

“Well, we don't know how he's going to bounce back in two weeks. That's the first thing,” Lukas said. “It's a different race. It's nine head, which means everybody will probably have a shot at him. It’s a different surface, obviously. It's shorter. It may not fit him too well, although he's run some mile and an eighths.”

Lukas led his Preakness runner, the massive American Promise, out to the Pimlico track at 6 a.m. for some light morning exercise. The Justify colt, who ended up 16th in the Derby after a tough trip, drew Post 3 for the Preakness, one stall to the outside of Journalism.

American Promise and three other males entered in undercard races this weekend, arrived at Pimlico from Kentucky Monday afternoon. They had easy assignments Tuesday, jogging a couple of miles over the sealed track that Lukas said was in excellent condition despite heavy rain overnight.

Lukas described the problems American Promise’s jockey had to deal with in the Derby, which began in the moments after the start of the race when Citizen Bull bore out. American Promise was impacted by the chain-reaction bumping that ensued.

“He's 17 hands, and he can't get shut down and start again. That's the problem. He can't recover,” Lukas said. “Nik Juarez, the rider, he recovered from the first bout there right out of the gate, but he had him in perfect position at the kitchen - as I call it - the three-eighths pole. If he’d had just sat another eighth and not tried to split those horses…. When he drove in there, I think Johnny Velazquez said, ‘not today’ and said, ‘that’s it,’ and shut the door. Then he shut completely down, and he never recovered. He just loped in from there.”

American Promise was 38 ½ lengths behind the winner, Sovereignty, and Lukas said it had everything to do with the troubled trip.

“If you watch the Virginia Derby, he's got a patented move coming out of that turn,” Lukas said. “He'll kick it. And that's what we were looking for. And he was set up to do it. Nik thought he was going to get it, until he got shut down. When that happened, I turned to John Bellinger, the owner, and I said, ‘it's over right there.’”

By the morning after the Derby, Lukas was looking ahead to the Preakness, a race he has won seven times, including with Seize the Grey last year. Lukas is upbeat about American Promises’ chances in the Preakness.

“I think he's better this week than he was the week before the Derby,” he said. “If that helps us or not I don't know.”

Gosger ‘Settling in’ at Pimlico After Early-Morning Arrival

His gray coat befitting the rainy and dreary weather, Harvey A. Clarke Racing Stable LLC’s Gosger sheltered inside his stall in the Pimlico stakes barn Tuesday after arriving earlier in the morning from Keeneland.

“He’s just settling in today,” said Rachel Wade, assistant to trainer Brendan Walsh.

Wade said Gosger, a two-length winner of the Lexington (G3) last month, arrived at Pimlico about 4 a.m. Tuesday and will likely head to the track for the first time on Wednesday in preparation for Saturday’s 150th Preakness Stakes (G1).

The lightly raced son of Nyquist will be making only his fourth career start in the 1 3/16-mile Preakness, with Luis Saez scheduled to ride. He landed in the outside post No. 9 and was installed at odds of 20-1 on the morning line.

Pay Billy in Winning Form for Gorham’s First Preakness

RKTN Racing’s automatic Preakness (G1) qualifier Pay Billy arrived at Pimlico Race Course shortly before 1 p.m. Tuesday following an hour and 10-minute van ride from Delaware Park with trainer Mike Gorham at the wheel. Also making the trip were Gorham’s assistant and exercise rider Aimee Hall, 3-year-old filly Moon Cache, running in Friday’s $300,000 George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan (G2), and 3-year-old colt Chipotle, entered in Saturday’s listed $150,000 Chick Lang.

“Trip was good, uneventful. No bumps in the road. Got here right on time from when we left,” Gorham said. “Billy, for a big horse, he’s pretty cool. Nothing bothers him, really. I don’t worry about anything with him. He’s just like: ‘point me in a direction and let’s go.’”

Gorham plans to send Pay Billy and his stablemates to the track around 6 a.m. Wednesday.

“We trained this morning before we left. Everything went well. We didn’t get any rain early so the track was really good. They all got good gallops over the track today and hopefully we get them out over the track tomorrow,” he said. “We’ll see how the track is and determine what to do with them.”

By Improbable, who ran sixth as the favorite in the 2019 Preakness for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, Pay Billy earned his berth by virtue of a victory in the 1 1/8-mile Federico Tesio April 19 at Laurel Park. It was his fourth win in the past five starts and second straight in a stakes, following Laurel’s 1 1/16-mile Private Terms March 22.

Pay Billy will be the first starter in a Triple Crown race for both Gorham and jockey Raul Mena, who has been aboard Pay Billy for his last five races. They join Lexington (G3) winner Gosger as the longest shots in the Preakness field at 20-1 on the morning line and will break from a Post 5 that has produced 13 winners since 1909, most recently Early Voting in 2022.