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By Joe Drape, NYTimes.com BALTIMORE — It’s hard to find fault in Big Brown’s performance here in the Preakness. He was barely asked to run by the jockey Kent Desormeaux and buried an overmatched field. Still, between now and the Belmont Stakes, we’re going to hear a great deal about whom Big Brown has beaten, and whether or not he is merely a ...

By Tom Pedulla, USA TODAY BALTIMORE — When jockey Kent Desormeaux and undefeated Big Brown spring into action in the 133rd Preakness Stakes on Saturday, their bid to move to within one win of a Triple Crown will be accompanied by a rush of sights and sounds. The jockeys' bright, shimmering silks will form a montage of colors after the starting ...

By Joe Drape, NYTimes.com Rick Dutrow doesn’t mince words. “I think that it’s our race to lose,” Dutrow said. “I think that he is the best horse in the race and I think if he breaks with the field, he’ll win the race.” He also is right. I’m rooting for Big Brown to pull into Belmont with a shot at a Triple Crown and immortality. Still, there ...

Bill Christine, HorseRaceInsider.comYou'll need a scorecard for the 133rd running of the Preakness. Yankee Bravo? That name sort of rings a bell. Behindatthebar? Seems familiar. Giant Moon? I remember him. Vaguely. The Preakness has always been a haven for the Triple Crown's new shooters, but this is ridiculous. This isn't a field, it's a road ...

Courtesy of RailbirdThe situation with Eight Belles has illustrated my disdain for the media. Unfortunately, most outlets tell the story they want to tell rather than the actual story. The vocal minority gets the soundbytes while anyone who's really in the mix goes ignored. A story in the Lexington Herald-Leader commented that the Eight Belles ...

By Alex Waldrop, NTRA.comLike many of you, I watched Saturday’s Kentucky Derby and was in awe of the amazing performance of Big Brown and his talented jockey, Kent Desormeaux. Big Brown ran a race from the 20th post position that was remarkable. And Desormeaux rode a race that even I could appreciate as very skillful. Unfortunately for racing, ...

Share your thoughts and memories of Eight Belles in the ''memory wall'' below. She was a great champion in the making; she will be missed.In honor of Eight Belles, consider donating to the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, Inc or another Equine Charity. Donations to the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, Inc in memory of Eight Belles ...

By Tom Pedulla, USA TODAY LOUISVILLE — ''We're live, babe!'' That's horse trainer Richard Dutrow Jr.'s stable-speak, his way of telling friends he expects his colt Big Brown to win the 134th Kentucky Derby on Saturday. For Big Brown, undefeated but having raced only three times, the Derby (4 p.m. ET, NBC; post time 6:04) is a chance to validate ...

By Patrick Patten, NYTimes.comThere were 38,191 North American foals born in 2005 (hat tip to the Jockey Club), and only 20 will be allowed in the gate in a little over a week. That is, one-twentieth of one percent get into the gate, and yet I am about to tell you that Recapturetheglory, winner of the grade II Illinois Derby is a complete toss. ...

By Leslie Huddleston The 2008 edition of C-J Derby DataTrack has now been updated for the last time and contains the Derby Rating, a total based upon a mathematical formula that assigns a value to each of the nearly 60 factors included in the data base. Derby Ratings can only be generated back to Sea Hero’s win in 1993 because BRIS and Beyer ...