Saturday, May 8, 2010

“Preakness: Horse racing's media makeover paying off” plus 3 more

“Preakness: Horse racing's media makeover paying off” plus 3 more

Preakness: Horse racing's media makeover paying off

Posted: 08 May 2010 10:26 AM PDT

Less sport and more style. That's the winning ticket at the racetrack these days, as the horse racing industry is trying to reinvent itself in an effort to attract new, younger and female fans.

It's happening on TV screens with shows emphasizing the people as much as the horses, while the major races themselves are being recast as lifestyle events rather than just competitions. And it's happening on computer and mobile screens, with fans and riders connecting on Facebook and jockeys using Twitter.

Using a cable TV contest with hundreds of thousands of dollars in prizes and a TV series that built up to last week's big race, the Kentucky Derby last week enjoyed its largest television audience in 21 years, with 16.5 million viewers. A similar media mix helped the Kentucky Oaks, a race for 3-year-old fillies held the day before the Derby at famed Churchill Downs, break its attendance and TV ratings records. And if the Derby and the Oaks are Exhibit A for using media to redefine the image of horse racing, Saturday's Preakness is Exhibit B.

"The racing model that was in place over the past 40 years needed to be redefined," says Tom Chuckas, president of the Maryland Jockey Club. "Racing can still be the centerpiece, but you need other activities and events going on in conjunction with it to draw a new and younger demographic. We've been trying to work toward that goal over the last year or two."

Executives of the major races and largest tracks didn't have much choice. In 2008, with attendance, purses and TV ratings for most races in decline, something clearly had to be done.

"The races were being covered [in the media], and the handicapping was covered, too, but we were losing our audience. They weren't going to the track; they weren't tuning in. They'd lost interest," says Liz Harris, vice president of Churchill Downs Inc., owner of the track at which the Derby and Oaks are held.

Thinking maybe they were "maxed out with the traditional audience of men and handicappers," Churchill Downs management sought a way to "reach out to another audience, more audiences," according to Harris. And the audience they went after first was women.

That strategy was crafted by Churchill Downs CEO Bob Evans after seeing data from NBC Sports that showed there are only three major sporting events that have more female viewers than male.

"They are: Winter Olympics, Summer Olympics and the Kentucky Derby," says Mike McCarley, senior vice president of marketing for NBC Sports. "And when you dig beneath the demographics … you see there are things that are inherent in major horse races that appeal to women that aren't inherent in other major sports events."

They include food and drink: "the mint julep and the black-eyed Susan," McCarley says.

"And fashion — everybody knows that for the lady going to a race, her entire outfit starts with her hat," the NBC executive says.

Also part of the mix are celebrities and parties.

"That last one was pretty shocking to us — how important entertaining around horse racing was with people throwing parties, much in the same way they throw Super Bowl or Oscar parties," McCarley says. "And while the Preakness and Belmont have more men than women, it is very close, almost 50-50."

Not surprisingly, Churchill Downs joined with NBC Sports to try to reach that much wider audience of women who are not hard-core racing fans. In addition to the reach of the network. Churchill was also attracted by what Harris called NBC's "family" of cable channels such as Bravo, USA and CNBC.

Last year, Bravo, a channel with a large female audience, covered the Oaks for the first time, and the TV audience for the event more than doubled, to 49 percent from 21 percent, according to Harris.

This year, Churchill Downs and NBC Sports presented a "Road to the Kentucky Derby" series — three broadcasts featuring six Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown prep races leading up the Derby. That series saw an increase not only in overall viewership but also a significant rise in the number of women watching. The audience shifted from 40 percent female in 2009 to 52 percent this year, and the average age of the viewer dropped by three years.

As important as Churchill Downs and NBC have been the past two years in trying to redefine the industry image and expand the audience for horse racing, they are only part of a minor media zeitgeist. It includes an upcoming HBO series, "Luck," set in the world of horse racing and starring Dustin Hoffman, and a Disney feature film, "Secretariat," which recounts the exploits of the 1973 Triple Crown winner, set to open in theaters in October.

And then there's reality TV. In early 2009, the Animal Planet cable channel launched "Jockeys," a reality TV series set at a California racetrack. By its second season, the series was seen by about 7 million viewers, according to Nielsen research provided by the Discovery-owned channel in Silver Spring, Md.

"Jockeys" also put horse racing on the social media map, thanks in large part to its Facebook page and such jockeys as then-18-year-old Joe Talamo and Chantal Sutherland on Twitter.

"I think we were a bit ahead of the trend," says Victoria Lowell, senior vice president for marketing at Animal Planet. "We saw this world of horse racing as being a really exciting, intriguing, dramatic world that a lot of people didn't know much about. … I think 'Jockeys' touched a lot of people and opened up this new and larger audience for racing in general."

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Crowds show up as horse racing returns to CCF

Posted: 07 May 2010 10:18 PM PDT

Thoroughbred and Quarter horse racing returned to the Cochise County Fairgrounds this past weekend and the size of the crowds seem to indicate the event was missed last year.

Early reports indicate over 4,000 people came through the gates Saturday and Sunday.

Despite all the conflicting events going on with the races fans seemed to show up in large numbers Saturday and Sunday with a new sense of appreciation for the event which was cancelled last year due in part to state budget cuts.

Even the trainers and jockeys were happy to be back in Douglas.

Longtime local trainer Ron Salmon has been coming to the Douglas races for 19 years and had a horse in the fourth race Sunday which won making the weekend more enjoyable.

"This is probably the best track there is," he said. "It's wide, it's well maintained. It's one of the better tracks we run on."

Salmon races horses all over the state and has seen his fare share of tracks. He says the horse racing environment at the Cochise County Fairgrounds is something special.

"There's no other place like it," he said. "Everybody seems to have a good time when they come here."

Not having the horse races last year hurt not only Salmon who had a hard time finding work during those "dark weeks" but also the fairgrounds and local businesses that rely on the races to help them remain open.

Salmon said he and the other trainers hope what happened last year doesn't happen again for a long time.

"It's a good track, good environment, they have plenty of stalls here for all the horses, it's an overall good atmosphere," he said.

Ten races were held each day this past weekend and the lines at the betting windows were taking bets up till the very last minute all day long.

Reports the day after the race indicate the betting held its own which is good.

Jockey Rick Oliver who rode both days in Douglas, echoed Salmon's feelings.

"I love coming down here," he said. "It's such a nice facility. The crowd seems to really get into the races. They seem to have such a great turnout year after year. … This is one of the best tracks on the fair circuit."

When Douglas was unable to host the races last year Oliver said he felt they may never come back.

"I didn't think we'd ever be down here again," he said "I really like coming here."

Oliver was a jockey for 10 years, quit for 15 and returned to riding in 2004. He has become a regular in the El Moro de Cumpas stakes winning the race in 2006 and again last year when the finals were held in Sonoita.

"I'd wish they would bring the finals back here," he said. "It helps having the border right here."

Oliver said he did not realize the significance of the El Moro de Cumpas until he got his horse back in front of the grandstand in 2006 to the cheering fans and the large group waiting to greet him with the El Moro de Cumpas trophy.

"This race means more to me than any other race all year long that I ride," he said. "The money is not all that great but this race is great for older horses. We need more races like this."

Oliver rode three different horses in the El Moro de Cumpas time trials Saturday finishing third, fourth and third in the sixth, seventh and eighth races. His horse in the eighth race Monarca Dash, qualified for the finals in Sonoita.

In 2008 another jockey, Anna Barrio, who has a big fan base of her own, told the Douglas Dispatch in a story they were doing on her she too enjoys coming to Douglas every year because the track conditions are excellent and there is a strong sense of support here for the sport.

"Its fun riding in front of a crowd that's into the race," she said. "I've done well here … I really like coming here."

An injury prevented Barrio from riding in Douglas this year.

Fairgrounds officials report they had two track records set Saturday in the seventh and eighth races of the El Moro de Cumpas trials. The first record was set in the seventh race but broken in the very next race by a Quarter Horse called Jesstifiable who was ridden by Floyd Campbell.

Jesstifiable, owned by Victor Ramos and trained by Roy Ronquillo, was one of the eight horses to advance to the El Moro de Cumpas finals which will he held in Sonoita.

The other qualifiers for the finals were Leonas TR, owned and trained by Armando Orozco; Stoli Chaser, owned by Manuel Medrano and trained by Dennis Martsteller; Lanes Luck, owned by Francisco Ayon and Abel Rodriguez and trained by Ayon;

Fly Corona Cat, owned by Y/N Horse Stables LLC and trained by Omar Lorta; Monarca Dash, owned by Jose Gallardo and trained by Alejandro Sanchez; Chicks on the Berge, owned by Chuck Stanton and trained by Ramon Fontes and Oh So Chilly owned by Victor C. Ramos and Francisco J. Rivera and trained by Roy Ronquillo

Cochise County Fairgrounds manager Karen Strongin said she was quite pleased by what she saw this past weekend.

"All of the vendors did well and were happy, there were no accidents or incidents and the whole race meet went smoothly," she said. "The Cochise County Fair Association would like to thank all of the people who attended, helped, participated and supported the horse races."

 

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Horse racing: Paddy O’Prado will run in Preakness

Posted: 08 May 2010 12:36 PM PDT

Paddy O'Prado is Preakness-bound.

The 3-year-old colt, whose 11 owners include 10 Iowans, was confirmed for next Saturday's Preakness Stakes in Baltimore after a 2-mile gallop this morning at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.

"I don't think the work could have gone any better," said Jerry Crawford of Des Moines, the managing partner of Donegal Racing. "It's consistent with what they've been seeing every day. I've gotten a unanimous recommendation that the horse looks to be moving forward and we should send him to the Preakness."

Paddy O'Prado finished third in the May 1 Kentucky Derby. His owners initially favored skipping the Preakness and waiting for the June 5 Belmont Stakes.

They changed their mind when trainer Dale Romans, the colt's veterinarian and exercise rider all said Paddy O'Prado came out of the Derby showing no fatigue.
Paddy O'Prado had been listed as a probable Preakness starter, but the final decision came down to Crawford, who flew to Louisville to watch him exercise and was convinced the colt remains eager to run.

"My original thought was because he had raced three weeks before the Derby in the (April 10) Blue Grass Stakes was that he would need some rest and we would point for the Belmont," Crawford said. "But it's just as clear as it can be that he's fine.

"I think he'll run big in the Preakness. I have to honestly say that I'm more excited about this than I was for the Derby. I know that we have a Triple Crown-caliber horse."

Paddy O'Prado will be flown to Baltimore on Tuesday on the same flight as Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver. Entries for the Preakness will be taken Wednesday.

Super Saver finished 2 3/4 lengths ahead of Paddy O'Prado, who had traffic trouble, in the Kentucky Derby. Crawford said that with a smoother trip, he thinks Paddy O'Prado can win the Preakness.

"That's absolutely the goal," Crawford said. "We have a bronze trophy in the Triple Crown, we're a little more ambitious in the next one."

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Horse Racing Capsules: Confidence fueling jockey Borel's inside game

Posted: 08 May 2010 01:33 PM PDT

Calvin Borel makes his living riding the rail. It's the shortest way around a racetrack, yet few jockeys are as comfortable down there as he is.

Of course, the rail doesn't mean much if you don't have a horse good enough underneath you. Borel certainly did in the Kentucky Derby, guiding Super Saver on the short path in the slop to a 2½-length victory, his third in four years.

Borel won his first Derby in 2007 with a rail-hugging ride aboard favorite Street Sense, and his second with 50-1 long shot Mine That Bird last year in a muddy dash from last to first along the rail.

This year wasn't as dramatic, since Super Saver was never worse than sixth in the 1¼-mile race. But Borel did it in his trademark style — keeping close to the rail and swinging outside just once to pass Conveyance before zooming right back inside.

"He doesn't run in the one hole, he runs in the half-hole," Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas said. "He could paint the fence while he's going."

Actually, Borel said, Super Saver wasn't that close.

"Now Mine That Bird might have scraped the fence," he said. "He was all right. I had plenty of room."

Borel isn't expected to deviate from his famed style when he rides Super Saver in the Preakness on May 15, aiming for a victory that would set up a Triple Crown attempt.

"He has the talent to do it," Borel said, referring to a Triple Crown sweep. "It's hard to say you're going to win it, but he's peaking at the right time."

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert has been burned by "Bo-rail" before. He thought he had his fourth Derby victory in the bag last year, but Borel came zooming up the rail — a path Baffert calls the Borel Trail — on Mine That Bird to overtake front-running Pioneerof the Nile.

"He knows if he gets on top of the rail, it's a big advantage," Baffert said. "Lots of guys try it, but they can't do it. He's got it mastered. He can get a horse to relax. He's got really great hands."

Borel has enjoyed his greatest success at Churchill Downs, a track similar to Louisiana Downs, where the Cajun honed his riding skills and learned to take the shortest way around the track.

He even hugs the rail in the mornings when he's exercising horses.

"I love to ride the fence," he said. "You can't be scared. If I can't do it my way and get the job done, that's when I'm going to retire."

As much as Borel loves it down low, some horses dislike the rail, forcing him out a length or even as far as the middle of the track. Others, though, prefer running with the rail on one side, where another horse can't come up inside them and they won't get bumped.

"In a race, you've got to learn how to put one down there," Borel's agent, Jerry Hissam, said. "Most of these horses, when you turn for home, they're starting to drift, they're starting to get tired. You've got to know how to put them down in there and keep them down in there. And why can't anybody else do it? I don't know."

Dale Romans, who trains third-place Derby finisher Paddy O'Prado, attributes Borel's inside success to having the patience to wait for an opening.

"If you get left (behind), you have to use your head. Don't rush him up, put him in a bad spot because you're asking for trouble," Borel said. "If you're on the best horse, let him take you there."

Rachel Alexandra took Borel to the Preakness winner's circle last year, when he switched off Mine That Bird to ride the filly, who started from the No. 13 post. This time, Borel is sticking with the horse that got him to Pimlico for the 1 3-16-mile race.

"I've got total confidence he'll be able to handle Pimlico," said Todd Pletcher, who trains Super Saver.

Lukas believes Borel's success is more about confidence than fearlessness.

"When he gets a horse that will cooperate, he really does it," the trainer said. "His confidence level is way up right now and so he's trying things that normally he might not even try."

Borel's tactics don't fool anyone — not his fellow jockeys nor the betting public. But no one has tried to stop him yet.

"We all know what he's going to do," said Robby Albarado, who finished 14th in the Derby. "He just does it anyway."

The inside path isn't always open to Borel.

"He's got shut off before. They got out in front of him sometimes," Hissam said. "A lot of times it's because he doesn't have the right horse to get to that spot. The hole is going faster than he is. He can't catch the hole so he can't get through it."

Borel is keeping tabs on Super Saver at Churchill Downs, where the colt is training for the Preakness and is scheduled to arrive at Pimlico on Wednesday, three days before the race.

Super Saver had a light schedule before the Derby, with just two races in which he finished third and second. His freshness could work in his favor during the grueling five-week Triple Crown campaign.

"God willing, he's a colt that will take us all the way because he's a nice horse," Borel said.

Only 11 horses have swept the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont, with Affirmed the last to do so in 1978. There have been 11 Triple tries since, most recently by Big Brown in 2008. He won the first two legs, then finished last in the Belmont.

The 135th Preakness will include Paddy O'Prado and Dublin, the third- and seventh-place finishers in the Derby, and new shooters Derby Trial runner-up Aikenite (trained by Pletcher), First Dude, Florida Derby runner-up Pleasant Prince, Derby Trial winner Hurricane Ike, Schoolyard Dreams, Caracortado and A Little Warm, runner-up in the Louisiana Derby.

Besides Dublin, Lukas is bringing Northern Giant in a bid to win his sixth Preakness.

Trainer Nick Zito is expected to decide Monday whether to enter Jackson Bend, 12th in the Derby. That's when Baffert will decide whether to bring back Lookin At Lucky, the Derby favorite who finished sixth after starting on the rail. He said Friday that Conveyance, who finished 15th, would not run in the Preakness.

The Preakness is limited to 14 starters, with the field set at Wednesday's draw.

Super Super gives late stallion 2nd Derby winner

VERSAILLES, Ky. — Josephine Abercrombie always figured if she couldn't own a Kentucky Derby-winning racehorse, the next best thing would be owning the father of one — let alone the father of two.

Yet after Super Saver became the second colt by Abercrombie's late stallion Maria's Mon to win the Run for the Roses, her emotions were mixed.

"It was sad and joyous at the same time," said Abercrombie, 83, who cheered on the Todd Pletcher-trained colt while watching the race on television from her home at Pin Oak Stud farm where Maria's Mon once stood.

Abercrombie's beloved gray stallion, who also produced 2001 Derby winner Monarchos in his first crop of foals, was just 14 when he died from a sudden illness three years ago.

Just as his once-promising racing career was cut short by a freak injury that derailed his own Derby hopes, Maria's Mon was beginning to reach his peak as a breeder when his life ended prematurely.

Before he died, his stud fee was as high as $60,000, and that likely would have spiked with a second Derby winner.

"For a young operation here, he kind of put us on the map," said Clifford Barry, Pin Oak's farm manager. "For the thoroughbred breed, it was a big loss."

No stallion had produced two Derby winners since Alydar, who sired 1987 winner Alysheba and 1991 winner Strike the Gold. Maria's Mon produced champions at various distances, including former top 3-year-old filly Wait A While, who finished third in the 2006 Kentucky Oaks.

Abercrombie's farm is diverse with four stallions, 40 mares and numerous racehorses. Maria's Mon was among her favorites, even before he became one of the industry's great breeders.

She would sometimes feed him sugar cubes, which he would eat out of her hand — careful not to nip any fingers as other horses often would. And, as a gray horse — rare for one of that caliber — he always stood out.

The camaraderie between the stallion and staff made his passing all the more devastating at Pin Oak.

"Everybody on the farm was just sick," said Abercrombie, who is from Houston and moved to Kentucky 25 years ago when her father bought a different horse farm in the area. "He was a star, and he'd shine brighter every year. When you get a horse like that and get attached to him, it's very hard when something happens to him."

Richard Schosberg trained Maria's Mon as a racehorse. He understands the attachment and the heartbreak.

As a 2-year-old in 1995, Maria's Mon won three graded stakes races and earned the Eclipse Award as the year's top juvenile despite an injury that kept him out of the Breeders' Cup.

"You could see practically from the day he walked onto the racetrack that it was a classy individual," Schosberg said. "He acted like he'd been here before. That's the difference between a horse like him and an ordinary 2-year-old. An ordinary 2-year-old would think everything that goes on around him is an emergency, but this horse soaked it all in."

But the next year was a different story.

His injury, a small fracture in his left front leg, required screws and several months of rest to repair. By the time he returned, it was too late to enter him in the Triple Crown races. He raced just twice more with little success, then was retired to the breeding shed.

"The horse just wasn't happy on the racetrack," said Pug Hart, who housed Maria's Mon in Ocala, Fla., before he shipped to Schosberg's racing barn in New York. "He just needed a new home."

Abercrombie had already bought a share of Maria's Mon from his previous owners, Morton and Rosalind Rosenthal. After he struggled as a 3-year-old, Hart and his wife, Suzie, convinced Abercrombie this could be the stallion to help get her horse-breeding operation off the ground.

"She said, 'I want to step up. I want to play in the big leagues,"' Suzie Hart said.

Maria's Mon certainly helped Abercrombie do that. Now that he has passed, the farm's top stallion is Broken Vow, who sired six stakes winners this year and stands for a $25,000 stud fee.

Abercrombie has written two children's books, one of them about a horse. She says the only major career goal that has eluded her is owning a Derby winner.

Although Maria's Mon has died, his final crop of foals are 2 this year, meaning they are on pace for one last Derby appearance in 2011 should any progress to that level. While most of them are owned by other farms, three colts and three fillies still belong to Abercrombie, and two of them were recently shipped out of state to train.

She sighs and shakes her head when pondering what a third Derby win by a Maria's Mon offspring would mean.

"It would be bittersweet," Abercrombie says.

Then, after a long pause, she adds: "But it would be awful sweet."

-- Jeffrey McMurray

Rock N Roll Heaven wins $220,000 Berry's Creek

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Make Rock N Roll Heaven one of the early favorites for the $1 million Meadowlands Pace.

Rock N Roll Heaven overcame 40 mph wind to take the lead on the backstretch and posted an impressive 1¼-length victory over Fred And Ginger in the $220,000 Berry's Creek at the Meadowlands on Saturday night.

Driven by Daniel Dube, Rock N Roll Heaven covered the mile in 1:52 in winning the first major stakes for 3-year-old pacers this year. The Bruce Saunders-trained colt paid $7, $4.20 and $2.80 in winning for the second time in three starts this year.

What made the performance so impressive was the way the son of Rocknroll Hanover handled the brutal breezes.

In the first four races on the card, no horse on the lead on the backstretch got to the finish line first. Rock N Roll Heaven not only ended that trend, he was never challenged in the stretch.

"The wind is so tough over there on the backside," Dube said. "He kind of worked hard to get there and after that he just kept going, which is a good sign for a good horse."

Rock N Roll Heaven started from the No. 3 post position in the field of 10 and raced in fourth place down the backstretch behind Europan Union, Foreign Officer and Kyle Major in the early going.

A winner of nearly $600,000 last year, Rock N Roll Heaven moved ahead of Kyle Major by the half mile pole and never looked back.

Rock N Roll Heaven had a tough time in last week's eliminations, which were won by Foreign Officer and Kyle Major. The colt was delayed twice getting to the starting gate and eventually finished third in his elimination after being caught wide.

"Last week he endured a tough trip but I knew he would bounce back," Saunders said. "He's just a very, very good horse."

Fred And Ginger returned $6.40 and $3.40. Kyle Major paid $2.60 to show. Europan Union was fourth, followed by Foreign Officer, Four Starz Trace, Pang Shui, Morgan Shark, Shark's Legacy and Cambassador.

-- Tom Canavan

Flex The Muscle wins Dexter Cup at Freehold

FREEHOLD, N.J. — Flex The Muscle overtook stablemate Shaq Is Back in the stretch for a 1½-length victory in the $156,000 Dexter Cup for 3-year-old trotters at Freehold Raceway on Saturday.

David Miller guided Flex The Muscle over the mile in 1:56.2 and gave trainer Ray Schnittker his fifth victory in the Dexter Cup, an early test leading up to the Hambletonian.

"That was a good mile and he did it very handy," Miller said. "The horse raced very well."

Flex The Muscle won his second race in as many starts this year, earning $2.20, $2.20 and $2.10 as part of an entry. The colt won five of 13 starts in 2009.

Celebrity Bluechip was third and Senor Glide placed fourth.

Schnittker drove Big Stick Lindy, his third entry in the eight-horse field, to sixth.

All three are eligible for the $1.5 million Hambletonian, to be run Aug. 7 at the Meadowlands Racetrack.

Shaq Is Back took the lead at the start from post five and Flex The Muscle followed in second from post four. Senor Glide, who started from post seven, challenged Shaq Is Back at the half-mile point, but was unable to get to the front.

Flex The Muscle sat behind Shaq Is Back until the field reached the stretch, then passed on the outside for the win.

"He got a great trip, a two-hole trip, and I never had to move until the head of the stretch," Miller said. "He felt very strong the whole mile and he won very easy."

Rail Trip wins Mervyn Leroy Handicap at Hollywood

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Rail Trip returned from an eight-month layoff to beat Sangaree by 3¼ lengths Saturday in the $150,000 Mervyn Leroy Handicap at Hollywood Park.

The heavy favorite under new rider Rafael Bejarano, Rail Trip stalked pacesetter Tres Borrachos for most of the Grade 2 race, took the lead with ease at the top of the stretch and won in 1:42.37.

"Unbelievable, he just galloped," said Bejarano, a winner of three races two days in a row. "He surprised me a lot. I knew I had a lot of horse at the end. I thought I was going to win easy, but not this easy."

Rail Trip paid $3, $2.60 and $2.10. Long-shot Sangaree returned $8 and $4.60, and . Cigar Man paid $7.20 to show.

Trainer Ron Ellis said he plans to have the 5-year-old gelding attempt to defend his title in the Hollywood Gold Cup on July 10.

"He's a much more mature horse now, physically and mentally," Ellis said. "He's a fresh horse and he's happy, but he's got to win the Gold Cup first to say he's better than last year. He sure acts like it with the way he has been training and acting."

Saturday's victory was the seventh in 10 starts for Rail Trip. He earned $90,000, taking his career total to $877,790.

Fly Down wins Belmont's Dwyer Stakes

NEW YORK — Nick Zito could have two horses in the Belmont Stakes.

The Hall of Fame trainer has Ice Box pointed to the final jewel of the Triple Crown on June 5. Ice Box, the runner-up to Super Saver in the Kentucky Derby, will not run next weekend in the Preakness.

Fly Down could also join the Belmont lineup following a sixth-length win over Drosselmeyer, the 3-5 favorite, on Saturday in the $200,000 Dwyer Stakes for 3-year-olds.

Rallying from last against six rivals on a the windy afternoon at Belmont, Fly Down earned his first stakes win and a possible shot at the division leaders.

"Nick has always been high on this horse," said winning owner Richard Pell. "Nick told me from the very beginning, 'He's a Belmont horse.' And he didn't just mean Belmont Park, he meant the Belmont Stakes."

Jose Lezcano was aboard as Fly Down ran the 1 1-8 miles in 1:50.25, paying $9.20, $3.20 and $2.60 as the 7-2 second choice. Drosselmeyer returned $2.40 and $2.10. Remand paid $3.40 to show.

Tax Ruling wins Iroquois Steeplechase

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tax Ruling beat pace-setting Slip Away by 4¾ lengths Saturday in the $150,000 Calvin Houghland-Iroquois Steeplechase at Percy Warner.

The 7-year-old gelding edged seven rivals in the 3-mile contest over 18 hurdles in a track-record 5:37 1-5 with Irish jockey Darren Nagle in the saddle.

Tax Ruling, a four-time winner in 15 starts over hurdles, earned $90,000 to raise his jump racing earnings to $209,450 for owner Irvin S. Naylor, a York, Pa. utility executive and former steeplechase rider.

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