Belmont Buddies and the Crowns They Denied (Part 1 & Part 2)
This is the story of two horses, who both denied what would have been historic Triple Crown sweeps and were champions themselves. Not only did they share that common bond on the racetrack, they would form a lifelong friendship as stallions, with each sharing the title of oldest living Belmont Stakes winner. ~ Steve Haskin
Belmont Buddies and the Crowns They Denied
By Steve Haskin
Johnny Be Good
It was a turbulent period in America, as the country attempted to bond together amid one crisis after another and a rash of senseless killings. Horse racing reflected the times when the Kentucky Derby winner failed a post-race drug test that prompted one New York newspaper to splash the headline “Derby Winner Drugged.” This could easily have described 2021, but in reality it was 1968, and it was followed by another volatile year in ‘69. But despite the uneasiness in America and the controversy in Kentucky, Thoroughbred racing flourished during those two years thanks to a collection of equine superstars that dominated the headlines seemingly every week.
Never before had racing seen so many exciting stars, from Dr. Fager, Damascus, Dark Mirage, Stage Door Johnny, In Reality, and Gamely in ’68 to Arts and Letters, Majestic Prince, Fort Marcy, Gallant Bloom, Shuvee, and Ta Wee in ’69. Among that group were 10 Hall of Famers.
Let’s begin in 1968, a year of student protests, assassinations, psychedelic drugs, and the Tet Offensive in Vietnam. Americans turned to sports to seek out their heroes, and Thoroughbred racing provided many of them. That is why the last place they expected to see more negative news was the Kentucky Derby.
That year’s Run for the Roses seemed innocent enough with a well-deserved victory by the late-closing Dancer’s Image, winner of the Wood Memorial and Governor’s Cup at Bowie. Unlike today, Dancer’s Image went into the Derby having already run 22 times, winning his first two stakes at Fort Erie and Greenwood in Canada. The son of Native Dancer was riding a three-race winning streak since trainer Lou Cavalaris removed his blinkers following a disappointing sixth-place finish in the Francis Scott Key Stakes and a third-place finish in the Prince George’s Stakes, both at Bowie.
Dancer’s Image’s huge stretch run in the Wood Memorial, in which he ran down two top-class horses, Iron Ruler and Verbatim, established him as one of the favorites for the Kentucky Derby, along with the Florida Derby and Blue Grass Stakes winner Forward Pass, the latest star from Calumet Farm. In both those victories, Forward Pass, who previously romped in the seven-furlong Hibiscus Stakes and narrowly won the Everglades Stakes, won wire-to-wire, and his time of 1:47 4/5 in the Blue Grass missed Round Table’s track and stakes record by only two-fifths of a second.
So, when Dancer’s Image, second choice at 7-2, rallied from dead last in the 14-horse Derby field, storming up the rail to beat 2-1 favorite Forward Pass by 1 1/2 lengths despite jockey Bobby Ussery dropping his whip turning for home, it established the two favorites as the clear-cut leaders of the division.
But that was far from the end of the story of the 1968 Kentucky Derby. As owner Peter Fuller was celebrating the victory that evening, a short distance away in a trailer laboratory near Churchill Downs, urine specimen 3956-U, belonging to Dancer’s Image, revealed a positive test. The culprit was an old nemesis of racing, phenylbutazone, a pain killer distributed under the name Butazolidan and better known as “Bute,” which was banned in Kentucky.
To this day, no one knows how this happened or even if Dancer’s Image’s test really came up positive. Stories have surfaced since about sinister activities and manipulation. A month before the Derby, Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated two days prior to Dancer’s Image winning the Governor’s Cup. Following the race, Fuller announced that he was donating the $60,000 winner’s purse to King’s widow, Coretta Scott King.
In Kentucky, Fuller’s goodwill gesture was not taken by many in the spirit it was given. According to the New York Times, Fuller received death threats, and Dancer’s Image was “derided with a racial epithet around Louisville, and one of Fuller’s stables was set on fire.”
Dancer’s Image was disqualified and Forward Pass became the official winner of the Kentucky Derby. Fuller fought the ruling for years at a cost of $250,000 in legal fees, but in the end he had no other recourse but to give up the battle. It didn’t help his cause that Mrs. Gene Markey, owner of Calumet Farm, was putting pressure on the Kentucky Racing Commission to uphold the decision. So, the Dancer’s Image disqualification will forever remain tainted in controversy and mystery.
Ironically, one year after the Dancer’s Image case was closed following a five-year court battle, and at great cost to Fuller, the Kentucky Racing Commission legalized phenylbutazone.
Four days after the 1968 Derby, a race was run at Aqueduct that seemed to have no bearing whatsoever on the Triple Crown, as a striking golden chestnut 3-year-old colt with a white blaze owned by Greentree Stable named Stage Door Johnny broke his maiden in his fourth attempt, romping by six lengths in a sharp 1:35 1/5 for the mile. But it was accomplished under a feathery 114 pounds, eight pounds less than he carried in his three previous starts.
Stage Door Johnny’s trainer, John Gaver, was in the hospital at the time for a foot operation. When his son and assistant, John Gaver Jr., called him and told him about the race, the elder Gaver said without hesitation, “There’s our Belmont horse.”
With the stench of the Derby disqualification still permeating throughout the sport, it was soon time for the Preakness and one of the oddest rematches in the history of the Triple Crown, as Dancer’s Image was back to face Forward Pass.
Forward Pass was made the even-money favorite, with Dancer’s Image 6-5 and no one else in single-digit odds. This time, there was no doubt about the winner, as Forward Pass stalked the battling leaders, Martin’s Jig and Arkansas Derby winner Nodouble, then blew past them and drew off to a six-length victory. Dancer’s Image encountered heavy traffic while rallying in the upper stretch and had to make his own path, bulling his way through Nodouble and Martin’s Jig, soundly bumping the latter. He finished well to be third, just missing second by a head, but amazingly was disqualified again and placed eighth. For Fuller, the Triple Crown, which began in joyous celebration, had turned into a nightmare.
With Forward Pass now the official winner of the Derby and Preakness, everyone began seeing asterisks flashing before their eyes. Was this the way the 20-year-old Triple Crown drought was going to end? Were we going to add Forward Pass’s name to the elite list of Triple Crown winners alongside Citation, Whirlaway, Count Fleet, War Admiral and the other greats of the Turf?
Forward Pass no doubt was a very good horse, never having finished worse than fourth in 19 career starts. But he certainly did not seem to belong with the others in the Triple Crown pantheon, especially having been beaten in the Kentucky Derby. In fact, he barely held on for second, finishing a diminishing neck in front of a 32-1 shot named Francie’s Hat, who would have been the Derby winner in another jump or two.
Unfortunately, there did not appear to be a horse capable of stopping this ignominious chapter of the Triple Crown from being written, especially with Dancer’s Image coming up lame. His right ankle that had given him problems before flared up again prior to the Belmont, resulting in his retirement. He never did receive the credit he most likely deserved for winning the Kentucky Derby. He eventually was sent to stand at stud in Japan, where he died in 1992 at age 27; a dubious footnote in Triple Crown history.
Five days after the Preakness, at the newly opened Belmont Park, which had been shut down from 1962 to ’68 while undergoing renovation, they ran a mile and an eighth allowance race called the Peter Pan purse, which was meant to serve as a possible Belmont Stakes prep for late-developing 3-year-olds. Once again, here was Stage Door Johnny showing up shortly after a controversial Triple Crown race. Sent off as the 2-1 second choice, he caught everyone’s attention this time with his scintillating four-length victory over King Ranch’s hard-knocking and well-bred Draft Card.
With Dancer’s Image out of the picture, it became obvious that only two horses had a shot of stopping Forward Pass’ attempt to infiltrate the illustrious roster of Triple Crown winners – Stage Door Johnny and Withers Stakes winner Call Me Prince, who was coupled with Draft Card, both trained by the great Max Hirsch. Forward Pass was made the even-money favorite, with the Max Hirsch entry 9-5 and Stage Door Johnny 4-1. No one else in the nine-horse field was lower than 21-1.
John Gaver Jr. recalled, “My father was thinking of the Belmont Stakes for Stage Door Johnny after his 2-year-old year, even though he was still a maiden. He had a tremendous amount of ability, although he was very green. When he broke his maiden at 3, he did it the way a good horse should. We felt Forward Pass was the only horse to beat in the Belmont and he had gone through the rigors of the Triple Crown. We had worked hard with Stage Door Johnny over the winter, and he had filled out and developed. After the Peter Pan we were confident.”
Milo Valenzuela, as expected, sent Forward Pass right to the lead. Heliodoro Gustines on Stage Door Johnny was forced to steady early, dropping back to seventh, but he quickly got his colt in the clear and moved him up gradually. Forward Pass, meanwhile, was having his own way on the lead, setting fractions of :48 2/5 and 1:12 2/5. At the half-mile pole, the mile run in 1:37, Forward Pass, tracked all the way by Call Me Prince, maintained a 1 1/2-length lead, as Stage Door Johnny moved into third, a little over three lengths behind Forward Pass.
At the quarter pole, Forward Pass still led by 1 1/2 lengths with Stage Door Johnny now moving into second and the only threat to Forward Pass. This was it; the Triple Crown on the line, just a quarter of a mile away. Could the lightly raced Stage Door Johnny, who had never competed in a stakes race, run down a brilliant and classy Forward Pass and prevent the asterisk of all asterisks from tainting the Triple Crown?
At the eighth pole, Forward Pass clung to a head lead, and it was obvious Stage Door Johnny was the stronger of the two and had the favorite measured. But Forward Pass was not going to go down without a fight. He battled hard that final eighth of a mile, but Stage door Johnny was relentless, winning by 1 1/2 lengths. Although Forward Pass’ final quarter in :25 flat would have won most Belmonts, Stage Door Johnny overpowered him in the final furlong, coming home in a tick under : 24 3/5 to complete the mile and a half in 2:27 1/5, three-fifths of a second off Gallant Man’s track record.
For Greentree, this was their fourth Belmont Stakes victory following Twenty Grand, Shut Out, and Capot. For Stage Door Johnny, the Belmont was only the beginning. By the time he had rattled off subsequent victories in the Saranac Handicap in 1:35 2/5 and the mile and a quarter Dwyer Handicap in 2:01 3/5 under a burdensome 129 pounds, he was being considered a legitimate threat to Dr. Fager and Damascus for Horse of the Year honors. The two future Hall of Famers were coming off a pair of epic battles in the 10-furlong Suburban and Brooklyn Handicaps, in which they carried 130 pounds or higher in each race. Dr. Fager defeated his arch rival in the Suburban, equaling the track record in 1:59 3/5. Damascus then turned the tables in the Brooklyn, breaking Dr. Fager’s short-lived track record by two-fifths of a second. His record time of 1:59 1/5 still stands after more than half a century.
Racing fans were now anticipating another epic showdown at the end of the year, much like the 1967 Woodward between Damascus, Dr. Fager, and Buckpasser. But while training for the Travers Stakes over Greentree’s private track at Saratoga, Stage Door Johnny bowed a tendon and was retired to stud.
No one knows how great Stage Door Johnny could have been and how he would have fared against the mighty Dr. Fager and Damascus. But one thing is for certain, with those two legendary 4-year-olds dominating the sport; the mighty mite Dark Mirage becoming the first filly to sweep the Filly Triple Crown; the opening of the new Belmont Park; and of course the controversial Triple Crown, the year 1968 would go down as one of the most memorable in racing history.
Dethroning the Prince
Then came 1969 and the new year brought a flood of events that would again dominate the headlines, including man walking on the moon, Woodstock, the Manson murders, Chappaquiddick, the continued escalation of the Vietnam war, the New York Mets winning the World Series, and Broadway Joe guaranteeing a Super Bowl victory.
Racing continued to grab its own headlines. For the first time in history the sport had an undefeated horse, the handsome golden chestnut Majestic Prince, attempting to sweep the Triple Crown, something that hadn’t been accomplished in 21 years. Here was a true glamour horse who epitomized the beauty, nobility, and courage of the Thoroughbred. The New York newspapers couldn’t get enough of The Prince. All the while, the foreboding presence of Arts and Letters, the smallish liver chestnut son of Ribot who was a close second in the Derby and Preakness, was lurking in the background.
Racing fans, like those today, wondered if any horse would ever sweep the Triple Crown following the failures of Derby and Preakness winners Carry Back (’61), Northern Dancer (’64), Kauai King (’66), and Forward Pass(’68). In 1963, Chateaugay won the Derby and Belmont, but a one-mile work gone awry likely cost him the Triple Crown. In 1967, Damascus won the Preakness and Belmont, but was uncharacteristically rank in the Derby, which caused his trainer Frank Whiteley to have his own suspicions, especially sensing the colt was not acting like his usual professional self walking to the track.
But despite their repeated disappointments optimists held on to the belief that this time it was going to be different. Majestic Prince looked to be a horse for the ages. But his trainer Johnny Longden felt the colt wasn’t 100% and was beginning to feel the effects of the rigors of the Triple Crown following two hard-fought battles with Arts and Letters. Shortly after the Preakness, Longden shocked everyone by announcing that Majestic Prince might not run in the Belmont. The news filled the entire back page of the New York tabloids. Owner Frank McMahon McMahon backed his trainer, but the pressure to run became too intense and several days before the race he announced The Prince would run, especially after a Sports Illustrated article suggested he was ducking Arts and Letters. Longden was incensed that McMahon had overruled him and the two could be heard in a shouting match at the barn. But the universal thinking was, no Derby and Preakness winner skips the Belmont unless he has a serious injury. That’s like making it to gates of the pantheon and deciding you’ve gone far enough.
When Majestic Prince had shipped to Belmont Park, photographers followed him everywhere. The media couldn’t get enough of this undefeated Hollywood star. A full page photo of the colt walking off the van appeared on the back page of the New York Daily News. Articles on him appeared every day in the New York papers.
A week before the Belmont, the mood began to change after Arts and Letters defeated older horses, including champion Nodouble, in the Metropolitan Handicap, drawing away to a 2 1/2-length victory in a blazing 1:34 for the mile over a dead track under Jean Cruguet, substituting for Braulio Baeza, who had the call on Ogden Phipps’ Vitriolic. Arts and Letters had come from 10th in an 11-horse field, closing his final quarter in a spectacular :23 1/5. You don’t see horses explode like that in the Met Mile against top older horses having just run two grueling races in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness. Many began to suspect that it was Arts and Letters who would be the one who relished the 1 1/2 miles of the Belmont.
Arts and Letters’ trainer, Elliott Burch, had used the Met Mile as a steppingstone to a Belmont victory twice before, with Sword Dancer and Quadrangle, both of whom also had been beaten in the Derby and Preakness.
Burch was amazed at the 15.1 hands Arts and Letters’ resiliency and his ability to bounce back off tough races, especially having run in four major stakes in 36 days. Now he was coming back in a week going a mile and a half.
Only five days after his Met Mile victory and two days before the Belmont, Arts and Letters worked a blistering half-mile in an unheard of :57 3/5, galloping out six furlongs in 1:11. I repeat, two days before the mile and a half Belmont. Burch had no misgivings about the tough schedule, insisting Arts and Letters had an uncanny ability to “train himself” and relax when his work was done. “He was a remarkable horse from day one; the best I ever trained,” Burch said.
So Arts and Letters had romped by 15 lengths in near track-record time in the Blue Grass Stakes nine days before the Kentucky Derby and crushed older horses in the Met Mile after the Preakness. No one would deny that Majestic Prince had to be a very special horse to have beaten the Rokeby Stable colt in the first two legs of the Triple Crown, even if it was only by a neck and a half-length after stretch-long battles.
But now it was the Rokeby Stable colt who began to command the headlines. Support for Arts and Letters had grown since the Met Mile, and predictions of The Prince’s downfall were rampant. With Longden still not having declared the colt a definite starter, a headline in the New York Post read: “Majestic Prince Scared Off by Arts and Letters?”
Security tightened around Majestic Prince’s barn and tension began to build. It was an odd sight seeing assistant trainer Mike Bao, wearing his customary love beads, threaten physical ejection to a Daily Racing Form columnist, to whom Longden had taken exception. Then there was Majestic Prince’s jockey Bill Hartack, who treated reporters as if they had leprosy. The night before the Belmont, Hartack appeared on the Dick Cavett Show and aired his gripes and dislike of the media, much to the delight of Cavett and his audience.
Meanwhile, Arts and Letters was his usual placid self, showing no ill effects of his grueling 3-year-old campaign, which saw him run nine times already, eight of them in major stakes. When a news wire photographer walked in the barn and sheepishly asked Burch if he could take a couple of head shots of the colt in his stall, Burch replied, “Sure, go ahead, but you may have to wake him up to do it.”
On June 7, a record Belmont Stakes crowd of 66,115 turned out to see if this time history would be made. But the Belmont turned out to be an oddly run race. The early pace was so slow the late-running Dike, winner of the Gotham and Wood Memorial and a fast-closing third in the Derby, went for the lead going into the clubhouse turn, much to the shock of the crowd. Baeza and Arts and Letters were right on his heels, but Hartack elected to keep Majestic Prince three to four lengths back through an agonizingly slow three-quarters in 1:16 1/5. When Baeza gunned Arts and Letters to the front nearing the half-mile pole, the race was all but over. The colt drew off to win by 5 1/2 lengths, closing his final quarter in :24 2/5, with Majestic Prince finishing second, never to race again.
“He had a check ligament going into the Belmont that was just not right,” Longden said years later. “It wasn’t real bad, but the horse wasn’t 100%. I was looking forward to racing him as a 4-year-old and I thought it was tough asking him to go a mile and a half when he was not 100%.”
Arts and Letters went on to become America’s newest equine hero, romping in the Jim Dandy by 10 lengths and the Travers Stakes by 6 ½ lengths in a track record-equaling 2:01 3/5, then defeating Nodouble in the Woodward Stakes and Jockey Club Gold Cup, the latter by 14 lengths, to nail down Horse of the Year honors. The following year he was rounding back in form coming off a victory in the Grey Lag Handicap under 128 pounds when he, like Stage Door Johnny, suffered a bowed tendon during the running of the Californian Stakes at Hollywood Park and also was retired to Greentree Stud, where the two Belmont winners became instant buddies.
Bonding in the Bluegrass
The two stallions would remain close friends for the next 26 years until Stage Door Johnny’s death in 1996 at age 31. In their younger days, they would race each other along the fence every day, putting on the brakes just before reaching the gate, kicking up a cloud of dirt. They would quickly look over at each other as if to see who won, then walk back up the hill and come charging back down. They were so close, one would become visibly upset when the other was led to the breeding shed.
When they became too old to race each other they would stand under the same shade tree that separated their paddocks and just keep each other company.
When Gainesway Farm took over the Greentree property in 1989, part of the agreement was that both stallions remain together in adjoining paddocks. When Stage Door Johnny died, he turned over his title as the oldest living Belmont winner to Arts and Letters, who held it until his death two years later at age 32.
Arts and Letters’ two top offspring were Codex, winner of the Preakness, Santa Anita Derby, and Hollywood Derby, and Winter’s Tale, winner of the Marlboro Cup, Brooklyn Handicap, and Suburban Handicap twice.
Stage Door Johnny would go on to become one of the top stamina influences in the United States, his name appearing in the pedigrees of a number of top-class horses. His daughter Never Knock produced Kentucky Derby winner Go For Gin.
John Hay Whitney’s famed Greentree Stud is long gone, as is the memory of Stage Door Johnny and Arts and Letters and their historic victories in the Belmont Stakes. By depriving Forward Pass of the Triple Crown and preventing an eyesore asterisk next to his name, Stage Door Johnny prolonged the drought that was appropriately ended by the legendary Secretariat five years later. By defeating Majestic Prince in the Belmont, Arts and Letters denied the colt the distinction of becoming the first undefeated Triple Crown winner, a feat that would be accomplished eight years later by Seattle Slew.
Many racing fans today might not be familiar with Stage Door Johnny and Arts and Letters and the volatile times in which they raced. But back then, they, along with the other great horses of the late ‘60s, brought fans much-needed moments of comfort and elation and a sense of optimism as we headed into the ‘70s and Thoroughbred racing’s Golden Age.
This year’s Belmont Stakes looks to be an excellent betting race with most of the horses having a legitimate chance to win. Be sure to watch for our upcoming handicapping/analysis column on Thursday morning. ~ SH
The heartwarming, long bond between Stage Door Johnny & Arts and Letters ~ kismet! Your stories are truly a gift for all who love thoroughbreds, like all those in this tale of two buddies.
Racing in the US, like old MGM, once had ‘more stars than there are in heaven.’ As much as I enjoy reading your historical narratives, Steve, it’s unfortunate that there isn’t good film stock to help with the visuals. Memories can play tricks on you sometimes. Ha ha Stage Door Johnny and Arts and Letters swishing flies away under a tree together is a beautiful image for racing to rest on. Happier days.
From Friday to Sunday there are a host of Classic races to whet the appetite of any racing fan on both shores of the Atlantic. The Oaks, Epsom Derby, Belmont Stakes, all look competitive but the best race may be the Prix du Jockey Club. Will St Mark’s Basilica be able to withstand Derab? As for the Belmont, Essential Quality looks formidable. Enjoy.
Why does horse racing not GET IT? Every sport with failed tests, means cheating. They test for cheating drugs. We test for everything. You care so much about the public perception, but don’t realize FAILED TEST, POSITIVE TEST means cheating to the public?.
You don’t take away the super bowl, for Tom brady using a spray for a sunburn. Or Russell wilson taking 3 tylenol……
Failed drug tests should be class 1..like every other sport .DQ’s suspensions…… Horses are tested for EVERYTHING. We need to call these overs and therapeutics something else…..FINE them….these are not cheating. I suggest 10% of winners share….cap at 100k……this would be fair.
Common sense should matter……rule is a rule is ridiculous……
Banned 2 years for a therapeutic?……….come on guys………
Have to agree with everything you said.
I agree completely that they have gone way overboard for some of these tests. We also have way too many differences in what is allowed in one state and not another.
Just got back here this morning to follow up on the story. What this suspension to Bob has done is basically put the guy out of business. When this story first broke I watched his interview with the press about it. He talked about one of the fillies, Gamine? they treated, waited 4 extra days beyond the guidelines to enter and she still failed the after race screening.
This has pretty much also jepordized the chances of anyone currently employed by Bob to stay in racing and that is not justice to them at all. I really don’t like bullies and it would seem to me that is what some of these state jockey clubs have become.
This really is insane. Until we a real governing body over racing nationwide this will happen again. Who are they going after next? You build up a succesful racing stable and win too many times got to be cheating. That discredits the breeders and owners as well. Here we are on a blog that is in honor of Secretariat. Did Lucien cheat with Secretariat? No he was just that good of a racehorse.
Did Bob cheat with American Pharoah, no. He just was another great horse. Did Bob cheat with Justify? Yes there was a failed screen that they traced back to the hay he was fed. Did the Queen cheat that year at Ascot when her mare failed a screen? No and again it was traced back to feed.
The general public sees this and they do assume the worst, crooked sport. That is so far from the truth. Not perfect but still too many sacrifice to breed, break and train, nuture and enjoy the wins, take the losses and come back to try again.
People who are ignorant on such matters use the word cheat.
Bravo, VET.
Bob even took Maximum Security—a horse under a cloud of suspicion….and won the Pacific Classic by three lengths, the biggest race out west—he CLEARED up a horse’s reputation.
Matthew, of the 106 tests administered on April 30 and May 1 at CD, how many came up positive?
First, Baffert was banned by the private corporation CDI from racing his horses at any of their tracks. The decision was independent of state authority and any penalties that will be administered by the Ky racing commission.
Second, are you suggesting that rules should be ignored? That Bob Baffert is immune from the consequences of his own acts? There’s a four-lane, straight, divided roadway near my house that’s never congested. The speed limit is a ridiculous 25 mph. But residents and others are often ticketed for driving 10 or 15 mph over the limit. I’m sure that the violators had reasonable explanations for the judge. “I’m a law-abiding citizen. I’ve gotten only about 5 or 10 previous violations for similar speed overages.” “Nobody is hurt by going 35 in that zone.” “It’s an unreasonable and stupid law.” Yeah, I’m sure that those arguments are persuasive. Yet the violators pay the fines.
Third, your examples of the Super Bowl, Brady, Wilson, Tylenol, and sunscreen are absurd and not even worthy of further comment.
Fourth, once again you misrepresent — No…fabricate! — what the purpose and responses were in regard to the testing. The tests are not to find “cheating.” The tests are to find evidence of BANNED substances in racehorses. It really is that simple.
There is no disagreement about the inconsistencies and irrationality of rules and penalties in the 3 dozen state jurisdictions. I’m sure we all hope that the HISA will bring positive change.
Hopefully, others will read your essay. “The tests are to find evidence of banned substances in racehorses,” not so ‘we’ can evaluate if the illegal substances found would, or would not, have helped a runner. The Aga Khan lost an Oaks win due to a positive test by the filly after the race. Eventually, after huge pressure imposed to change the outcome of the test result, the Aga had to accept the ruling.
Racing has rules, penalties so that the punters believe the game is fair.
Well said.
Interesting you’re only on here to plead your king’s case after an absence. Btw, many times you use phrase “you people” as if you’re only one with a semblance of intelligence. Unreal!
Here’s the big problem….does Churchill Downs speak for Keeneland Race Track (home of the 2022 Breeders’ Cup) or is this another NYRA shotgun approach – include the three major tracks….
Translation….this is far, far from being over. Look for this to go to the courts.
Prediction….and going out on a limb here…..Baffert, in months ahead in a legal battle gets a stay, puts on probation and the ban in NYRA is lifted as well…
I can certainly see that happening
Really enjoyed this journey in the “Way Back Machine” (Mr. Peabody). Knew nothing about Stage Door Johnny and only a little about Arts and Letters. Wonderful read about both of them in the context of those very turbulent times and it warms your heart to know they were great buddies in retirement. Someone needs to write about the time we are in right now in
about 30 years. My vote goes to your grandson, Theo.
LOL. I hope he never has to write about these times
Well, however one feels about it, there is an awful lot of material for Theo to write about. He just
needs to inherit your talent. As I recall, Many wrote a really nice piece a while back.
That should have been “Mandy.”
Hi Paula! How’s it going?
Great Mike! Looking forward to the Belmont. Hope you are well. So good to see you here.
Thanks Paula.
What about the “backup quarterback” play? If Jimmy Barnes, Baffert’s assistant, takes over the horses that Bob has to give up, do you think Churchill will allow Jimmy to enter horses?
From CDI’s statement:
“The suspension prohibits Baffert, or any trainer directly or indirectly employed by Bob Baffert Racing Stables, from entering horses in races or applying for stall occupancy at all CDI-owned racetracks.”
It seems like Barnes entries would not be allowed.
Thanks for pointing that out, Profsdottir. The language seems plain enough. Barnes would not be welcome under the circumstances.
Churchill Downs is dirty, the penalty was way too harsh.
It is like the legendary opera Les Miserable, a guy steals a loaf of bread and is basically hunted down for it.
I will never watch another Derby or have any respect for that race track again.
Another black eye for horse racing, just terrible.
Go ahead Eddie, chime in with some joke. To me this is no laughing matter. I am beyond angry about this decision.
No need, Deacon. I already did. But I hope that you spread your righteous indignation around for things that truly matter in this world. Regardless, I’ll bet that, next winter and spring, you’ll be on here posting comments about the Derby trail. God willing.
You’re 100% on point.
Spot on Eddie. A rule is a rule until it’s changed. Don’t like the rules, change ’em.
One year is bad, two years could permanently lose clientele, Bob is a Triple Crown trainer….
Do you remember movie, Midnight Run? Chas. Grodin complained about situation he got himself into, De Niro tells him,”you’re in this mess,cause you’re in this mess!
I never thought about it, but yes, Churchill Downs is run by Javert and that has nothing to do with Baffert. Glad I dont have to go there anymore.
He certainly is going to lose business… his specialty is the Triple Crown…..he owns De Jour, maybe he’s going to become an owner for a couple years, CHRB said they’d honor any sanctions by Churchill…
Agreed!
I predict that Baffert will not win the Kentucky Derby next year or the year after.
Either you can read the future, or you just read what I did on TDN. Wow, just wow. Bright side, other trainers will have a crack at winning the KY Derby for a change.
Maybe Brad Cox will win his second Derby in a row next year.
Yes,new blood!
Steve, thank you so much for the story of the Belmont Buddies. I remember these horses well and rooting against Forward Pass in the Belmont but hoping Majestic Prince could come through. In those days horse racing was very popular, and horses raced so often that people like me could follow them on television.
Glad you enjoyed it David. Weird mixture with these two horses and Baffert’s suspension, but what are you gonna do?
In addition to Saturday’s G1 Belmont Stakes, there are no less than eight graded races on Saturday’s undercard. One of the most competitive will be the G1, 7 furlong, Woody Stephens Stakes, IMO. This race will not be lacking in speed, with the likes of Jackie’s Warrior, Caddo River and Drain the Clock setting a lively pace in the early going, with Dream Shake setting just off the pace. With those four taking most of the money, I’ve been looking for a long shot that has the potential to steal the Woody Stephens, at double digit odds. That horse is Tulane Tryst, at 20-1. He has shown the ability to close on torrid fractions in his three career starts, and his Equibase and Bris Speed Figures have increased in the last two. In addition, Luis Saez will be in the saddle, which is always a plus, IMO.
Tulane Tryst is by hot sire, Into Mischief, out of the Congrats mare, Desire Street.
Bill, thanks for the update on the Woody Stephens. I’d been wondering if they were going to go long or short with Dream Shake, maybe try to get a graded stakes win in something like the Ohio Derby, or shoot for a G1 in the Woody Stephens. I’m also wondering if Caddo River is now back at the right distance or if the Arkansas Derby was truly a negative key race.
I thought it was a six horse field? Pete Eurton commented the other day about Jackie practically stopping after the wire, he likes his chances on Sat…..
You’re welcome David D.
Yes indeed, Dream Shake gave Jackie’s Warrior all he could handle in the Pat Day Mile, on Derby Day. With Flavien Prat in the saddle, he could turn the tables on Jackie’s Warrior, with Rosario not riding at his best in recent races.
The Woody Stephens should be exciting. My eyes keep returning to the PPs of Nova Rags. Mott seems to be making the right move having Rags turn back to sprints, which account for the colt’s only two wins. He worked 4f yesterday in 48 1/5, just 4 days before the race. Mine eyes have seen the glory….!
Just as a heads up, Maximus Aurelius (full brother to Tacitus) will debut tomorrow (6-3) at Churchill, in a 7 furlong, 100K MSW, (6th race). Listed at 5-1 on the morning line, he’s been training well for W. Mott, and will be ridden by T. Gaffalione.
He could be one to watch moving forward.
I hope you didn’t lose too much on Maximus Aurelius, as I suggested they just went through the motions here. Next time they might show some interest.
Medina Spirit split sample comes back positive.
Thanks for the update Steve. Damn shame. This is going to hurt the sport.
Steve , how come you on not on Steve Byk’s show anymore??
TomF from New Jersey
After 15 years I got tired of doing it.
Hey Steve,
Any thoughts on the second positive sample and what happens from here on out? Will you be writing an article as well soon on this?
Loyal reader here.
Thanks.
Not much more to say about it. He likely will disqualified. they are doing a DNa tp prove it came from an ointment not an injection. But i dont know about ointments getting in the blood. if its there its there and its not supposed to be there.
The split sample positive is no surprise and, most certainly, Baffert will want to show via DNA testing that the pictograms of the therapeutic substance came from an ointment and not an injection. As you remarked previously, there was a puzzling failure/oversight on the part of Baffert and Barnes for failing to report the use of the substance on Medina Spirit to the KY Racing authorities and you questioned the need to use it on the hind of the colt for what seemed an unusually long time. Have to agree though with Wayne Lukas – and who should know better – that the fine precision testing of therapeutic substances down to a trillionth of a gram, i.e., a pictogram, be forestalled and abandoned. If the substances in question are not performance enhancing, why the need for such a fineness of precision ? Lukas was convinced such an incredibly minuscule amount had no bearing on Medina Spirit’s performance nor did he feel any vet could testify definitively to the contrary. If the current level of precision testing continues for therapeutic substances, we have to expect many more similar controversies arising like the Derby incident and the episode at Oaklawn where Charlatan likely picked up the pictograms of lidocaine from environmental contamination in the test barn as another horse in the race also tested positive though under the established pictogram limit. None of this can do racing any good and will likely just end up offering aid to animal activists and politicians like Gavin Newsom in their efforts to end American horse racing rather than correcting any alleged abuses in the use of medications/drugs on race horses. To keep up the current regimen of excessively precise testing seems to be self defeating and beneficial only to PETA. Certainly, no benefit to the health and treatment of Medina Spirit and Charlatan resulted from this testing.
Well one thing probably for certain, Bob will not be able to send any horses to NY the rest of the year. Will have to wait and see how many owners bail out on him.
I don’t see them banning him in Cali after this but next year what will happen if he has a couple of TC prospects? Won’t really know until they decide what the fine, punishment will end up being.
When I used to have critters, mostly pygmy goats and dogs I was a big fan of Novalson ointment. That stuff I liked to call the magic blue goop only came with one warning on the label, not for use on animals intended for slaughter in the next however many days it was. So yes ointments probably do end up in the bloodstream. I could buy it at Southern States, Tractor Supply or online. Got some for a neighbor that was dealing with rain rot on some foster horses and it cleared it right up. The stuff is still out there today. Used it also on a billy goat that had cut his front leg clear to the bone on some wire. Packed the goop in there and used vet wrap, changed it every day and in 2 weeks cut was almost perfectly healed, very little scarring as well. So there are other ways to treat a skin infection/fungus on a horse. Then again hindsight tends to be 20/20
Whatever they end up doing to Baffert we do need more cooperation between the jockey clubs state to state. It has to be the same playing field across the nation when they ship these horses from coast to coast to compete. The current ruling in NJ for jockeys for example. Who in the heck came up with that? To me that is disgusting.
So thank you again for you allowing to express an opinion here.
Any time.
Well, I really enjoy Byk’s show but you are missed my friend.
You’re the best.
TomF
Thank you Tom
Racing damaged far before now.
That’s a fact, Jack. I mean Mike.
lol. You’re light on your feet. Bravo!
An executive from PETA said, “Bettors who’ve been cheated by putting money down on the rigged Kentucky Derby may contact PETA or attorneys who are filing class-action lawsuits, but the other victim here is Medina Spirit.”
Considering who’s in my corner, I went ahead and made vacation reservations from the expected payout from my KDFW on Mandaloun. Can’t wait to finally see Bora Bora. 😉
Really …. 🙁
One place never been Eddie.
Thank you Steve! I have always loved horse racing. You exposed a whole new side of it to me. Once I found a derby dozen article the year War Emblem won. I have been a fan of yours from that moment. I will always think of Smarty Jones loss in the Belmont you voiced it perfectly. How many Belmont’s have been lost because of bad rides or jockeys teaming up on a horse? Thank you again! always a fan
I really appreciate that, David. Thank you so much for the kind words . I think it was more about the other jockeys, manly Jerry Bailey, than Elliott who had no choice but to go to the lead to get away from the others, all of whom finished up the track.
That racing photo of Majestic Prince is excellent, taken in 1969 it’s as clear as can be.
Which “racing” phhoto are you referring to? The photo I wrote about below was in the Belmont paddock. Did you see that photo on my Facebook page? That’s the only place I was able to post it. Not only taken in 1969, but with my little Brownie Instamatic. Lol
Sorry Steve, I was referring to the group of photos above, the one just below the headline Dethroning the Prince. It’s clear and detailed, an old processed photo, not digital. I’ll check out your photo on Facebook.
Steve,
I was at Hollypark in 1970 to see Majestic Prince’s stablemate Baffle (trained by Johnny Longden and owned by Frank McMahon) beat the reigning HOY Arts and Letters to the joy and excitement of many Californians in the stands….payback time of course without knowing about the injury….
That was a weird race to run him in, going all the way to California, especially since Arts and Letters was being pointed to a major stakes in France.
Dr. Fager came west in the 1968 Californian and dominated some pretty good west coast horses.
I know you know this but after all these years the Doc still amazes me with all his awesome performances.
Good read Steve
I was at Hollypark on that day to watch that race as well….Dr. Fager made a bold move going into the turn to win but not taking anything away from this champ Dr. Fager had a perfect trip….rallying on the outside after a hot pace that gave way to come horse from behind.
FYI….this great race had seen many great champions run….Swaps, Nodouble, Dr. Fager, The Big Cat (Cougar II), Affirmed, Spectacular Bid, Sunday Silence,
I wasnt suggesting that running Arts and Letters in the Californian was weird by itself. It was a weird race to run in when youre pointing for a mile and a half race in France.
Well, there goes my big win bet and my exactas. Rebel’s Romance out of the Belmont with a foot infection. And then there were eight.
Same here, Steve. Rebel’s Romance was my key horse for win and exactas. That would seem to lower the value of the remaining contenders. At least we have an attractive card for both Friday and Saturday…. a lot of good betting options.
Awaiting your Thursday column to see what other options you provide.
Big Lake, Life is Good, King Fury and now RR. The beat goes on for me…
Sounds like a little Agatha Christie there. 🙂
Arts and Letters was always a favorite of mine. The tiny great-great-grandson of the mighty Man O’War looked way more like his distaff side than his sire’s line. I’m so glad I got to see him just before he passed away. I think the folks at Gainesway thought I was a little odd to be asking to see their ancient pensioner when there were so many fabulous, attractive stallions there. One of those stallions was Cozzene (another favorite). A few years later, a gray son of one out of a daughter of the other won the Breeders’ Cup Classic and ended the amazing streak of the mighty Cigar.
A personal epilogue to the Arts and Letters story below (who by the way was the first horse I ever started a scrapbook on from the very beginning of his career). I would visit him several times at his barn at Belmont thanks to Burch’s assistant Mike Kay getting me and my friend and once me and my father in the backstretch. I was so nervous before the Woodward against Nodouble with Horse of the Year on the line, which he won. I was so happy on that day, but in reality I was in my ninth month of unemployment after leaving Wall Street with zero skills and no future. I would spend my afternoons in Battery Park in lower Manhattan pretending to look for work, but feeding the pigeons and reading Sam Toperoff’s book Crazy Over Horses. Thanks to my father’s suggestion and support to look for work in racing I sent out letters to the Morning Telegraph, NYRA, and The Jockey Club offering nothing but my passion for racing. Two weeks after Arts and Letters won the Woodward I was hired as a copy boy at the Morning Telegraph, eventually moving into the library where I became the head librarian. I was hired on Oct. 14, 1969 while everyone on the editorial desk was watching the Mets win the third game of the World Series. Needless to say my life changed dramatically on that day.
My scrapbook was of Hillsdale, 1959. Damn Sword Dancer! Saw Arts & Letters, Stage Door Johnny in their paddocks in 1972. Have photos somewhere of A & L right at the fence. Mike Kay was a great guy, glad he finally had his own success with Johnny D.
I’ll bet Arts and Letters was biting down on the fence. Dont blame Sword Dancer, blame the jock who let Arcaro squeeze through on the rail.
Correct. Who let’s Arcaro through on the fence, in a four horse field? Tommy Barrow. Shoemaker was to ride when Hillsdale returned to Santa Anita for their winter stakes, but he was injured when taking a break after Woodward and was retired to Claiborne. Very underrated & forgotten star of yesteryear.
Jay Hovdey and I have been pushing him fpr the Hall of Fame with the Historical Committee.
Had an old snapshot, probably from your Brownie, that I took at old DRC who held a retirement ceremony for Hillsdale on Michigan Mile day. My first visit to the races. Photo & album no longer exist, unfortunately.
I believe that joc was Tommy Barrow.
I saw that race, I also rooted for Hillsdale but Sword Dancer was a monster.
Thanks for bringing me back when I was whipper snapper of 12 and 13 years old. Not to many kids at that age were in to Horse Racing but thanks to Dad I was. In your piece I love the fact that Dancer’s Image ran 22 times before the Derby. His PP’S must of took up 1/3 of the drf page. Trainers using the MetMile as a prep for the Belmont and the fact that the Daily News would have full back page photos of Derby, Preakness Belmont winners let alone other stakes. I miss those back pages , I collected them going back to the early 70’s. Some look like the Dead Sea Scrolls but I still cherish them.
Thanks so much for sharing, Derek, and stating so well what racing was like in those days.
Thank you Steve. Years ago got a paperback book on Race Horse Mysteries and the story of Dancer’s Image was in there. Not even sure if that was the title of the book but this column brought it back to mind. There were quite a few stories in there about suicides for no reason, barn fires at a track, murders as well all connected to horse racing. Think they even had the story of Shergar in there.
You have been very firm no more books so not expecting one. Enjoy the Belmont and looking forward to what you decide to share next.
Wow! That brought me soooo back to those days I could smell Belmont Park.
LOL, thank you Sheila. So happy you enjoyed it and were able to relive those days
Please tell me you have a book in the offing. These “chapters” are gold. Thanks so much for sharing your insight.
Not really Jo Anne. After six books I just dont have the ambition any longer or the long period of time to invest. But thanks for mentioning it. There are a lot of historical columns archived on Bloodhorse.com. And I did write Tales From the Triple Crown, but those stories are more recent except for a couple.
Here is a funny side story about Majestic Prince. Every year after racing ended in New York, Charlie Hatton would come into the library at the old Morning Telegraph to write his brilliant stuff for the Racing Manual. He was best known for his physical descriptions of all the top horses, from their fetlocks to their gaskins to their pasterns to the slope of their neck Charlie loved Majestic Prince and disliked Arts and Letters through his association to Elliott Burch, who he despised because of personal reasons related to his daughter and Burch. Anyway, I always admired Charlie’s knowledge of a horse’s physicality and his ability to break it down. I had taken a photo of Majestic Prince in the walking ring at the Belmont with my little Kodak Brownie Instamatic that printed just 3 1/2 by 3 1/2- inch prints, really small. I showed this nothing photo to Charlie and he asked me to make up an 8×10 for him and he used that photo to write his detailed description of Majestic Prince. I couldnt believe he saw anything in that photo that would help him even in the slightest. I still have that photo and although I love it for its sentimental reason it really isnt much of a photo. Why Charlie used it for his story is beyond me.
I love reading Charlie Hatton— his descriptions and old fashioned language and vocabulary are fascinating. I believe he coined the phrase ‘Triple Crown.’ And your photos of Theo on Facebook are so cute. Thanks for another series of articles about horse racing history.
I love writing them, thank you. Charlie was a bit odd and cantankerous, but a master wordsmith. no one like him.
Are Mr Hatton’s writings available online? I can google, of course. Odd story: I was sitting in a parking lot waiting for my husband to get out of the grocery store and exploring my old cell phone (getting bored) and seems like I downloaded the book _Secretariat_ at some point, and he was mentioned there too. Steve, I doubt it was a “nothing” photo.
There might be an occasional story somewhere but I havent seen any. If youre ever in the Keeneland Library they have bound volumes of the DRF
Thank you again, Steve. I’m so glad these two wonderful horses had their time together. Majestic Prince deserved his name, but I always loved Arts and Letters (I always liked the ‘little guys’). And Ribot was his sire!
Thanks for the article Steve, this made me feel nostalgic, thinking back to my earliest memories of racing. I’ve followed your triple crown articles for a long time, and I was wondering if you had a particular favorite amongst all the articles you have written? And even better if that’s available online to search for and read.
Thanks Mike. To be honest, if you mean columns about the Triple Crown or TC races I have covered or written about it’s so hard to narrow then. As you can see I was partial to 68 and especially ’69, still one of my all-time favorites. ’71 with Canonero is another. I really didnt write too much about Secretariat’s Triple Crown. I just did one on the Preakness that I liked. More recently, American Pharoah’s and Smarty Jones’ Triple Crowns were my favorites by far of the ones I covered. I thought I wrote three compelling stories on each one with lots of behind the scenes stuff and back stories. 1987 was another of my favorites.
Yes exactly, your TC columns. Thanks for throwing some of your faves out there. Will definitely try to find and read them. Especially American Pharoah, as he’s my all time fave.
I was really happy with all three recaps, especially the Belmont
Oh, the memories… Two of my my favorite horses of all time… I used to visit them every year, first at Greentree, then at Gainesway. Sometimes it was hard to get in to Greentree but I would write letter after letter until they broke down and gave me permission. Always a typed letter in reply, on letterhead and usually signed by Mr. Green (the manager, not whom the farm was named for). When they were both very old and at Gainesway, Marion would drive us out to their paddocks (yes, always next to each other) so we could see them. It took all my courage, but I once asked if I could have a few hairs from their tails. He obliged, yanking out far more than I expected from each. I still have those. And they mean even more to me now.
Again, Steve, you made the tears flow.
That is SO great, Karen. Thanks very much for sharing that. I remember Bob Green very well. The first time I went to Greentree he showed me Stage Door Johnny (Arts and Letters was still racing), and also showed me Tom Fool. BTW that is my daughter with Stage Door Johnny in the photo. I also have her with Arts and Letters. Having hairs from both their tales is awesome.
Steve that was such an enjoyable read and I loved every minute.
Knowing that those two remained best friends and were next to each other for their remaining years made me smile and I needed that. Thank you.
I appreciate it, Jean. Thank you very much. So happy you enjoyed it.
Best betting card in the country, on this Memorial Day….is at Lone Star—where they have no lasix ban—-Steve, do you notice that? Ragozin Sheets guy Jon Hardoon says they have noticed a numbers drop on older stakes horses—who have never run without lasix—many are headed to retirement—or Lone Star!
You have done it again, dear Steve. Such tales of horses of yesteryear always bring tears, tears of happiness to read such great prose, but also tears of sadness because these legends are but faded memories to many. Thanks for the trip to help us keep their accomplishments alive!
Thank you Nancy. So glad you enjoyed it.
Thanks Steve. I love going down memory lane with you. I have been a horse racing fan since I watched Native Dancer on our family’s old black and white tv. Sword Dancer was one of my all time favorites as was Majestic Prince because he was so perfect. I am an artist and a breeder of horses all my life so I was drawn to The Prince by his beauty and correct conformation. Thanks again for the inside story on these horses and people from the past.