War of Will wins a wide-open Preakness
MIKE STEWART/AP
War of Will won the Preakness Stakes on May 18 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore in one of the most wide-open races in decades.
The win is the first in a Triple Crown race for jockey Tyler Gaffalione and trainer Mark Casse, and it also served as redemption for a controversial Kentucky Derby that saw War of Will directly affected by Maximum Security, the horse that initially came in first before getting disqualified for interference as the two horses almost clipped heels.
“This is even I think probably more special given everything that we’ve been through,” Casse said, according to the Associated Press. “I’m not even calling it redemption. I didn’t feel like he got his fair shot, and that’s all I wanted — a fair shot. And he showed what he had today.”
For the first time since 1996, the Kentucky Derby winner didn’t run in the Preakness — Country House is dealing with a minor illness — so there will be no Triple Crown winner this year. Maximum Security didn’t run, either.
The controversial Derby had a major effect on the Preakness. Maximum Security’s debated disqualification made Country House the de facto winner. Maximum Security’s jockey, Luis Saez, was later suspended for 15 race days after stewards determined the horse drifted out of the running lane and impeded other horses.
Saez is appealing Kentucky Horse Racing Commission’s decision. If the suspension is upheld, Saez would also miss the Belmont Stakes next month.
Good or bad, the Kentucky Derby debacle stirred up more national attention on horse racing. But the Preakness was mostly about the intrigue factor. In the end, War of Will was the beneficiary of a race lacking star power.
Everfast finished second and Owendale took third.