All About The Points In The Arkansas Derby

Who will win the Arkansas Derby? A close look at the field and you will find a competitive race waiting to break out. Bayern the flashy winner at Santa Anita brings his impressive running style to the race. In his last race he broke smoothly and quickly took a strangle hold. His competitors were all left wondering what happened. He glided over the Santa Anita surface like an elegant ice skater. That performance published his name on several derby watchers top ten list. Bayern will be up against it this Saturday. He needs those coveted points to get into the Kentucky Derby starting gate. Outcomes  I envision with Bayern this Saturday are: He will break like he did in his last race and display a California Chrome type behavior that will once again have tongues wax knowledge about how he will win the derby. Another scenario I see for this horse is that he breaks smoothly, but the time off and the competition will be too much, and he will be swallowed up by a tidal wave of seasoned horses. Bayern is a talented son of Offlee Wild with horses like Seattle Slew, Thunder Gulch and Alydar in the backdrop of his pedigree. Will he stay the distance? The pedigree suggest that he will relish the distance, but something about the way this horse moves and his body scope concerns me a bit.

Another horse with a big chance is Strong Mandate. I once was invited to listen to  a motivational speaker. I sat in the audience and the speaker laid out his credentials then proceeded to let his listeners know what they had to do to achieve his status. One thing he said that still stuck with me was that potential will remain potential if you never step up to the plate and make something happen. Strong Mandate is at a crossroad in his three year old journey. He flashed immense talent when he spat mud back at other horses in the Hopeful Stake at Saratoga. That day even Tom Durkin dug into his bag of hyperboles and crowned him something special. I am usually a believer when Durkin's call crowns a horse during the Saratoga meet. The son of Tiznow like Bayern needs derby qualifying points. Wayne Lukas knows what it requires to get a horse ready for the derby. He understands that his peak performance is not needed Saturday but Strong Mandate will have to drop his belly and run. He needs to stay focused. The time is now! Realize the potential and seize the moment or he could be on the outside wondering "What if...?"


Ride on Curlin brings his in the money running to the field. He is a tough, hard horse, that consistently tries, and one must love a horse that tries. Will he get to the wire first? He is good, but his class is not good enough to break these down especially, if the real Strong Mandate stands up, and Bayern shows up ready to run.

Conquest Titan exits a disappointing fourth in the Tampa Bay Derby. He came into the derby season off a strong win at Churchill Downs. His next race in the Holy Bull he chased Cairo Prince, finishing second to that charge. Calvin Borel hops aboard the son of Birdstone. He will settle him behind the pack and will come running at the end. Conquest Titan has the the talent to brind back a nice dividend  on Saturday. Thundergram also is entered from the Mark Casse stable. If he has matured mentally and  ready to fire, then he could potentially steal away a few points from those hoping to cash in.

Commissioner is the pretty boy of the field. He is that pop star that all the young girls are screaming over. His hits include his maiden win and an impressive win over Top Billing who everyone thought was the real deal. Since his allowance win, Commissioner finished off the board in the Fountain Of Youth and placed third behind  horses Chitu and Midnight Hawk who are not high on my derby list. That was a soft Sunland Park Derby field. He came running, and his trainer that boy band manager who knows how to get his boys ready for a big race, will have him ready to fire this Saturday. Commissioner may find his groove this Saturday and Mike Smith may once again flash his hired gun status by doing what I don't think will happen. If Commissioner brings the performance that took down Top Billing, then he may once again have fans lining up for his autograph.

Tapiture is the class of the Arkansas Derby Field. This is the horse with all the gifts and breeding that took an eternity to break his maiden.  He flashed his pearly whites with running a nice second to Strong Mandate at Saratoga. Then he began to become the horse that is overly bet, burning money. Then one day when the stars were aligned and the heavenly host stood on the precipice of greatness, he woke up from his slumber and did it. He won! The Kentucky Jockey Club announced what everyone had thought. The horse is very good. He came back in the Southwest to dominate with a lengthening stride that made one think of possibilities. Tapiture is blessed with a strong combination of power and stamina. He is a brute that will take you down in a horse fight. Will Asmussen have him cranked up for this race? It is a grade one with grade one status and money on the line, so he will be ready to fire. Tapiture will sit right off the pace under the gifted hands of Joel Rosario, and then the beast will be unleashed for the run. In the Rebel he got into a little trouble and couldn't fully get to running. Hoppertunity the horse that beat him that day came back to run lovely in the Santa Anita Derby. Tapiture will destroy this field on Saturday and the only conversation to be had is who will be your Kentucky Derby favorite, Tapiture or California Chrome?

Hunger Season For Jockeys

It is the same jockeys on the good horses this time of year. Trainers and owners are all looking for that edge that will take their horses to the starting gate on the first Saturday of May. One doesn't have to look very far to see this practice. Just take a look  at the Arkansas Derby field and you will find new riders on horses that didn't run bad in their last start. A perfect example of let me get the best on my horse is Tapiture. Trainer Steve Asmussen gave a big break to a young and talented Ricardo Santana Jr last season during the Oaklawn Park meet. The young rider took his chance and showed everyone who looked why he will be one of the best in the game. He won the jockey title and announced his arrival at Churchill Downs and Saratoga. He rode Tapiture in his first six starts and  always tried on the horse. It took four starts for Tapiture to break his maiden, and when he did, he did it in style by winning the Kentucky Juvenile cup at Churchill. The win solidified what everyone had thought and hope with the horse. A horse with immense talent and power. Tapiture took a break from that win in November, and promptly came back to win the Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn. The win in the Southwest was so dominating and powerful it had mouths salivating about the possibilities. He came back in the Rebel and was beaten a head by  Hoppertunity, who is a very good horse. There was some contact in the running of the Rebel that may have prevented Tapiture from fully striding out like he did in the Southwest. That lost immediately prompted Asmussen to make a change to  Joel Rosario, who also rode in the Southwest and Rebel. He rode Strong Mandate in both races and couldn't get the horse to the wire in first.

What did Santana do other than haven't ridden in the Kentucky Derby before. The young jock showed his talent and horse IQ all year round, but for potentially the biggest chance of his life he is removed for a jockey who couldn't beat him with Strong Mandate. If one was to look at the entries for this Saturday at Oaklawn you will  see that Santana Jr is named on all of Asmussen other horses. Including horses running in minor stake races but for the big bonanza he is not welcomed. Joel Rosario is one of the best jockeys in the game. He has an ability to get run out of horses that wouldn't normally run for other jockeys. There are some jockeys who are just ahead of the game than others. I have watched countless races over the years and I have seen  terrible rides given on horses. Not all jockeys are cut from the same cloth, but a talent is a talent, and Ricardo Santana Jr is a talent with an upside that will have trainers and owners clamoring for the young star in the future.

Another horse making a jockey switch is Conquest Titan who previously was ridden by Shaun Bridgmohan. Conquest Titan revamped his running style in an allowance race at Churchill downs. Bridgmohan took him back and made one run and the win was dominating. The horse he beat in that race, General A Rod, had  a good showing down at Gulfstream Park this season. Conquest Titan started his season by finishing second to Cairo Prince in the Holy Bull ,which was the strongest prep race of the derby season. From that race, Wicked Strong came back to win the Wood Memorial, Intense Holiday won the Risen Star and finished second in Louisiana Derby. Coup De grace came back and won the Bay Shore at Aqueduct. Conquest Titan then took his running style down to Tampa Bay and finished a disappointing fourth. Everyone was quiet about the horse and his performance after the race and then came the change to Calvin Borel. What did Bridgmohan do wrong to lose the ride on the horse? Unlike Ricardo Santana Jr who is a young pup in jockey years, Bridgmohan has established himself over the years and his credentials speak volumes. He has won numerous jockeys titles and grade ones. Calvin Borel credential is also very stellar and I understand his knack for winning the Kentucky Derby, but we are always looking at horses form as a predictor of how they will compete in races. Calvin Borel's form this season wouldn't allow me to bet on him if the game was about betting on jockeys. Great horses will get a sub par jockey to the wire first. I was watching a race yesterday at Aqueduct and the young jock made a move with her horse turning for home and I thought she had it locked away, but she got nailed at the wire. The more I looked at that race I saw how much run another jockey could've gotten out of that horse. The ride wasn't great, and the jockey who nailed her at the wire was just a good finisher. Maybe in time the young jock will learn to finish what she started.

In the next few weeks jockeys will be bouncing all over the place trying to find the right mount for the derby. Mike Smith has an interesting choice to make and he will probably sit on his decision until the very last minute. Gary Stevens who rode Candy Boy and his piloting Bayern this Saturday will also have a choice. He may not even end up on any of those horses for the derby. The jockey game is a fickle business and there are only so many great horses. Everyone is looking for that great horse to propel them to elite status. Jockeys like Johnny Velasquez, Mike Smith and Gary Stevens no longer have anything to prove. Their elite status was garnered over years by winning grade ones, but someone took a shot with these young jocks. Whether its Mott giving a leg up to Mike Smith when he was strolling around New York tracks, or a horse like DA Hoss putting Johnny Velasquez on the map. All jockeys  need that one person or horse to get them to that place. Rafael Santana Jr will get there. Just watch the kid ride and you will enjoy his talent. Shaun Bridgmohan status was cemented on various  rides over the years. Winning six races  a day multiple times, and doing it as an apprentice. Winning the eclipse award for best young apprentice and last Saturday produced a grade one win on Room Service down at Keeneland.

This is the hunger season for jockeys and horse racing is a game that isn't for the weak of heart if you are a jockey. 

Horse Racing Divorce From Reality

I had a friend once commented while we were at the track that he didn't see the big deal with horses running around a track with a underweight  person riding. Unfortunately there are many who feels this way about this sport that requires more than just horses running around a track. People outside of horse racing doesn't see the hard work and dedication that it takes to keep these magnificent animals happy and healthy on a daily basis. That is why I am puzzled how the horse racing community has dealt with the Peta undercover story done on the Steve Asmussen's barn. Peta who thinks their love for animals supercede all others, inflitrated the Asmussen's barn and documented his now fired assistant Scott Blasi saying insane and absurd things about the horses in his care. Blasi sounded like an old bitter assistant who never got his big break. He is that understudy that night after night watches the leading man receive all the accolades while his name and work is never realized. I watched the video and was amazed at the level of lack of love that crept out of his mouth. He needed time away from the animals to remind him that they are the reason he was in the position he was in.  A top assistant in a top barn. Steve Asmussen had no recourse but to fire him, trying to stop the wildfire that was swallowing his barn with a fury that he wasn't ready for. Ahmed Zayat one of the owners who had horses with Asmussen removed his horses from the top trainer's care.

The horse racing community has stood in silence since the story broke. I listened for the chatter and the outcry for sweeping changes to be done but remarkably everyone with the exception of the first few days stayed away from the storm. The two major horse racing network in the United States barely touched the firestorm. They gave it a passing glance and quietly went on with other matters. Sadly that is horse racing. That is the day to day operation of the sports I have love since I was a little boy going to the track, trying so desperately to be like my father. Horse racing likes to ignore its wounds. Whether its trainers who are drugging their horses, selling horses to slaughter houses, or tracks who treats the jockeys like second class citizens. That is horse racing. The marriage that looks beautiful on the outside but behind close doors the wife is addicted to depression drugs, the husband is an alcoholic and the children are all doing drugs. Yes horse racing, the sports of kings. A facade of hypocrisy that runs deep.

Steve Asmussen sadly to say isn't the only trainer that is treating his horses unfairly. There are probably countless trainers whose practice mirrors that of the trainer with the high win percentage. What was the mantra a few years back? Just Win Baby..JUST WIN. Trainers all want those owners with the deep pockets. They want the owners that are going to sit at the sales and shell out the six figures for the horse with the royal breeding. In order to attract these big spenders..one rule..JUST WIN BABY and in some cases at all cost. don't you think there are trainers running five thousand claimers that wants to have the glamour and glitz of Todd Pletcher and Bob Baffert, or have a winning percentage like Jerry Hollendorfer and Steve Asmussen. What about having a horse of the year like Bill Mott and Wayne Lukas..JUST WIN BABY..JUST WIN

Peta's behavior is not one of lets save these horses. They are all about themselves and the attention they crave. Sadly there was good reasons to go undercover in the Steve Asmussen's barn. Asmussen has been the center of attention before from other news organization with his violations. He hasn't been the poster boy for the sport when it comes to running a clean operation. The infractions have been multiple.

This Saturday Asmussen will send out Tapiture in the Arkansas Derby. Tapiture will be one of the betting choice and if he gives a good account of himself, he maybe one of the favorite in the Kentucky Derby. That would be great for the horse and the owners, but it will shed more light on the Asmussen than he probably wants. This triple crown season has been a little slow developing with no horses really stamping their dominance over the rest of the group. Peta and Asmussen maybe the biggest story of the derby season and that is unfortunate for the sport where the horses should be the deserving story.

I hope horse racing  can clean up its house before the clock strikes midnight on this sport. The life support is weak and we need voices that aren't afraid to stand up and make a difference. We need individual who aren't afraid that owners and trainers won't grant them interviews if they expose the truth. The only thing that matters for those of us who love this sport is seeing the sports spread globally and achieve the exposure it had once upon a time. JUST WIN HORSE RACING..JUST WIN!

Kentucky Derby Top Twenty...April7th

1.Tapiture..still number one until but this week's Arkansas Derby is big boy time. He needs to bring the fire or slide down the slippery slope.

2.Constitution..I am loving this horse the more I see the derby preps. Castellano maybe sitting on the right one. He will come and get them at Churchill

3.Hoppertunity...The best horse to run second this triple crown season. You know Bob Baffert smiled all the way back to the barn after his effort in Santa Anita Derby. Mike Smith will be glued to this one.

4.California Chrome... The little engine showed up and blew the gasket off the Santa Anita's race track. The entire setup was played to his hand. Love the Art Sherman's stories that will follow.

5.Intense Holiday...Still loving his Risen Star stakes win...nothing has changed my mind...he will be coming in the Derby.

6.Wildcat Red..The time off between races will recharge this one's battery and he will be on fire at Churchill. California Chrome will probably be looking at his backside the entire race...ode to the movie Dreamer

7.Cairo Prince...The only reason he isn't number one is because of his lackluster performance in Florida Derby. He is the best three year old at the beginning of season and still is.

8.Samraat..His defeat in the Wood Memorial was a winner to me. This horse proved me wrong. He has what it takes to compete at the highest level..is he fast enough?

9.General A Rod...He will love the Churchill's surface and maybe in the jockey business a few weeks from now. Rosairo won't be getting of Tapiture anytime soon.

10.Wicked Strong..Strong finish in Wood Memorial...validate Holy Bull..best prep of the derby season..will be running at the end..happy for Maragh..

11.Conquest Titan..lost his jockey..trainer's reason...Borel knows the Oaklawn strip like the back of his hand..will need a strong finish to qualify for derby

12.Strong Mandate...Will the real Strong Mandate please stand up...Go time

13.Social Inclusion...I hope he gets in the derby..this horse is a beast..watch the Wood Memorial again and you will be a convert as well...

14.Bayern...He is a one turn horse..proved me wrong bad boy..put on your big boy pants and Lets GO!

15.Commanding Curve..his third race off the layoff you could be the charm..Broke his maiden at Churchill in a stylish way..he will be coming

16.Vicars In Trouble...Rosie Rosie..enough said..she will give him a chance

17.Ring Weekend..still confused by this one..but the motion to the derby ocean is starting to get deeper..he maybe a no show by the time this is all over

18.Chitu..will setup it up nicely for Hoppertunity...Intense Holiday and Commanding Curve..everyone needs a hype man

19.Candy Boy...I needed a number 19 and his last race was just dull. He got all dressed up for the party and then stayed outside while California Chrome had all the fun

20.Thundergram..you saw it here first..watch out

Derby Fever..Temperature is high

They are off! He stumbled. Jock quickly recovered and took hold. California Chrome was brilliant in Santa Anita Derby. He looked like Usain Bolt turning for home. Chest puffed out. Striding with ease and never giving back anything to his competitors. That was an impressive showoff style win. He can now strut his big boy attitude going into Kentucky, but what about the horse behind him. Hoppertunity lost nothing in that effort. Mike Smith knew he was up against it with the Santa Anita surface and the running style of Hoppertunity, and he gave his horse every chance to operate within the lines. Hoppertunity lost his momentum turning for home but Smith gathered him, went to the stick, and his horse came and tried the entire time. The Kentucky Derby sets up beautifully for Hoppertunity. He will be passing horses and passing them fast with an expected fast pace. Mike Smith will now have an interesting choice to make. He is the rider of Intense Holiday who won Risen Star and came back to finish second in the Louisiana Derby. It is great to be Mike Smith right now.
I know who I will choose.

 Art Sherman the horse man with a blue collar love for the game  got dressed up for the occasion and the occasion welcomed him with opened arms. California Chrome will now bring him back to the place where hoopla of pom and circumstance reigns supreme for a week. The Santa Anita Derby is a validation for what he thought about the horse after a few races. He knew his charge was maturing mentally and ready for big effort going forward.

Jockey Victor Espinoza rode California Chrome with such confidence. The little engine that could broke off from them and said bye bye. This little engine is reminiscing of War Emblem. He can go until he can't go anymore.

I don't know if California Chrome will win the Kentucky Derby but it will be fun watching Sherman treat the derby fever that will take hold of him now. It will be exciting watching him maneuver through the tape recorders and television camera that will document every moment of his life.

Unlike the Santa Anita Derby, the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct didn't have the fairytale ending that many was hoping for. Social Inclusion ran his heart out in the Wood. His post position was a tall order and his jock tried his best to get him away from there and settled. Social Inclusion wanted no part of settling. He took off and told them to come catch him if they can. They could and they did. Wicked Strong who showed off the Holy Bull form, ran him down with Jamaican born jockey Rajiv Maragh. This was the first win in the Wood Memorial for the Jamaican born jockey.

Social Inclusion was a tired horse at the end of the race. He showed he is a tough animal that will give it all he has. He finished third. Maybe not enough points to enter the starting gate on the first Saturday of May, but one never know with horses. He may be there in the end.

Hoppertunity Chrome Will Shine In Santa Anita Derby

The year was 1998 and I sat in the poor man's section of Belmont Park which is standing room on Belmont Stakes Day. The grand track swirled with excitement of the possibility of seeing a triple crown winner. The horse with the beer drinking owner and a trainer whose appearance speaks of Hollywood, champagne, and caviar, with pinky hanging out just right when holding the champagne flute. Real Quiet gave us a chill that day and Tom Durkin's call summed up the moment sweetly. "It's too close to call, was it Real Quiet or was it Victory Gallop?! A picture is worth a thousand words! This photo is worth five million" That was one of my best moments watching a horse race in person.

This Saturday at Santa Anita the same connections are back again with a few more mileage and challenges over the past few years.  Bob Baffert had to overcome the experience of having your life flash before your eyes. It is great to  have the silver hair master strolling the triple crown story lines once again this year, hoping that this time around the ending would be something he would pen. Hoppertunity, their new shiny colt is hoping to silence the crowd at Santa Anita by sending California Chrome and Candy Boy back into never never land. California Chrome will probably be your post time favorite for the Santa Anita Derby. The little engine that could race horse  is trained by Art Sherman the once upon time jockey. Sherman who is 77 years young, is the kind of horse racing memorabilia that one would love to sit and talk to about all his eyes have seen over the years. There won't be any champagne glasses or caviar, just a bag of chips, peanuts and cold beer to wash down the history. His horse California Chrome will be a tough engine to stop from rolling on the front end Saturday. He could kiss everyone goodbye early.

Candy Boy comes to the showdown with a few scalps to prove his battle worthiness. He took down Chitu and Midnight Hawk in a flashy style. Candy Boy created a buzz after that win and the buzz permeated deeper after Chitu and Midnight Hawk came back to finish first and second in the Sunland Derby. Candy Boy is nice, John Sadler has journeyed a long way with his barn of fine horses and his charge will make some noise on Saturday.

Hoppertunity comes into the Santa Anita Derby off a battle against Tapiture in the Rebel. Mike Smith who isn't racking up wins and titles like Bejarano and Castellano but whose big day ability is unmatched by any jock in any jock's room around the country, took the race and position to the young, talented Ricardo Santana Jr. He got the best of the young jock that day. Since the race Santana Jr. was taken off Tapiture. Hoppertunity entered the Rebel after finishing fourth in the Risen star, a race that I hold in high regard. The pace was slow and he didn't finish quickly like the winner Intense Holiday that day, but in the Rebel, Smith had in the groove from the start and he bullied his way to the win and derby qualifying points.

Would I love to see Art Sherman and the little engine that could win the Santa Anita Derby? You best believe I would. The horse racing game and Kentucky Derby is often times a love fest of owners with big wallets and trainers with Armani suits. That is our culture. That is what television believes we all want to see.The lights, camera, action, with Robin Leach head popping out of the pockets of the wealthy. I enjoy a glass of champagne occasionally and its usually the type you find in the front of the store. What I really love is an old cloudy room filled with characters that traveled in their shoes and others has well. I love the stories these characters have buried deep in their souls. I would love to sit in that cloudy room with a pen and paper and record years of yesterday. Art Sherman is one of those yesterday characters. A horse man who understands he isn't bigger than the animal. A horse man whose yesterday will be probably forgotten after the first Saturday of May but whose history will linger on the backside of California tracks for a long time to come. I will be rooting for the the little engine California Chrome with the trainer who has given all he has to this game, although my wallet will be looking for a Hoppertunity.

Its A Social Inclusion Party

It is five minutes to post. The horses are warming up behind the gate. Eighty five year old Manny Azpurua seems unfazed by the magnitude of the event. His horse Social Inclusion is the main reason the crowd has gathered at the old Aqueduct racetrack on this mild Saturday. He looks out at the historic race track and breathes calmly. He knows big races. His family knows big races. Ron Sanchez takes a peek from his corner eye to see how his trainer is holding up. The legacy of Aqueduct surrounds the grandstand today. You can feel Angel Cordero Jr. history having a seat. His history is joined by Jean Cruguet, Eddie Maple, and Jancinto Vasquez. The legacy of trainers hovers around Azpurua. Allen Jerkens is keeping his giant killers away today. He wants the big horse to shine. Howard Tesher and John P. Campo and their history comes by the old trainer side as well. Rick Lang takes out his old type writer. He places a sheet of the whitest paper in it and began to tap away. He will be recording this one for those who have taken their tack and backstretch knowledge to some place in the sky. Jockey Luis Contreras uses his whip to wipe away a little nervous energy that surfaces on Social Inclusion skin. He is confident. He knows the horse loves the track and he willingly told anyone who had a tape recorder and wanted to know how the horse was doing.

His main threat Samraat warms up like a horse that knows its game time. The young Ortiz who a few years ago was virtually an unknown name in the racing game bounces up and down lightly on the horse. Corey Nakatani who is always confident, runs his hand gently alongside the neck of Uncle Sigh. Both Uncle Sigh and Samraat are aware of each other. They can smell the intensity in the air. Today is race day but something about this day is different. The crowd is different, and they are aware that their is another horse that is fearless in the race today. They both have watched him since the march over from the backstretch. Another horse that has come to the party is Harpoon, train by Pletcher and ridden by John Velasquez. The horses begin to load. Everyone went in without incident. A yell can be heard from a starter to let them know he isn't ready yet. He has got the horse calm. Tom Durkin's voice is sending excitement throughout the crowd. And they are off in the Wood Memorial comes raining from Durkin's voice. Samraat and Uncle Sigh is immediately put in the game by their jock. Contreras guides Social Inclusion three wide and have him under a tight hold. Harpoon settles fourth and Velasquez is feeling good about his position. They travel down the backstretch doing a 24 flat open quarter and a 48 half. Contreras is biding his time. Sensing how the race is going he takes off. Durkin's voice yells "there goes Social Inclusion, and he quickly opens up" They turn for home and his lead is becoming wider. Luis looks over his shoulder. Samraat and Uncle Sigh is wondering what is going on. Harpoon is guided to the outside but is effort won't be good enough today. They come to the wire and Social Inclusion is the winner by six lengths. Tom Durkin tells the Aqueduct crowd that they have just witnessed something special.

Trainer Manny Azpurua had the same look he had on his face before the race started. He accepts the congratulation from those around him and slowly start making his way down to the winners' circle. Owner Ron Sanchez and his Velazulean pride bounces with excitement. There is a lot of noise singing with a knowing ruckus that envelopes the old Aqueduct race track. Writer Rick Lang is furiously documenting this day. The legacy of Cordero and all the other trainers and jockeys quietly exits the grandstand. The legacy is talking about the race and how beautiful the horse looked moving over the track.

Social Inclusion comes back to the winner's circle. Uncle Sigh and Samraat can be seen paying respect to the winner. Their eyes let him know. Both Nakatani and Ortiz, saddle in hand, are explaining to their trainers how the race went from their perspective. The winners' circle is filled with jubilation. The Venezuelan flag is draped over the horse. This is more than about a horse race. This is more than winning the Kentucky Derby. This is much bigger. The country..its people.. their uprising..this is their moment on the national stage. The horse is going to bring attention. It was never about the money. It was much bigger. Ron Sanchez knew it. Manny Azpurua knew it. The people of Venezuela knew it.