American Pharoah: Hail and farewell

November 1, 2015

Maybe now all the naysayers will zip their lips.

Or maybe they will unseal them long enough to say, “All hail, the Pharoah” as he gallops off to retirement, to stud, to immortality.

American Pharoah did it in Hollywood-scripted style – entering and winning the Breeders’ Cup Classic, the first Triple Crown winner to do so, at Keeneland in Lexington on Halloween, a treat for racing fans. But then, AP has been a treat for all those lovers of history who had a Triple Crown winner on their bucket list and thought they would never live to see the day. ...

American Pharoah, Novak Djokovic: What defines greatness?

October 28, 2015

American Pharoah has arrived at Keeneland in Lexington for the Breeders’ Cup Classic Saturday, the final race of his career. He’s going to face an older woman, Beholder; older guys like Tonalist and Honor Code; and old rivals like Frosted and Keen Ice.

But hey, is that any worse than the naysayers, the ones who remark that he’s good but not great – certainly not as great as the greats of the 1970s, Secretariat, Seattle Slew and my beloved Affirmed; and, that if he doesn’t win the Breeders’ Cup, he really won’t be considered great.

This is the same conversation about Novak Djokovic, who will lead the field at the BNP Paribas Masters Paris, which begins also on Saturday and runs through Nov. 8. If he doesn’t repeat in Paris and at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London the following week, he won’t have had a great season.

Let’s review, shall we? ...

Of studs and duds – Loss, American Pharoah & Novak Djokovic

September 1, 2015

After the highs of June (American Pharoah winning the Triple Crown) and July (planet Pluto, Novak Djokovic defending his Wimbledon title), August has been a bit of a dud for me, with AP losing to Keen Ice at the Travers this past Saturday and Nole losing the Rogers Cup (to Andy Murray) and then the Western & Southern Open (to Roger Federer). ...

Straight from the jockey’s mouth: Victor Espinoza dishes on American Pharoah

August 6, 2015

American Pharoah is a gift from God – our own Pegasus, our own wingéd spirit. So when I received an invitation to hear Victor Espinoza speak at Steiner Sports Marketing in New Rochelle, N.Y. on Aug. 3 – well, wild horses couldn’t drag me away.

The “Triple Crown Celebration With Victor Espinoza” was a revelation both for what we amateurs learned about horses and horse racing and the frankness with which Espinoza discussed these subjects.

Looking natty in a gray suit and sky-blue tie, the Mexican-born Espinoza – who guided American Pharoah to the first Triple Crown in 37 years, then capped it with a resounding win in the Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park Aug. 2 – was both humble and humorous as he reflected on a career of more than 3,000 victories. (He doesn’t know the exact number.) He had been to the Triple Crown dance before – aboard War Emblem, with AP trainer Bob Baffert in 2002; and then with California Chrome just last year. Or so Fox 5 New York sportscaster Tina Cervasio – the evening’s expert interviewer – reminded him. ...

American Pharoah rides again (or at least trains again)

June 30, 2015

You know how they always say you have to get back on the horse, back in the saddle?

Well, that’s just what American Pharoah has done, so to speak. After a three-week victory parade, he’s back working out at his home track, Santa Anita, and looking good doing it.

No word on where he’ll be racing next so there’s no point in speculating. What’s clear is that he has a few races left, including the Breeders’ Cup Classic Oct. 30 and 31, before he begins making other little horseys. That’s too bad. Bloodlines are tricky, as I’ll explore in “Criterion,” the third planned book in my series “The Games Men Play,” told in part from the viewpoint of a racehorse trying to win the Triple Crown. ...

American Pharoah: Life after the Triple Crown

June 8, 2015

So what’s next for the champ? The Pharoah has gone back to his home base, Churchill Downs in Kentucky, for a breather. But he may soon be back in our area.

Trainer Bob Baffert has said he’ll run two or three more times this year, possibly at the Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park in New Jersey on Aug. 2 and the Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course in New York Aug. 29. The ultimate goal, though, is the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic in October where he could meet up with our old friend California Chrome.

It’s so exciting to watch a 4-year-old like Chrome take on a 3-year-old like the Pharoah. I remember a 4-year-old Seattle Slew beating a 3-year-old Affirmed twice in the only battles of former Triple Crown winners. But then a 4-year-old Affirmed beat a 3-year-old Spectacular Bid, who should’ve won the Crown in 1979, the year after Affirmed. The superiority of a 4-year-old racehorse to a 3-year-old is sort of like Roger Federer in his prime taking on a teenage Novak Djokovic. It’s no contest. Still the Pharoah might take Chrome. ...