NEWS
Gayego gets surprise second chance after Derby flop
Posted: Friday, May 16, 2008 3:45 PM
by Jeff Lowe
After Gayego never factored in finishing 17th in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1), trainer Paulo Lobo's initial reaction was to retreat back to Southern California and focus on races there this summer.
That plan lasted about five days, until the Arkansas Derby (G2) winner had returned to Lobo's Hollywood Park base on May 5 and resumed training on May 8.
In short order, Lobo and owners Carlos Juelle and Jose Prieto were convinced to ship the Gilded Time colt back East for the Preakness Stakes (G1) on Saturday. Gayego and Derby winner Big Brown will be the only horses to run in the first two legs of the Triple Crown.
"It's not for everyone," Lobo said. "It's tough, but there's just one Preakness in their lives. It's worth it. If he doesn't run well, then we'll give him some rest."
Even with the short turnaround, Lobo felt Gayego would be better-suited to the 1 3/16-mile Preakness than the 1 1/2-mile Belmont three weeks later.
"For my horse, I think it's better, going a mile-and-a-sixteenth than a mile-and-a-half," Lobo said.
Gayego's rough trip from post 19 in the Derby helped encourage Lobo to give him a chance to redeem himself.
“He missed the break, got squeezed, clipped heels and got rank," Lobo said. "When he crossed the wire for the first time, I thought, ‘the race, I think, is done.' I just hope he breaks better this time because he had a horrible, horrible race at Churchill Downs. He needs to break better to get a better position. If he doesn’t break well, I think I’m going to be in trouble again.”
To that end, Gayego will race with blinkers for the first time on Saturday.
“They’re very light blinkers, very light open blinkers. They’re just to see if he pays attention a little bit more,” Lobo said. “I have been thinking since January about putting blinkers on him. He was doing well and running well, so I didn’t want to change for the Kentucky Derby."
Jeff Lowe is a Thoroughbred Times staff writer
