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Destiny denied

Posted: Saturday, May 27, 2000

Red Bullet fires through Pimlico's homestretch and shoots down Triple Crown hopes of Fusaichi Pegasus

HORSE RACING is a humbling, maddening, mystifying sport because nothing short of a walkover is an absolute certainty. Just when all the experts think they have the sport figured out, something comes along to prove them wrong yet again. Even Man o' War had his Upset.

Following a masterful victory in the Kentucky Derby (G1), Fusaichi Pegasus was viewed as the horse of destiny, the three-year-old worthy to share the mantle of Citation, Secretariat, Seattle Slew, and Affirmed. All he had to do, many pundits said, was to stay healthy and show up for his races; he was so dominating that the elusive Triple Crown was his for the taking.

Fusaichi Pegasus showed up in good health for the 125th Preakness Stakes (G1) at historic Pimlico Race Course on May 20, and he was soundly and thoroughly beaten by Red Bullet. Over a wet racetrack, the Derby winner simply did not fire, and Stronach Stable's Red Bullet went ballistic under jockey Jerry Bailey in a victory no less convincing than Fusaichi Pegasus's win at Churchill Downs on May 6.

Bred by owner Frank Stronach, Red Bullet was held out of the Derby by the Austrian-born entrepreneur after Fusaichi Pegasus beat him by 41Ú4 lengths in the Wood Memorial Stakes (G2) on April 15 at Aqueduct. The Unbridled colt out of the Caro (Ire) mare Cargo became the first three-year-old to skip the Derby and win the Preakness since Maryland homeboy Deputed Testamony in 1983.

How could a form reversal of eight lengths occur in a mere five weeks? Perhaps the cause indeed was the weather and the racetrack conditions, as the Fusaichi Pegasus camp contended, and perhaps this Preakness was yet another perverse and unpredictable turn of horse-racing destiny. But maybe, just maybe, it was Red Bullet's turn to be the horse of destiny.

Neil Drysdale, one of the most meticulous trainers on the planet, had done everything in his power to keep Fusaichi Pegasus on the road to destiny, but the one factor that he could not control was Baltimore's quirky spring weather, which parked an unexpected storm atop the region for more than 12 hours, thoroughly soaking the track and chilling a Preakness throng of 98,304, most of them reveling in Pimlico's infield.

During the afternoon, the track went from sloppy to muddy to good at post time, but the gradual improvement made the surface somewhat slippery, said both Drysdale and Fusaichi Pegasus's jockey, Kent Desormeaux, the former king of Maryland racing. "I don't think Fusaichi Pegasus handled the track," Drysdale said. "It was a greasy kind of track, and he just could not handle it."

Red Bullet handled the track just fine, thank you, as he had from the moment he first set foot on it. Dogwood Stable's Impeachment again put in a credible late run to duplicate his Derby third-place finish, only a head behind Fusaichi Pegasus and a neck ahead of Captain Steve in the field of eight, the smallest since 1991 (won by Hansel with Bailey in the irons).

Completing the order of finish were Snuck In, Hugh Hefner, High Yield, and Hal's Hope. Red Bullet ran the Preakness's 13Ú16 miles in 1:56.04, more than three seconds slower than the track record. Red Bullet, who did not start as a two-year-old, won his fourth race in five career starts. He previously had won Aqueduct's Gotham Stakes (G3) over Derby second-finisher Aptitude, who passed up the Preakness to await the Belmont Stakes (G1) on June 10.

A bountiful week

While Fusaichi Pegasus was regarded as the horse of destiny, perhaps in mid-May destiny took up residence with Red Bullet, Stronach, and trainer Joe Orseno, 44, who became Stronach's private New York trainer early in 1998. In the span of one week and a few minutes, Stronach and Orseno won both the Pimlico Special Handicap (G1) with Golden Missile and the Preakness with Red Bullet. And in the intervening days, Stronach-controlled Magna Entertainment Corp. locked up control of Northern California racing by agreeing to buy Bay Meadows Race Course's operating company. It was indeed quite a week.

For much of the week, all attention focused on Fusaichi Pegasus, or on as much as could be seen of him. With Drysdale-as much of an individualist as the horse he trains-calling the shots (he informed the owner of his decisions by fax), Fusaichi Pegasus was stabled far away from Pimlico's stakes barn, breaking a tradition extending more than a half-century. In that span, only one other Derby winner, Northern Dancer in 1964, was not stabled in the stakes barn behind Pimlico's grandstand.

Fusaichi Pegasus arrived at Pimlico on May 17, after a solid five-furlong workout in :59 at Churchill Downs two days earlier, and the media covering the Preakness quickly realized upon the colt's arrival in Baltimore that they would see little of the Derby winner.

Rather than unloading Fusaichi Pegasus near a stable entrance as Pimlico officials had planned for a photo opportunity, Drysdale had the colt taken directly to Barn 7, where photographers and TV cameramen had only a three-second glimpse of him as he walked down the ramp and into the shedrow. Track security kept the media far away from the barn for the remainder of the week.

Continued willfulness

Fusaichi Pegasus continued his willful behavior in the days leading up to the Preakness. In his first visit to the track on May 18, he stopped repeatedly while jogging around the track with exercise rider Andy Durdin. Drysdale kept everybody guessing between his daily press conferences and decided at the last moment to saddle Fusaichi Pegasus in Pimlico's infield rather than its indoor paddock.

The field assembled for Fusaichi Pegasus's march toward destiny was-with the exception of Red Bullet-hardly distinguished, and Pimlico oddsmaker Clem Florio made Fusaichi Pegasus the 3-to-5 morning-line favorite. He would go off at 3-to-10, the shortest price since local hero Spectacular Bid won at 1-to-10 in 1979. Red Bullet went off as the 6.20-to-1 second betting choice.

Also in the field were colts trained by Bob Baffert and D. Wayne Lukas, who between them had won every Derby and Preakness in the three prior years. Baffert sent out Captain Steve, eighth in the Derby, and High Yield, who had run a horrid 15th at Churchill, represented Lukas.

Others coming out of the Derby to meet Fusaichi Pegasus were Impeachment and a hopeless Hal's Hope (16th of 19). The race's two other newcomers, Snuck In and Hugh Hefner, were chasing a dream without much hope of success.

On the eve of the Preakness, the race posed two questions: How good is Fusaichi Pegasus, and would Red Bullet's best effort be good enough?

And then it rained.

Even without the rain, which may well obscure the meaning of this Preakness, Red Bullet was poised for his moment of destiny. With suitable respect for both Fusaichi Pegasus and Drysdale, Orseno took an entirely opposite route to the Preakness starting gate. Red Bullet arrived early-he shipped from Belmont Park with Golden Missile before the Pimlico Special-and the glowing good health on his bright chestnut coat was there for everyone at the stakes barn to see.

"Fantastic" workout

Also readily evident was how well Red Bullet had taken to the Pimlico racing surface. On the morning of the Pimlico Special, he powered through a five-furlong workout in :58 4/5, a move that one veteran observer described as "fantastic." Each day leading up to the Preakness, he bounded over the track, going-as Orseno directed-a mile in slightly more than two minutes.

Stronach had passed up the Derby because, trapped on the inside of Aqueduct's main track in the Wood, Red Bullet had gotten caught up in a speed duel early and was unable to withstand Fusaichi Pegasus's electrifying stretch move. "Any time a horse doesn't finish strong, it takes out more than you realize. It was a tough decision not to run in a classic," said Stronach, who called the shot. "My heart said it would be nice to go to the Kentucky Derby, but my head said "No way!'"

In the intervening weeks, Red Bullet-an April 13 foal-underwent a growth spurt that might well have compromised his chances at Churchill Downs. Orseno concurred with the owner's decision. "The Wood took something out of him," Orseno said. "I weigh my horses once a week. This horse lost 16 pounds in the Wood; he didn't lose any weight in the Gotham."

In the five intervening weeks, Red Bullet gained the weight back and more, and his trainer began to sense that Red Bullet was moving to the next higher level of fitness.

Would a horse with four starts be good enough to beat the mighty Fusaichi Pegasus? Orseno, a Philadelphia native who once parked cars at a restaurant across the street from Garden State Park in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, respectfully suggested that perhaps the horse of destiny was vulnerable in the Preakness. Why? For one, Fusaichi Pegasus had been flown into Baltimore from Louisville.

"It's stressful," Orseno said. "It's not normal for a horse to be on a plane."

Also, Orseno said that Fusaichi Pegasus's antics, especially his refusal to train on some occasions, might catch up with him. "He's gotten away with a lack of training. I think Neil has done a great job and has worked around it," Orseno said. "Sooner or later, a horse is going to lose some conditioning. He has gotten away with it leading into this race. Can he get away with it again? I don't know."

Orseno also paid no attention to the talk about Fusaichi Pegasus being the horse of destiny. "He was touted as the next Triple Crown winner, and people said we were running for second money, but I didn't believe any of that," Orseno said.

One thing that Orseno did know was that Red Bullet would not be forcing the pace, as had occurred in the Wood under Alex Solis, who had ridden the colt in the Gotham. Bailey had ridden Red Bullet in his second career start, an allowance victory at Gulfstream Park on February 5.

Throughout Preakness afternoon Stronach and Orseno debated the instructions they would give to the Racing Hall of Fame jockey, and in the end decided to give him none. "The bottom line was, when we got down there (to the saddling area), we told him 'Good luck,' " Orseno said. "He knew our strategy. He knew what went wrong in the Wood. I said we'll stay on the favorite's tail and see if we're better in the lane."

Pinched at start

At the May 17 post-position draw, Drysdale had correctly noted that there are many ways to lose in a small field, and Fusaichi Pegasus encountered a brief bit of trouble at the start of the Preakness. Drysdale had selected the seventh starting spot so that the sizable Mr. Prospector colt could avoid trouble and have a clear run. But at the break, Hal's Hope veered in from the outside post position and Captain Steve bore out slightly, pinching back Fusaichi Pegasus, who stayed on the outside-which Bailey said was the best part of the track-into the first turn.

Bailey said Red Bullet broke slightly flat-footed from the fourth stall, which Orseno had taken with the first pick in the post-position draft. Red Bullet's easy break "was just enough to give me the idea that he was going to rate very kindly," Bailey said. "I took him back and parked him behind Fusaichi Pegasus."

As expected, Hugh Hefner made like a rabbit from the inside post position and set the pace in company with a fired-up High Yield and Hal's Hope, who appeared to labor while training over the Pimlico strip and who would be beaten almost 40 lengths in the Preakness. The front-running trio set a sustainable pace, with Hugh Hefner leading after an initial quarter-mile in :23.30, High Yield on top after a half-mile in :46.62, and Hugh Hefner again on the lead through six furlongs in 1:11.21.

Meanwhile, Fusaichi Pegasus was cruising along on the outside, with Red Bullet saving some ground behind him. Bailey said he had a plan to take the race to odds-on Fusaichi Pegasus. "It had been my intention going into the race at some point-if I had enough horse-to get a jump on the favorite, whether that meant opening up on him on the far turn or going right by him," Bailey said. Bailey moved alongside the favorite at the half-mile pole and asked Red Bullet for some acceleration nearing the turn.

"At that point, (Desormeaux) took back, so I assumed that he was going to go around, which is kind of what I wanted to happen," he said. "I still didn't know if I could beat him, but I thought it would give me a good chance."

Drysdale sensed that something was amiss when Fusaichi Pegasus did not immediately take off after Red Bullet. "When they come off the bit like that, that's when you know you're in trouble," Drysdale said in a post-race press conference in the Pimlico press box.

The entire field was within eight lengths entering the final turn and tightened even further when the real running began past the crest of Pimlico's final turn. Bailey picked his spot behind Snuck In, ridden by Cash Asmussen. If Snuck In weakened, he would go past; if he did not, Bailey would follow the Rebel Stakes (G3) winner into the stretch and try to run him down. When Snuck In slowed at the top of the lane, Red Bullet and Bailey made their move.

Wiggles through

"I went up beside him and took the gap," Bailey said. "I was able to wiggle through the crowd, and (Fusaichi Pegasus) had to go around. I think we were pretty close to heads apart turning for home. I could see him moving. But I thought if my horse was good enough to beat him turning for home, he was probably good enough to beat him overall."

After gaining the lead early in the stretch, Bailey went to work on Red Bullet, slapping him with the whip five times right-handed before the furlong pole, where Stronach's colt led High Yield by a length, with Fusaichi Pegasus another half-length back in third. Bailey changed hands for two left-handed cracks of the whip, and the Preakness was over. Red Bullet steadily widened on Fusaichi Pegasus, who just barely saved the place spot from Impeachment.

"He continued on through the stretch on his own courage," Drysdale said of Fusaichi Pegasus.

Bailey said he did not sense any problem with the racetrack surface, which is under the supervision of Pimlico track superintendent Frank Passero. "This track-they did a great job with it," Bailey said. "They pressed the water out of it."

Red Bullet was still on his way to the test barn when Stronach implied that the Preakness winner might not start in the Belmont, which is the likely target for Fusaichi Pegasus and Impeachment. "We'll have to assess that," Stronach said.

In partnership with Stonerside Stable (co-breeder of Fusaichi Pegasus), Stronach raced Touch Gold, who upset another horse seemingly destined for immortality, Silver Charm, in the 1997 Belmont and denied Robert and Beverly Lewis's colt the Triple Crown. For the second time in four years, Stronach's runners had upended a horse of destiny.

Was he sorry? Well, yes and no.

"I felt a bit bad when we beat Silver Charm," Stronach said. "But this is a sport. This is competition. ... But if I didn't have Touch Gold, I would have been rooting for Silver Charm."

Silver Charm had a magical month of May three years ago, and Fusaichi Pegasus had a transcending first Saturday in May. But perhaps it was Stronach and Orseno who were destined to rule the month of May this year. In addition to Golden Missile and Red Bullet, they sent out Perfect Sting to win Aqueduct's Beaugay Handicap (G3) on May 7, and Black Cash won Woodbine racetrack's Eclipse Handicap a day after the Pimlico Special.

"Sometimes it's written in the stars," Stronach said.

Red Bullet may be the most talented and consistent of his four classic winners, rider says

A RIDER conflict landed Jerry Bailey in a Triple Crown race winner's circle for the first time in four years.

"It's been a long time," he said after he won the Preakness Stakes (G1) aboard Red Bullet. "I don't know if it's any more satisfying, but it's very satisfying. I don't take pride in beating another horse. I just enjoy a chance to ride a big horse."

Bailey regained the mount on Red Bullet after losing it because of a Gotham Stakes (G2) conflict. Bailey has since changed agents and called trainer Joe Orseno about Red Bullet after the Derby when jockey Alex Solis was committed to ride Aptitude in the Belmont Stakes (G1). Orseno decided to immediately replace Solis in the Preakness rather than wait until the Belmont, and Bailey fell into a winning situation.

Bailey rode Red Bullet to an allowance victory at Gulfstream Park on February 5 in his only race aboard the colt. That lone trip kept Bailey from having to work Red Bullet in the morning before the race. Indeed, owner Frank Stronach's confidence in Bailey prevented him from giving prerace instructions.

"I said 'The less we tell you the better it is,' " Stronach said. "Deep down, I was very happy that Jerry stayed back. I would have loved to tell him to stay back, watch Pegasus, and rush past him."

Orseno was not as reserved, telling Bailey not to get caught in an early speed duel like Solis did when he finished second to Fusaichi Pegasus in the Wood Memorial Stakes (G2) on April 15. Red Bullet was spent entering the stretch, and Orseno wanted to make a later move.

"Jerry knew our strategy and what went wrong with the Wood," Orseno said. "I knew if we stayed on his tail we had a good closing kick."

Bailey followed the instructions perfectly. Red Bullet was seventh along the backstretch and sixth on the final turn before he made his move near the quarter pole. With Hal's Hope tiring, Bailey took Red Bullet inside while Fusaichi Pegasus went outside.

"I thought if I could beat him to the quarter pole, I could beat him to the wire, and it turned out to be just that," Bailey said. "He had to lose a little more ground, but I think we both had an equal chance. I just had the better horse."

Red Bullet quickly pulled away from Fusaichi Pegasus with one furlong remaining. The stretch run was so decisive that Bailey pumped his fist in victory four strides before the wire.

Red Bullet returned Bailey to the spring classics winner's circle after a long gap. Not that he hasn't remained a nationally prominent rider, winning two Breeders' Cup races last year aboard Cash Run (Juvenile Fillies [G1]) and Soaring Softly (Filly and Mare Turf [G1]) and finishing second in national earnings ($17.65-million) to Pat Day. Bailey, 42, won three straight Eclipse Awards from 1995-'97 and led the nation in annual earnings. The Racing Hall of Fame jockey rode 1995-'96 Horse of the Year Cigar during his 16-race winning streak.

It was the fifth victory in a Triple Crown race for Bailey, who had not finished better than fifth over the past four years since winning the 1996 Kentucky Derby aboard Grindstone. Bailey also took the 1993 Derby with Sea Hero and the 1991 Preakness and Belmont Stakes with Hansel. Bailey said Red Bullet might be the most talented of the quartet.

"Grindstone never made it past the Derby," Bailey said. "Sea Hero was a hit-and-miss horse. Hansel was a little more speed. This horse is much more consistent than any of the other Triple Crown horses I've ridden."

-Rick Snider

Orseno takes in first classic success with equal parts elation and humility

Joe Orseno likes to talk about family. Family has been an important component of his training career, and he is fond of talking about the closeness he feels toward owners, past and present.

So it seemed fitting that he would be standing between Frank Stronach and Stronach's son, Andy, during the 125th running of the Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico Race Course. As Red Bullet, the Unbridled colt Orseno trains for Stronach Stable, powered down the stretch to win the race, Orseno did a congratulatory ballet. He wheeled first to his right to hug Andy, then pirouetted back to his left to accept similar well-wishes from Frank.

It has been a long road for Joe Orseno, 23 years of training, starting at Philadelphia Park when he was 22 years old. As he accepted plaudits from the Stronachs and the rest of the Stronach Stable-Adena Springs Farm operation, it was apparent that the journey has brought him to a comfortable abode.

After more than two years on the job, Orseno has achieved a measure of stability and success as private trainer to Stronach, who had gone through several high-profile trainers in recent years. The Preakness victory, combined with Golden Missile's triumph a week earlier in the Pimlico Special Handicap (G1), meant this was definitely the high-water mark of Orseno's career.

"That was unbelievable turning for home," Orseno said of Red Bullet's race-winning move. "The horse put in the move I thought he'd make and it was exciting. I'm floating and glowing all at once."

After nearly a quarter-century in the business, Orseno retains an optimistic, warm-hearted view of the sport. He was not blessed with a barn full of promising horses to begin his career. Instead, he had to claw his way up, from Philadelphia Park to Delaware Park to the New Jersey circuit, until he earned the opportunity with Stronach.

When Orseno talks about his relationship with the Stronach operation, it is clear loyalty and togetherness still mean a lot to the soft-spoken trainer.

"We have the right chemistry," Orseno said. "We've put together a format here and we've all become friends. We've put together a nice little team here. You need to be one group before you can go forward."

Orseno took out his trainer's license in 1977 after spending three years on the backstretch learning the game. In his first year as a trainer on a less-than-lucrative circuit, Orseno won just $18,507, with four victories from 45 starts.

Orseno's status gradually rose through the 1980s. He sent out his first stakes winners, Ronbra and Nancy's Glory, in 1986. But a turning point for him came in 1992 with a runner who won just one stakes race for him-Nines Wild.

"When I got Nines Wild, it was a chance to change my training philosophy," Orseno said. "The guy who owned him, Peter Fortay, discussed a lot of training philosophies with me. We talked about how to get a horse fit. His son was an athlete. It kind of opened my eyes on how to get a horse fit and do it the right way. From '92 on, I was training better horses and getting them fit enough to run and win."

He was training for Leonard and Jonathan Green's DJ Stable in New Jersey during the late 1990s when bloodstock agent Jack Brothers recommended Orseno to Stronach. After enjoying some initial success, Stronach gave Orseno a few more horses to campaign one winter in New York. When Orseno continued to win, Stronach brought him aboard on a private basis in April 1998.

"They're still like family to me," Orseno said of the Greens. "Leaving them was a tough decision, but (Leonard) Green kind of kicked me in my butt and said 'You have to do this.' He knew it was going to be good for me and steered me in the right direction."

Orseno started off in the shadow of Patrick Byrne, who had been hired as a private trainer to Stronach a few months earlier. While Byrne won the 1998 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) with Awesome Again, Orseno developed Gazelle Handicap (G1) winner Tap to Music. When Stronach and Byrne parted under acrimonious circumstances in early 1999, Orseno became Stronach's main man on the East Coast.

Orseno is a no-nonsense guy who trains his horses in a way that fits his personality, with few gimmicks or trickery. Andy Stronach said that is one key to the tight relationship they have developed.

"Joe's the type of trainer we like," Stronach said. "He's mainly a drug-free, oats-and-water trainer. He's a good communicator and everywhere he's been, he's been a leading trainer-Delaware, Philadelphia, Monmouth Park. He's someone we can trust. We have a lot invested and we want to be able to sleep at night and we can sleep with Joe."

-John Harrell