Calvin Borel abandoned Mine That Bird in favor of Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness. He was back aboard the Derby winner in the Belmont, but he may be jumping ship again.
He frequently rides for Ian Wilkes and may have a scheduling conflict if Warrior’s Reward fires a big shot in the Dwyer (G2) this weekend.
If everything goes according to plan, Warrior’s Reward is scheduled to run in the Jim Dandy (G2) on August 1st, the same day Mine That Bird competes in the Grade 2 West Virginia Derby. How many chances will Chip Woolley give his …read more

Rachel Alexandra is enjoying her summer at Saratoga. She won another grade one with breathtaking easy on Saturday, and her two overmatched foes could not have been more accommodating after battling through sizzling early fractions. The rest of the three-year-old filly division is woefully weak, and the males are the only ones who can make her break a sweat. She may face the gents again in the Haskell or Travers in August.

Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird had an easy work on June 29th. The gelded son of Birdstone breezed four panels in :51 under …read more

We have a 10-race card on tap at Louisiana Downs on June 6th, and a big crowd is expected to come out and root for hometown hero Calvin Borel in the Belmont Stakes. Before I look at the Belmont and Saturday card at LAD, let’s recap the last two racedays…
June 4th
Fast main track and off the turf. Five wire jobs on the day.
Big day on the analysis front. Tabbed 6 tops on the 9-race card.
Bourque, Riquelme, and PVal each booted home a pair.
Apprentice rider Anna Roberts won her 2nd race of the meet with trainer Jorge Lara. She sent my best …read more

A field of 10 has been drawn for the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes , and Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird has been installed as the 2-1 morning line favorite. Borel fits the late runner like a glove, but he is only 1 for his last 5 and is not the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Charitable Man is the 3-1 2nd choice, and the Peter Pan winner might get brave if able to sneak away early.
Dunkirk is next at 4-1, and the lightly raced $3.7 million colt flashed talent in Florida before finding trouble on the …read more

Still no decision on Rachel Alexandra. She will probably sit out the Test of Champions, but if she goes, Robby Albarado could replace Calvin Borel, because the latter might reunite with Mine That Bird. I am sure Borel would love to ride the Preakness winner, but Jess Jackson and company are taking too long to make a commitment.
Rachel breezed an easy four furlongs (:50-1/5) on Monday, and Derby winner Mine That Bird went the same distance in :51 flat.

Chocolate Candy went a solid seven furlongs in 1:27.34 on Monday, and Garrett Gomez will ride in …read more

Everyone is hoping for a rematch between Derby hero Mine That Bird and Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra, but it may not happen in the Belmont Stakes.
Right after the Preakness the first thing that popped into my mind was no way the filly shoots for the Test of Champions. After all, the Oaks, Preakness, and Belmont is equivalent to the Triple Crown in terms of spacing, and there is no need to put her through that grueling schedule.
The feeling is she skips the 3rd leg and get a freshening for a summer/fall Horse of the Year run. If she …read more

Hats off to Rachel Alexandra for downing Derby winner Mine That Bird in the Preakness. I was not surprised that the filly got the job done. The only real knock on her was value. Calvin Borel is on cloud nine! The Bird ran better than expected, and kudos to him as well. What happened to The Nile…he’s still running.

Interesting that if Rachel was not in the Preakness, a Triple Crown could be on the line. On the other hand, if she ran in the Derby instead of the Oaks…hmmm!
Second day in the books at Louisiana Downs. Saturday’s best …read more

Pimlico Race Course has a fine 13-race Preakness Day card on tap for Saturday, and Louisiana Downs has a decent little 10-race card as well.
A horse I am particularly interested in at Pimlico is Parading. The Shug McGaughey runner looked sensational as my top choice in the Ben Ali, and the first thing that popped into my mind after that synthetic romp was the Hollywood Gold Cup. 6yo son of Pulpit reminds me a bit of Go Between, a quality turf runner who thrived on synthetic.
Parading is back on the grass in the Grade 2 Dixie on Saturday, …read more

As expected, a field of 13 was drawn for the 134th Preakness Stakes , to be run at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore on May 16th.
Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird will break from post two under new rider Mike Smith and has been installed at 6-1. Much lower than 50-1 under the Twin Spires, and he still must prove that his shocking win on May 2nd was for real.

Morning line favorite Rachel Alexandra will break from the outside post. She owns fine early/pressing speed and projects an outer stalking trip. The fillies did not make her break a sweat, but …read more

Rachel Alexandra is one step closer to Baltimore after making plane reservations for next Wednesday. Her probable status will be upgraded to definite if she looks good in an upcoming workout.
Calvin Borel will ride the Oaks winner in the Preakness, so Derby hero Mine That Bird needs a rider. Connections will name Borel anyway and reportedly have another rider lined up if the filly goes.

Pioneerof  The Nile is supposed to work on Monday and ship to Pimlico on Wednesday.
Terrain and Hull will work on Sunday morning at Churchill Downs.
Lexington 2nd place finisher Conservative will not …read more