As a member of the horse racing community, you can hardly ignore something that comes out of Bob Baffert‘s mouth. That’s why, when the 72-year-old Hall of Famer took a dig at trainers for refusing to race their horses at the Preakness Stakes after the Kentucky Derby, fans didn’t see an issue with the system. However, not everyone is on board with the hectic schedule that is the Triple Crown.
When Bob Baffert called out many of his colleagues over their concerns about the Triple Crown schedule, it might have resonated with the likes of D.Wayne Lukas, a horse racing legend himself. And yet, some experts continue to think that the change in the participation pattern for the Triple Crown over the decades might have something to do with how modernization is showing its impacts on the sport.
In a YouTube upload from May 17 by NBC Sports, Mike Tirico, Jerry Bailey, and Randy Moss were heard discussing the Triple Crown schedule. At one point in the conversation, Moss got a little too excited about what the title used to mean. “In the 1960s and the 1970s, okay, seven of those years in each decade, the one-two-three finishers in the Kentucky Derby all came back and ran in the Preakness. That’s what the Triple Crown is supposed to be. That’s what made it what it is,” Moss said in an exasperated tone.
The NBC host went on to passionately remind viewers how the Kentucky Derby is like a gateway to an exciting and elaborate show. Underscoring that the rivalries that are conceived at the Derby often used to culminate at the Belmont Stakes, with a trip to Pimlico in between, Moss highlighted how things have changed. “The one-two-three finishers of the Derby have only come back in the Preakness now twice in the last 17 years,” he raised as an alarm, “The system is broken.”
Credit: Instagram/Preakness Stakes
“Fortunately, it’s an easy fix. But the sport just has to remove itself from that straightjacket of tradition,” Moss said that the existing structure could be changed for the betterment of the sport if only the stakeholders came together and found a middle ground to agree upon. But could Bob Baffert be the one to lead the change? After all, his confidence that the modern structure works perfectly fine seems to be the very thing that Moss wasn’t keen on backing.
Thoroughbreds used to train and run at much quicker intervals than they do now. But with Sovereignty’s trainer, Bill Mott, opting to skip the Preakness Stakes with eyes on the Belmont, the debate about the current schedule came into the limelight once again. With more focus on the horses’ wear and tear, Mott noted, “We want the career to last more than five weeks,” underlining that the Triple Crown shouldn’t be the sole focus for any trainer.
“It is troubling, and it has been troubling for several years. It’s completely flip-flopped from my generation when it was the rule that they would run back and the exception that they wouldn’t,” Jerry Baley also voiced his concern over trainers deciding to skip Triple Crown races. However, while two-time winner of the coveted title Bob Baffert continues to claim that the schedule isn’t an issue, how did his conviction serve him at Pimlico?
Bob Baffert’s return to the top put off yet again
Baffert returned to the hallowed Churchill Downs ground after serving his three-year suspension. Following Medina Spirit’s failing its post-race drug test in 2021, the legendary trainer was handed a ban by CDI. Naturally, fans were sure that Bob would be eager to show his elite status once again by winning the 151st Derby on his return.
Well, that didn’t happen. His best horse to win this year’s Kentucky Derby, Rodriguez, had to be scratched from the race due to a hoove injury, and his second entrant, Citizen Bull, didn’t manage to do much at Churchill Downs. For justifiable reasons, the 150th edition of the Preakness Stakes seemed like the stage where Baffert could reclaim his high throne. A winner of the race eight times, Bob also noted his excitement to return to the iconic race course, and indicated that his sights were firmly set on the future.
And yet, Goal Oriented, the Baffert-trained colt, missed out on bringing him his ninth win at Pimlico. The horse finished fourth at the Preakness Stakes just hours ago, while Kentucky Derby’s second-place finisher, Journalism, took the top spot with jockey Umberto Rispoli on its back. Two down, one to go. But could the Belmont Stakes finally be the redemption that Bob Baffert so dearly longs for?
Who knows! But in the meantime, tell us your thoughts on how you think the schedule debate could be resolved in a comment!
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