Baffert eyes a Crown repeat
American Pharoah ended a 37-year Triple Crown drought by winning it in 2015.
Undefeated Justify will be a strong favorite to match the feat when he runs in the $1.5 million Belmont Stakes on June 9.
It’s a familiar position for trainer Bob Baffert, who on four occasions has had horses win the Kentucky Derby and Preakness. But though American Pharoah completed the trifecta in the Belmont, Silver Charm (1997) and Real Quiet (’98) lost by less than a length and War Emblem (’99) finished eighth after stumbling at the start.
Also different from the earlier three, Justify won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness despite not racing as a 2-year-old. He was the first Derby winner to do that since Apollo in 1882.
“It’s an incredible journey,” Baffert said Thursday on a national conference call. “It’s been quick. He’s handled everything we’ve thrown at him, and he’s handled it without losing his composure. He’s so intelligent. A lot of horses that run that many times get nervous and hot; he seems to be thriving on it. He has no fear.”
Justify didn’t make his first start until Feb. 18 when he won a 7-furlong maiden race by 9½ lengths. A 1-mile allowance win by 6½ lengths followed, and then a 3-length victory in the Santa Anita Derby set him up for his Triple Crown run.
“We weren’t thinking Kentucky Derby with him, but when he broke his maiden, we thought maybe,” Baffert said. “The second start, we thought maybe we had something special. After the Santa Anita Derby, we better take a shot at it now. He brought us along on his own.”
Justify won the 1¼-mile Kentucky Derby by 2½ lengths after racing close to a very fast pace, but his margin was just a half-length in the 13⁄16-mile Preakness after a long duel with Good Magic.
A half-mile workout in 46.80 seconds Tuesday at Churchill Downs — fastest of 43 drills — has Baffert confident Justify will be ready for the 1½-mile Belmont.
“American Pharoah, I see a lot of resemblance in these two,” he said. “When I worked Pharoah after the Preakness, he was a machine. This horse is getting there. That was probably the best I’ve ever seen him work.”
Martin Garcia, who works many of Baffert’s horses, told the trainer that Justify was starting to act like American Pharoah.
“I said I hope so because he’s really going to have to lay it out there,” Baffert said. “A mile and a half is going to be tough. There’s always that doubt. We’ve seen other horses that we thought were going to do it but didn’t. All my horses ran well except War Emblem. Silver Charm and Real Quiet just didn’t get it done.”
Justify’s toughest opponents in the Belmont are likely to be Preakness runner-up Bravazo (sixth in the Kentucky Derby), Tenfold (a closeup third in the Preakness), and Hofburg (eighth in the Derby).
“With Pharoah, we knew we had the horse going into the Belmont,” Baffert said. “You talk about 37 years, so we were quietly confident that he could do it. This horse is the same way.”