ftboa.com • Tuesday & Wednesday • May 4 & 5, 2021 FEC/FTBOA PUBLICATION FLORIDA’SDAILYRACINGDIGEST It’s Seventh Heaven at FSS Yearling Deadline Reminder Baffert Barn Following May 15 - $250 Click here for form Historic Medina Spirit Click here to check eligibility Victory In This Issue: Thoroughbred Owner Conference Online BY CHURCHILL DOWNS Panel Set for Tuesday PRESS OFFICE ________ Kentucky Derby Photo Collage LOUISVILLE, KY – Hall of Grunder Bids Farewell, Bennett Prepares Fame trainer Bob Baffert for Another Title added his record-breaking seventh Kentucky Derby tro- Choose Joy Victorious in Golden Beach phy to his collection Caribbean Thoroughbred Aftercare Saturday when Zedan Seeks Flight Donations Racing’s Florida-bred Medina Spirit held on to win OBS June Catalog Now Online the 147th running of the “Run for the Roses.” Gulfstream Park Charts “Can he win the Triple Crown? I don’t know. But Tampa Bay Downs Charts he’s the Derby winner, and Florida Stallion Progeny List that’s all that matters,” Baffert said Sunday morning Florida Breeders’ List at Barn 33. “I was coming in Medina Spirit and Bob Baffert/COADY PHOTO Wire to Wire Business Place here, thinking, I wasn’t sure ing himself. His ears were forward. And [if Medina Spirit could win the Derby], turning for home, they came for him, and everything had to go perfect for him. We he just dug in. I didn’t know if he was Featured Advertisers were going to go to the lead, and see what going to do it. He fought hard, and ran sort happened. What if they challenged him? of the same race that he did at Santa Anita Florida Department of Agriculture He made the lead pretty easily, for him, when he won the Robert Lewis. They came FTBOA and the other speed horse didn’t break to him, and he fended them all off. Journeyman Stud [Rock Your World]. That’s what it’s like in “I couldn’t believe it, at the sixteenth Ocala Breeders’ Feed & Supply the Derby: You have to get the trip; the pole he was fighting and fighting. It was other speed horse didn’t get the trip. just a thrill to watch him do it, and fight on. Ocala Stud “Going down the backside, he was “And he came back, he’s handling it Peterson Smith Equine Hospital doing it easy, you could tell he was enjoy- Seminole Feed See DERBY FOLLOW-UP on page 3 Back to Top Page 3 Derby Follow-up Continued from COVER Gail Rice with Medina Spirit Sunday morning/GAIL RICE PHOTO quite well. He wasn’t as tired as I thought he might be. A big race like that, but he handled it quite well.” With the victory, Baffert now is the all-time leading Kentucky Derby winning trainer with seven triumphs, a run that began in 1997 with Silver Charm. “When they turned for home, I was still not convinced,” Baffert said. “We didn’t start screaming and yelling until about the six- teenth pole, when it looked like it was do-able. In that last hundred yards, we all were screaming and yelling like it was my first Derby. We were like crazy, crazy. That’s what the Derby does to you. There’s no other race like it. The seven hasn’t quite sunk in yet. And to do it with a $35,000 horse. It gives people hope, keeps their dreams alive. Actually he was the cheapest yearling, since he cost $1,000. But he’s a beautiful horse, a good-looking horse. “I stand here in front of you guys, and you don’t know how much I appreciate winning this, especially as you get older. It gets See DERBY FOLLOW-UP on page 5 Florida-breds Make Florida Racing Did you know Florida-bred thoroughbreds won 31.5% of races run at the recent Gulfstream Park Championship Meet? This demonstrates how vital Florida-breds are to the success of Gulfstream Park throughout the year—not just during the Spring/Summer season. Additional good news for Florida breeders—66% of those Florida-bred winners during the Gulfstream Park Championship Meet were sired by Florida stallions. Florida-breds: Race ‘Em or Chase ‘Em! Back to Top Back to Top Page 5 Derby Follow-up page 3 Continued from tougher as you get older. I’d love to have 10 in there if I could, but you know that won’t happen. To have one who has a chance. To win it with him, it’s a Cinderella story, he’s just a blue-collar horse, just digging in. He reminded me of Silver Charm. It’s another Kentucky Derby dream that came true.” The obvious question following the Derby tri- umph is the Pimlico question: on to the Preakness? “He came out of it well. It takes about a week to determine, so I’m going to come back next weekend and see,” Baffert said. “But I don’t see anything dis- couraging right now. Concert Tour worked well this morning [five furlongs in 1:00.60 at 5:50], I’ll sit down and talk to Mr. [Gary] West. He wants that horse to develop and we’re not rushing things. We know he’s a good horse, so we’ll see next week how he is. The thing is how they’re training. They both would have to be training well.” Florida-breeder Gail Rice was also at the Baffert barn first thing Sunday morning to see Medina Spirit. “I’m just over the moon,” Rice said. “You can’t Mandaloun/COADY PHOTO imagine the extremeness of what this feels like and was the greatest.” this fantastic feeling.” Rice said she received more than 80 texts and “about 20 Mandaloun (Second), Essential Quality (Fourth) phone calls” Saturday afternoon following the Derby. “People Trainer Brad Cox had a well-deserved walk day in Barn 22 fol- are just so happy for his little breeder. I’m just not used to this. lowing his first Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve I was at the barn [Sunday morning] and I talked to Baffert and (Grade 1) experience. Medina Spirit slobbered all over me and we had a good time. It See DERBY FOLLOW-UP on page 7 Back to Top Back to Top Page 7 Derby Follow-up Continued from page 5 Helium (Eighth), Soup and Sandwich (19th) “It was a wild experience being in the Derby for the first time,” Trainer Mark Casse’s assistant David Carroll reported their Cox said. “In every previous Derby I’ve attended, I’ve been a fan. Derby duo of Helium and Soup and Sandwich were both back in I’ve seen the media interviews, the playing of ‘My Old Kentucky Barn 36 at Churchill Downs and doing fine after the Derby. Home’ and everything leading up to the race. Being in the race, all “Thankfully both horses came back fine,” Carroll said. “Soup of those things are sort of a blur. You’re so focused on the job at and Sandwich displaced [Epiglottis] during the race but was doing hand. We were so grateful that both of our horses ran as well as well this morning. I thought Helium ran his race and did well.” they did. Essential Quality got a tough trip being so wide but com- Known Agenda (Ninth), Sainthood (11th), ing that close to a Derby win makes me want more. We’ll be back.” Bourbonic (13th), Dynamic One (18th), Hot Rod Charlie (Third) Trainer Todd Pletcher was at Barn 42 early Sunday morning to The Oxbow colt came out of his Kentucky Derby experience continue on with the business of training his substantial stable. He physically fine and likely mentally did note that his Derby quartet all stronger after missing by a length in came out of their Saturday efforts no his third-place finish behind winner worse for the wear and that they’d be Medina Spirit. He’ll be headed back headed back to his New York head- to his Southern California base quarters at Belmont Park Monday. He Tuesday, according to his conditioner, further said that he’d be headed that Doug O’Neill. way today. The trainer had nothing but good Known Agenda, Sainthood, things to say about his charge’s try Bourbonic and Dynamic One failed to under a solid ride by Flavien Prat. make much dent in the 19-horse “We’re just so proud of his effort,” Kentucky Derby lineup and the train- O’Neill said Sunday morning. “He er said he’d watched several replays of ran a great race. He ate up last night the mile-and-a-quarter classic. and jogged fine this morning. It was The only one of his runners that all good.” Pletcher felt was the victim of some The trainer said a start in the unfortunate racing luck was Known Preakness Stakes (G1) in two weeks is Agenda, who broke well, but then was not in the plans for “Charlie,” who— quickly shuffled back along the rail with his $300,000 share of the Derby by a pack of horses and had to fight purse—now sports a bankroll of traffic and kick-back for the rest of $1,305,700 after eight starts. the run. “We’ll look to run him next in the Would he consider the Preakness Belmont Stakes [June 5 at New York’s Stakes in Baltimore in two weeks for Belmont Park],” O’Neill said. “We’ll any of his Derby horses? “That’s not get him back to California and start my MO,” the conditioner stated.