JC / Railbird - Wide Open Preakness

Wide Open Preakness

Here’s my prediction for today’s Preakness: It will be a more exciting race than the Kentucky Derby. Of the 14 starters, 11 are logical contenders to finish on the board. Who will win? A horse with a stalking style such as Afleet Alex, Closing Argument, or High Fly. I’d be delighted if Giacomo won this afternoon, but studying his record and races over the past couple of days, it seems pretty clear that he’s a deep closer, and the Preakness isn’t likely to set up so favorably for him as did the Derby. He could run second or third — but so could just about every other horse, including Greeley’s Galaxy, Scrappy T, and Noble Causeway. A little creative wagering could pay off nicely at the windows today. How I’ll play: Very lightly and just for fun, with a $1 tri box on Afleet Alex, Closing Argument, and Noble Causeway.
—
Looking for an unusual angle? You could play Sun King:

It will be deja vu all over again in tomorrow’s 130th Preakness Stakes for Nick Zito, the Yogi Berra of horse trainers, when his colt Sun King rebounds from a puzzling defeat in the Kentucky Derby to win the middle jewel of the Triple Crown.

Think back to 1996. Of the 12 previous Preaknesses, 10 were won by horses that lost the Kentucky Derby. Of those 10, six finished fourth or worse at Churchill Downs.

Zito’s Louis Quatorze fit that profile. Coming off a loss in the Blue Grass, he finished 16th in the ’96 Derby, beaten the length of the stretch….

Is it mere coincidence that Louis Quatorze, the horse, was named for the 17th century French monarch Louis XIV, otherwise known as “the Sun King?” (New York Post)

I’ve heard sillier …

Posted by JC in Triple Crown on 05/21/2005 @ 9:45 am / Follow @railbird on Twitter