American Pharaoh by Joe Drape

Author:Joe Drape
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sports & Recreation / Horse Racing, Biography & Autobiography / Sports, Biography & Autobiography / Rich & Famous
Publisher: Hachette Books
Published: 2016-04-26T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER ELEVEN

BARN 33

Kentucky Derby Week, 2015

Once upon a time, barn 33 at Churchill Downs was at the center of the circus that is the Kentucky Derby. It was Baffert’s barn and it was easily identified by the three shingles hanging near its entryway in honor of his three Derby winners: Silver Charm, Real Quiet, and War Emblem. From 1996 to 2003, it was the first stop for every celebrity, from New York Yankees manager Joe Torre, to Olympic skier Bode Miller, to the reigning Miss America, as well as Rotary Clubs and Pony Clubs. It was always rimmed with reporters and camera crews waiting for the white-haired trainer to pop out and do a little stand-up. Baffert never disappointed. No matter how much his stomach was turning and whatever ailments, tiny or terrible, in his horses that he and his team were fending off, Baffert always appeared to be relaxed and in command.

Over the next twelve years, though, after bringing twelve middling horses to American horse racing’s biggest dance, Baffert’s heat had definitely cooled. He never soured and remained a good ambassador, but he was forced to cede the spotlight to new faces like John Servis, who brought Smarty Jones here in 2004, and Michael Matz with Barbaro two years later, and Rick Dutrow with Big Brown in 2008. It hurt. Each of their horses came here undefeated and was the clear favorite to win on the first Saturday in May. Baffert knew better than most that you are only as good as your horses. You’re an in-demand genius when they are fast. You are the guy everyone walks past with barely a nod when your horses are slow.

Guess what? The big top was back over the Baffert barn as the 141th running of the Kentucky Derby approached, all because he had brought a couple of big horses here. It was the Wednesday before the race and when American Pharoah and Dortmund left the barn for the racetrack, it was like they were the grand marshals of the Thanksgiving Day parade. Hundreds of people followed en masse with their cell phone cameras aloft. Hundreds more rushed to the rail to secure positions to watch the two gallop. Dortmund, indeed, was a monster. He was tall and broad. Side by side, though, American Pharoah gave nothing away. He stood 16.1 hands, the equivalent of 5 feet, 3 inches at the withers, and weighed 1,170 pounds. He was better put together, more chiseled and majestic. He was Muhammad Ali to Dortmund’s George Foreman, LeBron James to Kevin Durant.

Dortmund was unbeaten in six races on the West Coast, where it was widely believed that the best three-year-olds had been competing in the prep races to get here.

On the first Saturday of April, three important prep races were run in a stretch of ninety minutes to determine which horses had a realistic chance to capture the Kentucky Derby in May. When it was over, there was little doubt about the overwhelming favorite at this moment.

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