Once again, Bodemeister fans watched as Bob Baffert’s colt led the way throughout the Preakness, held on May 19 at Pimlico in Baltimore, MD. Near the finish line it looked like Bodemeister would take the win this time, with I’ll Have Another still trailing, but catching up fast. Then just at the wire, the chestnut colt edged out Bodemeister by a neck to win the 137th Preakness. He’s the first horse since Big Brown in 2008 to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown. His owners and trainer are hoping he will become the 12th horse to capture the Triple Crown, the first since Affirmed in 1978, in the Belmont Stakes on June 9 at Belmont Park in New York. At 1 ½ miles, the Belmont is the longest race in the Triple Crown.
The 1 3/16-mile Preakness unfolded the same way as the 1 1/4-mile Derby, with Bodemeister taking the lead under Mike Smith and I'll Have Another hanging back in fourth in the 11-horse field. But in the shadow of the wire, I'll Have Another found another gear under jockey Mario Gutierrez to overtake Bodemeister by a neck.
Mike Smith, Bodemeister’s jockey, had only praise for the winner. “I thought I put him (I'll Have Another) away, but he reached up and got us with three strides. Two great horses and I give them all the credit for what they did,” said Smith, quoted in Reuters.
Baffert said he would not send Bodemeister to the Belmont Stakes. “I wasn't going to go, win lose or draw,” he said. “I’ve run him pretty hard,” said Baffert, quoted in USA Today.
There is still scrutiny on trainer Doug O’Neill about his violations for allegedly giving his horses improper drugs. He was fined $1,000 and suspended 15 days in one incident. He is contesting another, CNN reported.
O'Neill has been accused in California of “milkshaking,” the illegal practice of giving a horse a blend of bicarbonate of soda, sugar and electrolytes. The mixture is designed to reduce fatigue and enhance performance.
The trainer's most recent violation dates from an August 25, 2010, race at Del Mar, California. A blood test on his horse, Argenta, showed elevated levels of TCO2 -- the milkshake -- before it finished eighth. He faces penalties ranging from a minimum 90-day suspension and a $5,000 fine to a maximum 180-day suspension and fine of $15,000, CNN reported May 19.
Posted 5/25/12 on STL Today, the St. Louis website: “Trainer Doug O'Neill vigorously denied giving one of his horses a performance-enhancing mixture that violated the rules. After a nearly two-year legal battle, California racing officials agreed with him, while still finding fault because of a rule that says trainers are ultimately responsible for horses in their care.
“The ruling Thursday (5/24/12) calls for O'Neill to be suspended 45 days, but it won't take effect until after he saddles Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I'll Have Another in the Belmont Stakes on June 9.
“The seven-member California Horse Racing Board agreed with a hearing officer's recommendations, which included the maximum punishment and fine — $15,000 — for the trainer.
“While elevated carbon dioxide is associated with ‘milkshaking,’ the officer agreed with O'Neill that his horse Argenta hadn’t been fed a mixture of bicarbonate of soda, sugar and electrolytes that enhances performance and combats fatigue. The officer didn’t indicate what might have caused the overage. (AP)” (source: http://www.stltoday.com/sports/)
More on the Preakness: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/sports/ill-have-another-wins-137th-preakness-stakes.html?_r=1&src=recg
Photo: _DD… Photos: I’ll Have Another wins the Preakness by a neck. (photo by Dan Dry / Power Creative)
The 1 3/16-mile Preakness unfolded the same way as the 1 1/4-mile Derby, with Bodemeister taking the lead under Mike Smith and I'll Have Another hanging back in fourth in the 11-horse field. But in the shadow of the wire, I'll Have Another found another gear under jockey Mario Gutierrez to overtake Bodemeister by a neck.
Mike Smith, Bodemeister’s jockey, had only praise for the winner. “I thought I put him (I'll Have Another) away, but he reached up and got us with three strides. Two great horses and I give them all the credit for what they did,” said Smith, quoted in Reuters.
Baffert said he would not send Bodemeister to the Belmont Stakes. “I wasn't going to go, win lose or draw,” he said. “I’ve run him pretty hard,” said Baffert, quoted in USA Today.
There is still scrutiny on trainer Doug O’Neill about his violations for allegedly giving his horses improper drugs. He was fined $1,000 and suspended 15 days in one incident. He is contesting another, CNN reported.
O'Neill has been accused in California of “milkshaking,” the illegal practice of giving a horse a blend of bicarbonate of soda, sugar and electrolytes. The mixture is designed to reduce fatigue and enhance performance.
The trainer's most recent violation dates from an August 25, 2010, race at Del Mar, California. A blood test on his horse, Argenta, showed elevated levels of TCO2 -- the milkshake -- before it finished eighth. He faces penalties ranging from a minimum 90-day suspension and a $5,000 fine to a maximum 180-day suspension and fine of $15,000, CNN reported May 19.
Posted 5/25/12 on STL Today, the St. Louis website: “Trainer Doug O'Neill vigorously denied giving one of his horses a performance-enhancing mixture that violated the rules. After a nearly two-year legal battle, California racing officials agreed with him, while still finding fault because of a rule that says trainers are ultimately responsible for horses in their care.
“The ruling Thursday (5/24/12) calls for O'Neill to be suspended 45 days, but it won't take effect until after he saddles Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I'll Have Another in the Belmont Stakes on June 9.
“The seven-member California Horse Racing Board agreed with a hearing officer's recommendations, which included the maximum punishment and fine — $15,000 — for the trainer.
“While elevated carbon dioxide is associated with ‘milkshaking,’ the officer agreed with O'Neill that his horse Argenta hadn’t been fed a mixture of bicarbonate of soda, sugar and electrolytes that enhances performance and combats fatigue. The officer didn’t indicate what might have caused the overage. (AP)” (source: http://www.stltoday.com/sports/)
More on the Preakness: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/sports/ill-have-another-wins-137th-preakness-stakes.html?_r=1&src=recg
Photo: _DD… Photos: I’ll Have Another wins the Preakness by a neck. (photo by Dan Dry / Power Creative)
