BALTIMORE — Bob Baffert choked again tears and his voice cracked whilst seeking to juggle the emotions of one of his horses successful the Preakness Stakes and another being euthanized at the identical tune.
“This business is twists and turns, the ups and downs,” he stated. “To win this — losing that horse today really hurt. … It’s been a very emotional day.”
National Treasure received the Preakness on Saturday in Baffert’s go back to the Triple Crown path following a suspension, however it got here hours after another 3-year-old colt, Havnameltdown, was put down as a result of of a left leg damage in an undercard race. The victory ended Mage’s bid for the Triple Crown in a conflicting scene very similar to that of two weeks previous when he received the Kentucky Derby within the aftermath of seven horses death in 10 days at Churchill Downs.
National Treasure, the 5-2 2nd selection, held off hard-charging Blazing Sevens down the stretch to win the 1 3/16-mile, $1.65 million race by means of a head in 1:55.12.
“He fought the whole way,” jockey John Velazquez stated. “He put up a really good fight. … That’s what champions do.”
National Treasure paid $7.80 to win, $4 to put and $2.60 to turn. Blazing Sevens paid $5 to put and $2.80 to turn.
Mage completed 3rd after going off because the 7-5 favourite, paying $2.40 to turn. His defeat, led to by means of a tempo a lot slower than the Derby, method there may not be a Triple Crown winner for a 5th consecutive yr.
“I followed every single step of the way, the winner,” Mage jockey Javier Castellano said. “But those horses, with pace, no speed in the race, hard to catch.”
Much like Castellano received the Derby in his sixteenth take a look at, Velazquez broke an 0-for-12 drought within the Preakness.
“It’s been a while,” Velazquez stated. “The success that I had in other races, not having won this one — it was definitely missing, so special to have it.”
Baffert had a rollercoaster day, again at Pimlico Race Course from a suspension that saved him from getting into a horse within the Preakness closing yr. The thrill of victories by means of National Treasure within the Preakness and Arabian Lion in an previous stakes race contrasted with the agony of Havnameltdown’s loss of life.
Black obstacles had been propped up at the grime tune whilst the pony was put down. All the whilst, 2Pac’s “California Love” blared from the infield audio system at what is meant as an annual daylong birthday party of thoroughbred racing.
By night time, Baffert was celebrated for successful the Preakness for a document 8th time, breaking a tie with Nineteenth-century instructor R. Wyndham Walden. In 2018, Baffert matched Walden with seven wins on the Baltimore race with Justify, who went directly to turn into the game’s thirteenth Triple Crown winner — and Baffert’s 2nd, after American Pharoah ended a long drought for the game in 2015.
This was Baffert’s first Preakness in two years as a result of of a ban stemming from 2021 Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit’s failed drug take a look at that ended in a disqualification in that race. Medina Spirit was Baffert’s most up-to-date Preakness horse, completing 3rd.
Baffert didn’t arrive in Baltimore till Thursday this week, in the hunt for to stay a decrease profile than standard given the questions that experience dogged him and clouded his popularity. A Hall of Famer and an established face of horse racing, Baffert sought to transport previous his suspension when requested Friday.
“We just keep on moving forward,” he stated. “We have other horses to worry about. A lot of it is noise, so you keep the noise out and continue working.”
While horse racing deaths within the U.S. are at their lowest degree since they started being tracked in 2009, including another on the tune internet hosting a Triple Crown race will handiest accentuate the interior and exterior scrutiny of the trade. Those within it have stated they settle for the realities of on-track deaths of horses whilst additionally acknowledging extra paintings must be performed to stop as many as conceivable.
In that vein, new nationwide drugs and doping regulations are set to enter impact on Monday. The federally mandated Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, which already regulated racetrack protection and different measures, will oversee drug checking out necessities for horses that are meant to standardize the game national for the primary time.
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