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The task at hand Lukas an old pro at preparing for Kentucky Derby
Posted: Thursday May 04, 2000 03:58 PM
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- D. Wayne Lukas thinks the hardest thing for trainers to do at their first Kentucky Derby is to remove themselves from the hoopla and concentrate on the task at hand. D. Wayne knows Derby. On Saturday, the 64-year-old Hall of Fame trainer will saddle High Yield, Commendable and Exchange Rate, his 36th, 37th and 38th starters, in a quest for his fifth victory at his 20th consecutive Derby at Churchill Downs. "The biggest mistake you can make is to run horses that don't belong, and we're all guilty of that," Lukas said Thursday. "Some people run a horse because they have an honest fantasy that they have a chance, when in reality they don't." There is a lot of quality in the field, which was reduced to 19 3-year-olds when Globalize, a 50-1 show in the early line, sustained a gash on his lower left hind leg when he was kicked by a pony while being escorted from the track. The two top favorites are Wood Memorial winner Fusaichi Pegasus and The Deputy, winner of the Santa Anita Derby and trained by Jenine Sahadi. Another contender is War Chant, the Neil Drysdale-trained stablemate of Fusaichi Pegasus, who won his first three career starts before finishing second in the Santa Anita Derby. Lukas said he was against lowering the 20-horse limit. "You've got to give them (owners and trainers) a chance to live the dream or it's just another race," he said. Lukas, who was highly criticized in the media for running Deeds Not Words last in a 13-horse field in 1997, is confident his three colts will do well in the 126th Derby. "I feel very comfortable," he said. "I don't see any superstars." A lot of people, however, think Fusaichi Pegasus could be on the verge of superstardom. The best bet for a second straight victory for Lukas, who won last year with Charismatic, appears to be High Yield. He was the winner of the Fountain of Youth, runner-up to Hal's Hope in the Florida Derby and the front-running victor of the Blue Grass Stakes April 15 at Keeneland. "I think High Yield probably is getting the focus, but he has the most experience," Lukas said when he was asked to compare his three colts. High Yield, ridden by Pat Day, drew the No. 18 post, but moved inside after Globalize was scratched. Fusaichi Pegasus moved to No. 15 and The Deputy moved in to No. 10. "I'm not too concerned about 18," Lukas said before Globalize was injured. "If I had a choice I might have moved in a few holes, but I wouldn't have moved in too much. You're talking to a guy who has won from the auxiliary gate." All horses who start outside the No. 14 post start from the auxiliary gate. Lukas won with Thunder Gulch from No. 16 in 1995, with Grindstone from No. 15 in 1996 and with Charismatic from No. 16 last year. His other winner, the filly Winning Colors, started from No. 11 in 1988. Commendable will start from No. 12 and Exchange Rate from No. 16. While High Yield likes to race in or near the lead, Lukas said, "That doesn't mean he's locked into the style. He's probably the most versatile horse in the field. You're able to do what you want to with him." High Yield, who opened his 3-year-old campaign by finishing second to The Deputy in the Santa Catalina Jan. 30 at Santa Anita, won two of eight starts, with two seconds and two thirds, in 1999. His only off-the-board finish was sixth in the Kentucky Jockey Club on Nov. 27 at Churchill Downs. "It was the end of the season," Lukas said. "I just don't think he was on his game that day." Commendable, ridden by Edgar Prado, finished fourth in the Lexington on April 22, a race Charismatic won last year. He also finished fourth in the San Rafael and San Felipe. "He's been unlucky, but we're on target," Lukas said. Exchange Rate, ridden Calvin Borel, won an allowance race and the Risen Star at the Fair Grounds. He finished fourth in the Louisiana Derby before finishing ninth, 161/2 lengths behind Fusaichi Pegasus, on a wet-fast track in the Wood Memorial. "It was just a tough track. To his credit Jorge saved something," Lukas said, referring to jockey Jorge Chavez, who rode the colt that day. High Yield and Commendable will run as an entry along with the Todd Pletcher-trained Trippi, unbeaten in four starts this year, and Impeachment, third in the Arkansas Derby. They will be coupled in the betting because of common ownership. The entry is the 5-1 early third choice behind Fusaichi Pegasus and 5-1 The Deputy. Pletcher, a former Lukas assistant, also will start More Than Ready, second in the Louisiana Derby and Blue Grass, and Graeme Hall, winner of the Arkansas Derby. Asked what he thought of the 32-year-old Pletcher having four horses in his Derby since going out on his own in 1996, Lukas said, "I told him he had a big job to do and I thought he should scratch three of them."
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