Look For Lexington Winner Later

While Keeneland’s Coolmore Lexington Stakes (gr. 2) has not produced the number of Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. 1) winners as its fellow grade 1 stakes leading up to the Run for the Roses, its graduates have been heard from later in the Triple Crown.

In the previous 40 runnings of the Lexington, only 1999 winner Charismatic has gone on to adorn the blanket of roses at Churchill Downs. This year, only Silver Medallion, with his $184,334 in graded earnings, is the only probable Lexington starter with a chance to qualify for the Kentucky Derby - and he probably needs the winner’s share of the $200,000 purse to do so.

Much of this, it can be assumed, is due to the fact that the Lexington is usually run just two weeks before the Kentucky Derby. Not including the grade 3 Cliff’s Edge Derby Trial Stakes (gr. 3) run at Churchill, the Lexington Stakes is sometimes thought of as that last chance to get the big dance. The Derby Trial is just seven days before the Kentucky Derby and is run at one mile - not the best conditions under which to prepare for the 1-1/4 mile Derby a week later.

The first and second Lexington Stakes were in 1936 and 1937 before being run as an overnight stake from 1938 to 1941 The Lexington was discontinued for the next 24 years but was run as the overnight Calumet Purse from 1973 to 1983 when the race was reinstalled into the Keeneland stakes schedule.

Our Native won the renewed 1-1/16 mile Lexington in 1973 but as one might suspect, 1973 was not a good year to attempt much in any of the Triple Crown races other than chase home Secretariat. And that is what Our Native did, finishing third behind second-place Sham in both the Derby and Preakness. However, the son of Exclusive Native would go on to win the Monmouth Invitational Handicap (gr. 1) and Ohio Derby (gr. 2) later that year.

Two years later, trainer Smiley Adams brought Master Derby to Keeneland from Fair Grounds where he won both the Louisiana Derby trial and Louisiana Derby. Pointed for the Kentucky Derby, Master Derby won both the Lexington Stakes and Blue Grass at Keeneland but could only muster a fourth behind Foolish Pleasure in the Kentucky Derby. Master Derby avenged that loss two weeks later by taking the Preakness Stakes and becoming the first in a long line of Lexington winners to do so.

Seven years after Our Native won his Lexington, his son Rockhill Native took the 1980 Lexington and Blue Grass but could only manage a fifth in the Derby behind winner Genuine Risk and a third in the Belmont Stakes behind Temperence Hill.

The 1988 Lexington Stakes was perhaps one of the more exciting in the race’s sporadic history with plenty of Triple Crown influence to come later.

Hall of Fame trainer Woody Stephens came to Lexington with Forty Niner, the Claiborne farm home-bred son of Mr. Prospector and champion 2-year-old colt the year before. After winning the Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park in his 3-year-old debut, Forty Niner was upset by 32-1 long shot Brian’s Time in the Florida Derby. Wanting another race before the Kentucky Derby, Stephens opted for the Lexington.

Meanwhile New Orleans trainer Louie Roussel had been winning the Louisiana Derby Trial and Louisiana Derby at the Fair Grounds with his giant young son of Secretariat, Risen Star.

Around the far turn in the 1989 Lexington Stakes, Forty Niner looked as if he was comfortable on the lead and on his way to victory. But Risen Star had other intentions. Loping along comfortably in third leaving the half-mile marker, Risen Star accelerated so suddenly that new rider Jacinto Vasquez was concerned more with keeping Risen Star from running over Forty Niner than passing him as he stood in the saddle and steered with both hands. Forty Niner and jockey Pat Day came out of the turn in front, but by now Risen Star had carried Vasquez to the outside and within a few strides was even with Forty Niner. The two bobbed heads down the entire stretch with Risen Star getting to the finish first, but only by a head.

When the two got to the Kentucky Derby, they found themselves chasing the brilliantly fast filly Winning Colors and her jockey Gary Stevens. Both Forty Niner and Risen Star rallied to catch the fast filly but Forty Niner fell a head short in second. After the Vasquez ride in the Lexington, Roussel gave the Derby mount to Eddie Delahoussaye. Delahoussaye kept Risen Star clear in the Derby, but was forced to circle the entire field on the far turn before managing an unmenacing third.

That’s when the fun began.

Following the Derby, Pat Day vowed to not let Gary Stevens put his filly alone on the lead in the Preakness. Stevens took offense to the comments and the two future Hall of Fame riders went into the Preakness with plenty of bad blood between them.

Just as he promised before the Preakness, Day immediately put Forty Niner to the inside of Winning Colors and the two jockeys and horses bumped and fought each other the entire race. Day took Stevens and Winning Colors wide in the first turn and the two leaders found themselves running far from the rail and away from what was believed to be a slow inside part of the track that day at Pimlico. This time, Delahoussaye kept Risen Star closer in third when he again found his stride around the far turn. Delahoussaye took advantage of the large hole left on the rail and within moments had moved to the inside of the two leaders and passed them with ease. Risen Star pulled away at the top and easily won the Preakness by just less than two lengths over a charging Brian's Time in second.

The speed dual took its toll on both frontrunners as Winning Colors finished third while Forty Nine faded to seventh.

The 1-1/2 mile Belmont Stakes was no contest as the tall and long-striding Risen Star won the third leg of the Triple Crown by 14-1/2 lengths.

In 1991, Hansel would give jockey Jerry Bailey his third of a six Lexington Stakes, a record that stands today. Hansel would be a disappointing tenth in the Derby but would then come back to become the third Lexington winner to take the Preakness.

The winner of the 1997 Lexington, Touch Gold, would not run in either the Kentucky Derby or the Preakness, both races won by Silver Charm and trainer Bob Baffert. But the Belmont would be where Touch Gold made his mark, upsetting Silver Charm and the hopes many fans had for the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed 19 years earlier.

So when watching the Coolmore Lexington Stakes this weekend, one might want to take a few notes. They may not be much help in picking the winner of the Kentucky Derby, but the could be very useful in the weeks to follow.

Spiral Stakes History Dotted With Popular Stars

Although the $500,000 Vinery Racing Spiral Stakes took a hit from the North American Graded Stakes Committee this year by being dropped a class down to grade 3, the marquee event for Turfway Park in Florence, Kentucky has featured some significant stars preparing for the first Saturday in May.

Although the race had attracted several good horses since the first running in 1972, it wasn’t until D. Wayne Lukas brought Marfa to Turfway Park to win the 1983 Jim Beam Spiral Stakes when the race began to garner national attention. Marfa went on to finish fifth in the Kentucky Derby (gr. 1) that year behind winner Sunny’s Halo and fourth in the Preakness behind Deputed Testamony. A year later the race was given grade 3 status and was quickly becoming the new race on the block for those preparing for the Kentucky Derby.

Three years later Broad Brush was shipped to Turfway from his home base in Maryland to win the Jim Beam Spiral Stakes before finishing third in both the 1986 Kentucky Derby and Preakness.

The Spiral Stakes then hit it’s golden years in the 1990s starting with 1990 winner Summer Squall and 1991 winner Hansel, both of which would go on to win the Preakness. Hansel also set the track record for a 1-1/8 miles, stopping the clock in 1:46.60. A year later the Spiral Stakes was won by Lil E. Tee and few weeks later the race had produced its first Kentucky Derby winner as Lil E. Tee won also won the 1992 Run for the Roses. The roll through the decade continued as 1993 winner Prairie Bayou would become the third future Preakness winner in four years to have gone through the Turfway Park winner’s circle.

In 1995, Serena’s Song (photo above) became the first filly to win the Jim Beam Spiral Stakes, and while she had little impact on the Triple Crown, the D. Wayne Lukas-trainee would defeat colts in the Haskell Invitational (gr. 1). The future Hall of Fame filly also won the grade 1 Beldame Stakes over older mares in New York that year and was eventually named the Champion 3-Year-Old Filly of 1995.

Jockey Pat Day has the record for the most Spiral Stakes victories with five, but trainer William E. Adams has the most impressive streak in the races history. From 1977-80, Adams trained seven consecutive winners of the Spiral Stakes as the race was split into two divisions in three of those four years.

The Spiral Stakes may have lost a bit of its luster over the last few years, but it has still produced some popular Derby contenders in Hard Spun and Perfect Drift.

Hard Spun won the 2007 Spiral (Then named the Lane’s End Stakes), before finishing in the money in all three Triple Crown races. He finished second in the Kentucky Derby behind Street Sense then finished third in the Preakness and fourth in the Belmont.

Perfect Drift was third in the Kentucky Derby behind winner War Emblem, but his 3-year-old year was just the start of a long career. He would go on to run at age seven and appeared in five consecutive Breeders’ Cup Classics (gr. ) from 2002-2006, finishing third in 2005 and fourth in 2004. Perhaps his best year was 2003 when Perfect Drift won the Stephen Foster Handicap (gr. 1), the Hawthorne Gold Cup (gr. 2), the Kentucky Jockey Club Handicap (gr. 2), and the Washington Park Handicap (gr. 3). Two years later, he would win his second Washington Park Handicap in track record time and finish second in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

While this year’s Vinery Racing Spiral Stakes does not an Uncle Mo, Dialed In or any of the other leading 3-year-olds this year, the field is again solid. And if history tells us anything, there’s probably a star somewhere in the field.