Faces Across the Board

New Faces Across the Board
By Paul B. Turner

As the drama of Kentucky Derby 132 continues to unfold, one will find the stage filled with a refreshing cast of new characters seeking the glory that is the Run for the Roses. Jockey legends Jerry Bailey, Gary Stevens, and Pat Day, who, between them, own six Derby winning mounts, have left the scene to curtain calls; John Velasquez, an heir apparent to the void left by these giants of the sport, is sidelined with a broken shoulder. Rising stars such as Rafael Bejarano, Garret Gomez, and John McKee, and stalwarts such as Corey Nakatani and Alex Solis are poised to finally grab the brass ring. Perennial Derby trainers D. Wayne Lukas and Nick Zito have failed the audition, with no Derby mounts, replaced by upstart stand-ins Michael Matz, Dan Hendricks, and Michael Trombetta who bring their respective horses Barbaro, Brother Derek, and Sweetnorthernsaint, fresh and primed to tackle the mile and one quarter slugfest. However, the most intriguing of new faces on this Derby Day may well be the ones you won’t see at Churchill Downs. Their impact may well determine the outcome of this wide-open affair. Their names are Benchmark, Sweetsouthernsaint, Point Given, Broken Vow, Aptitude, King Cugat, and Strategic Mission, sires whose progeny will be represented in the Kentucky Derby for the first time, and who stand to gain from earning the imprimatur of sire of a Kentucky Derby winner.

Benchmark, the sire of Dan Hendricks trained Brother Derek, is himself a son of the great classic runner Alydar, who won the hearts of racing fans with his memorable duels with Triple Crown winner Affirmed. Benchmark was both a graded stakes winner at 1 1/8 miles and graded stakes placed sprinter, and, in his first four crops to race has been a useful sire of California breds and a handful of stakes winners. Brother Derek is by far his most impressive son and is certainly the top class of this year’s West Coast contingent. As talented and seasoned as Brother Derek is, the Derby may be the place where his flaws are revealed. In his only race outside of California and in a field larger than eight horses, the Breeder’s Cup Juvenile at Belmont, he finished a tired fourth. With a penchant for getting worked up in the post parade, jockey Alex Solis must help Brother Derek find a way to handle the large boisterous Churchill Downs crowd. Nevertheless, Brother Derek’s meteoric rise to prominence is a hopeful sign that Alydar’s courageous blood has gotten a much needed revival.