Derby hopeful Dullahan proves sharp with Blue Grass win
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Add Dullahan to the long list of prime contenders for the May 5 Kentucky Derby. He made a scintillating late charge to nail overzealous frontrunner Hansen by 1¼ lengths Saturday in the $750,000 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland Race Course. Dullahan’s surge allows him to join undefeated Gemologist, the top two finishers in the Santa Anita Derby in I’ll Have Another and Creative Cause, runaway Arkansas Derby victor Bodemeister, Breeders’ Cup Juvenile champion Hansen and talented Union Rags as 3-yearolds who have shown the ability to bring home the roses. Louisville native Dale Romans, who trained Paddy O’prado to a third-place Derby finish in 2010 and Shackleford to a fourth-place showing last year, thinks he finally might have dead aim at the race of his dreams. “This is the best chance by far that I’ve had,” he said of Dullahan, “and I think he’s the right horse.” Romans added, “He’s just a tough horse, and he’s got that acceleration to get out of trouble and get through holes quickly.” The colt’s agility and burst — aided by the too-fast fractions set by Hansen — made the difference in the 1|-mile Blue Grass before a record crowd of 40,617. That shattered the mark of 33,821 set April 21, 2007. Said jockey Kent Desormeaux of the 3-year-old’s development: “He’s heavier and lighter on his feet at the same time. I wouldn’t trade.” Jockey Ramon Dominguez, who had the assignment aboard Hansen, was keenly aware that he was going too fast to go the distance in a race loaded with early speed. “He’s a very fast horse, and he came away from the gate very sharp,” Dominguez said. “That’s as slow as he was willing to go.” Trainer Mike Maker had the same sinking feeling as his rider. “The pace was too fast. I knew in the first quarter (23 seconds). It was quicker than what we wanted, but he was fresh. The next one is the big one,” he said. Hansen was racing for the first time since he coasted to victory by 3 lengths in the Grade 3 Gotham Stakes at New York’s Aqueduct Racetrack on March 3. It is possible the combination of this exhausting effort, followed by a three-week interval to the Derby, will position him better. “If he allows himself to settle a little more,” Dominguez said, “it can make a big difference.” Dullahan’s bullet finish suggests he will relish the mile-and-distance of the opening leg of the Triple Crown. “The farther the better,” his trainer said. But he must show he can win away from Keeneland’s Polytrack surface. Both of Dullahan’s successes in eight career starts have come there. The son of Even the Score took third and fifth when he made his first two career starts at Churchill Downs in Louisville. He closed to be fourth when the Juvenile was contested there Nov. 5, trailing Hansen, Union Rags and Creative Cause. Romans thinks he is housing a very different horse in Barn 4 at Churchill Downs these days. “He was a kid with a lot of talent last year,” Romans said. “Now he’s a man with a lot of talent.” Bodemeister cruises: Bodemeister pulled away for a convincing 9½-length victory in the $1 million Arkansas Derby before 63,804 on Saturday at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs. Bodemeister broke wide coming out of the gate but quickly took the lead and never relinquished it in the last major prep race for the Kentucky Derby. The finish was a spectacular outcome for trainer Bob Baffert, who named the winner after his son, Bode. Baffert also trains Secret Circle, who finished second in the field of 11. “It’s a great feeling to run onetwo in a million-dollar race,” said Baffert, who is recovering from a heart attack he suffered a few weeks ago in Dubai.