Exaggerator blasts to victory in Preakness

Baltimore, MD

Exaggerator flipped the script and finally defeated his rival Nyquist en route to a convincing win in the 141st Preakness Stakes at Pmilico Race Course. 

The 3-year-old colt relished the sloppy track and contested pace, rallying from a distant 8th to a clear 3 1/2 length victory.

For the first time in five races Jockey Kent Desormeaux angled Exaggerator out 6-wide to take the lead for good over the favorite at the top of the lane and never looked back.

Nyquist, Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner, ran a gutty race finishing in third, and a nose out of second place. The champion just couldn't keep the quick pace going after setting fast opening fractions of :22 and :46 for the 1 3/16 mile distance. This was his first career defeat. 

Cherry Wine, also benefited from the hot pace, came into the picture late to snatch the second spot right at the wire and complete the exacta. 

Exaggerator returned $7.20 to win and ran the 2O16 Preakness Stakes in a final time of 1:58.

The battle will continue in New York at Belmont Park. The third jewel in the Triple Crown is the Belmont Stakes set to run June 11.    

Go Maggie Go cruises in Black-Eyed Susan

Baltimore, MD

Improving Go Maggie Go cruised home to victory in the Grade II Black-Eyed Susan Stakes Friday evening at Pimlico Race Course.

The 3-year-old filly overcame a bobbled break to take the $250K stakes by a comfortable 2 1/2 lengths over longshot Ma Can Do It.

Go Maggie Go proved she can handle the 1 1/18 mile distance and trainer Dale Romans was impressed with his filly's performance. She completed the event in a final time of 1:51 under brisk urging down the lane.

Kinsely Kisses held the lead for most of the race, but weakened to finish third in a blanket finish for the exotics.

Go Maggie Go returned $5.60 to win. She is a horse to mark down for future reference, as now has three wins in four career starts along with a solid pedigree to be a future star.

Nyquist powers home, takes kentucky derby

Louisville, KY

Nyquist continued his dominance over the competition and his unblemished record after defeating 19 rivals en route to a powerful victory in the 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby Saturday in Louisville.

The undefeated champion had the perfect trip under jockey Mario Gutierrez, sitting just off a hot early pace set by Danzing Candy, and took command around the turn, before kicking clear to a 1 1/4 length victory in the $2 million Run for the Roses.

Nyquist, the Derby favorite, was never really threatened until the final 1/8 when Exaggerator was cutting into his lead, but the Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner had already done the heavy lifting and was getting ready for another trip to the winner's circle.

The champ returned $6.60 to win and finished the 1 1/4 mile race in a solid final time of 2:01.

Exaggerator knifed through traffic at the 1/4 pole and showed his powerful late kick finishing in second place, while Gun Runner grudgingly tired to third after having a share of the lead turning for home.

This was trainer Doug O'Neill's second Kentucky Derby victory, along with Gutierrez. The California connections brought the roses back home in 2012 with I'll Have Another.

This marked the third straight Derby victory for horses based in California, following California Chrome and American Pharoah. 

Nyquist will look to extend his unbeaten streak to nine next time out in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico May 21.

Cathryn Sophia dominates Kentucky Oaks

Louisville, KY

Cathryn Sophia cleared the field and rolled home in the 2016 Kentucky Oaks Saturday afternoon at Churchill Downs.

The 9-2 second choice in the wagering left no question of who was the best filly in the race.

Trained by John Servis and ridden to victory by jockey Javier Castellano, the 3-year-old filly cruised up 5-wide and kicked clear down the lane, improving her record to 6-5-0-1.

Cathryn Sophia returned $11.40 and ran the 1 1/8 mile race in a good final time of 1:50.

Land Over Sea covered a lot of ground to complete the exacta and Lewis Bay hung around to complete the trifecta.

Favorite Rachel's Valentina tired to sixth after getting what looked like a solid trip.

The Kentucky Oaks, worth $1 million in overall purse, attracted a larger than expected field after an illness knocked out top-filly Songbird from contention. 

Cathryn Sophia's victory has now set up an anticipated matchup against Songbird down the road.

Creator surprises in the Arkansas Derby

Hot Springs, AR

Creator and jockey Ricardo Santana Jr. swept past the field to take the Grade I Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park Saturday evening.

The 3-year-old split through traffic and busted out of the pack to take the lead for good down the stretch.

Creator was well back throughout the 1 1/8 mile race, but kicked clear late, showing no problem passing tiring horses through the lane.

Pacesetter Gettysburg and Cupid helped setup the race for the closers, with quick fractions of :22, :46, and 1:10 for the distance.

Suddenbreakingnews also came from back of the pack to finish a clear second, with Whitmore rounding out the trifecta in third.

Race favorite Cupid never officially made the lead and was no factor at the end of the race finishing in 10th place.

Creator returned $25.20 to win and completed the race in a final time of 1:50.

All of the top three finishers made up substantial ground, and are expected to continue on the road to the Kentucky Derby.