Mystik Dan

The GI Kentucky Derby winner is here. So is the champ of the GI Preakness S. Neither of them--Mystik Dan (Goldencents) or Seize the Grey (Arrogate)--were installed as the morning-line favorite for the 156th running of the $2 million GI Belmont S. which will be run at Saratoga Race Course on Saturday. Post time is scheduled for 6:41 p.m. That honor went to Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) at the draw, which was held Monday evening at Universal Preservation Hall in downtown Saratoga Springs. Sierra Leone was made the 9-5 morning-line...

The GI Kentucky Derby winner will run in the GI Belmont S. Trainer Kenny McPeek said Sunday that he has entered Mystik Dan (Goldencents) in the 1 1/4-mile Belmont, which will be run for the first time at Saratoga Race Course on June 8. "His blood work came back good and he's been eating everything up in his tub," McPeek said early Sunday afternoon. "It's going to be a fun weekend." The draw for the Belmont will be held Monday evening in downtown Saratoga Springs. Mystik Dan finished second in...

by Tim Wilkin and Editorial Staff For the first time since before the GI Kentucky Derby, Mystik Dan (Goldencents), had a workout. And trainer Kenny McPeek is getting more and more confident that his colt, winner of the Derby and second in the GI Preakness, will be in the starting gate at Saratoga Race Course for the GI Belmont S. on June 8. Mystik Dan, with exercise rider Danny Ramsey aboard, went five furlongs in 1:01.59 (2/5) on the Oklahoma Training Track Saturday morning. He worked in company with Gould's...

The GI Belmont S. lost a major contender Thursday when trainer Todd Pletcher revealed that last year's juvenile champion Fierceness (City of Light) will pass the final leg of the Triple Crown and will instead point for the GI Haskell S. on July 20 at Monmouth Park. The Daily Racing Form's David Grening was first with the story. "We felt like Fierceness needs more time and will point for the Haskell," Pletcher said in a text message. Fierceness has not run since finishing 15th as the beaten favorite in the...

'TDN Rising Star' Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) will have a new running mate in the GI Belmont S. at Saratoga Race Course on June 8. After watching the GI Kentucky Derby runner-up work five furlongs in 1:02.64 (5/6) on the Oklahoma Training Track Saturday morning, Brown said he was making a rider change. Tyler Gaffalione is out; Flavien Prat is in. Sierra Leone lost the Derby by a nose to Mystik Dan (Goldencents) and finished a nose ahead of Forever Young (Jpn) (Real Steel {Jpn}). Sierra Leone is owned by...

There's not a trainer in the country who would have won the GI Preakness S. with Seize the Grey (Arrogate) other than Wayne Lukas because no one would have run him in this race except for Wayne Lukas. Horses need six, seven weeks between races. Good horses can't run more than four or five times a year, no one should ever mess with their winning percentage and run a 25-1 shot and don't dare use a jockey with no prior experience in the Triple Crown. Apparently, Lukas never got that...

Baltimore, MD--The journey from the First Saturday in May through the Preakness can be an arduous one, fraught with activity and often times challenges that can try the most steady nerves. Young and old alike could be heard complaining about exhaustion by the time they made it through Preakness day, however, for some, it provided enough buoyancy to raise the Titanic. Such was the case with D. Wayne Lukas Sunday morning, the day after his colt Seize the Grey (Arrogate) wired the second jewel in the Triple Crown. Despite the...

In terms of positive momentum, the best result in the aftermath of every year's GI Preakness S. is for the GI Kentucky Derby winner to triumph again in Baltimore, setting up a potential Triple Crown bid that infuses the sport with a three-week burst of buoyancy leading up to the GI Belmont S. In the majority of years that doesn't happen, which is why the elusive Triple Crown is so special. So the next-best result is an exciting race with a compelling storyline. Saturday's 149th Preakness didn't quite deliver on...

GI Kentucky Derby winner and GI Preakness S. runner up Mystik Dan (Goldencents) will ship to Saratoga but trainer Kenny McPeek has yet to make a decision on whether the colt will contest the third leg of the Triple Crown, the GI Belmont S. "It's impossible to be disappointed about being involved with these kind of races and be competitive," McPeek told assembled media at Pimlico Sunday morning. "One, they are hard races to get into, but to be competitive in them is a big deal. You just do your...

Baltimore, MD--The naysayers said it couldn't be done. Seize the Grey (Arrogate) wasn't fast enough, was unlikely to go that far and simply put, was just being thrown into the deep end. D. Wayne Lukas, however, blocked out the noise. The Hall of Famer has been quoted countless times over the years that he has built a career running where he didn't belong. And the 88-year-old proved once again that he not only belongs, but gave yet another master class in winning a Classic in Saturday's GI Preakness S. at...

BALTIMORE, MD -- He's baaack. The truth of the matter, trainer Bob Baffert never really went away. The Hall of Famer's omnipresent influence--be it through his runners or the offspring of the stallions he helped mold--can be felt everywhere, regardless of whether the man shows up or not. Conspicuous in his absence at Churchill Downs two weeks ago, Baffert did make his first appearance on the Pimlico backstretch Friday morning, surrounded by a rockstar-caliber entourage, including his kids and his wife Jill, in addition to SF Bloodstock's Tom Ryan and...

Baltimore, MD--The stage may have changed but the show remains the same. Two weeks ago, the Triple Crown train ran through Louisville, where all were treated to a sensory assault that can only be understood when experienced first-hand. With the tour moving on to Pimlico this week, there is an undeniable adjustment. It's something like comparing Taylor Swift to Courtney Love. No further explanation required. However, despite all of its shortcomings (and no, the elevator is still not working), Pimlico and the GI Preakness S. offer a charm that many...