For trainer Bob Baffert, it wasn’t vindication. Perhaps it was closure.
Yet more than anything what happened at the 148th Preakness Stakes (G1) was a microcosm of the past two years for the Hall of Fame trainer.
Two years filled with a Kentucky Derby (G1) victory overturned by picograms, suspensions, and some incredibly important wins came full circle May 20 when National Treasure outdueled Blazing Sevens by a head in an epic stretch battle to give Baffert a record eighth Preakness win and 51-year-old Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez his first win in the middle jewel of the Triple Crown at Pimlico Race Course.
“I couldn’t have done it without my beautiful wife Jill’s support and my family and friends,” Baffert said as his voice cracked with emotion. “We’ve been through a tough go. But we knew we would get through this and I just focus. Like I’ve said, it’s the love of the horse that keeps me focused and keeps me going and I just kept the noise out.
“We had some tough moments, but it’s days like this that (are) not really vindication. We have a moment we can enjoy what we do. We get rewarded for how hard everybody in my team works. To me, that’s mainly what this is about.”
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Jockey John Velazquez and trainer Bob Baffert embrace in the winner’s circle
Watch: Winning Connections Discuss National Treasure’s Preakness Victory
On a day when Kentucky Derby (G1) winner and 7-5 favorite Mage finished third to ensure a fifth straight Belmont Stakes (G1) without a Triple Crown sweep, the day also encapsulated how violent the ups and downs of the sport can be on a single afternoon. In between winning the Sir Barton Stakes (G3) with Arabian Lion and celebrating a record-extending 17th Triple Crown win with the 3-year-old son of Quality Road , Baffert suffered the pain of losing one of his horses, Havnameltdown , to a fatal injury in the Chick Lang Stakes (G3).
“I’ve been doing this for 43 years and I’ve been hit. Every year there’s a thousand things that go wrong and you just get hit,” Baffert said. “When you’ve done it as long as I have you know you can’t get too excited because just around the corner, you’re going to get punched in the gut.
“The main concern, the jockey (Luis Saez, who x-rayed cleanly at a local hospital) is fine. It is one of those things where you’re scratching your head. At the same time, you still got to take care of your other horses and stay focused. The life of a trainer is not as glamorous as people think. Right now, we might be on top of the world, but for me, I just feel relieved that the horse ran to its potential and everybody here is happy. But still, when I go back to the barn, seeing that empty stall, it’s sad.”
For Velazquez, his victory in his 13th Preakness ride was a vintage performance. He broke from the rail smoothly with National Treasure, opened a clear lead on the backstretch when only somewhat pressed by longshot Coffeewithchris and Blazing Sevens, and slowed the pace down to a frigid 1:13.49. Then, when Blazing Sevens and jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. ranged up alongside them at the top of the stretch, Velazquez’s urging allowed National Treasure to fend off Blazing Sevens’ determined bid for trainer Chad Brown and John and Carla Capek’s Rodeo Creek Racing.
The two horses made contact down the stretch but there was no stewards’ inquiry or rider’s claim of foul.
The Drone Cam of the 2023 Preakness Stakes showing the battle between National Treasure and Blazing Sevens. pic.twitter.com/yIVZi8y7LZ
— TVG (@TVG) May 20, 2023
“What a moment,” said Velazquez, the sport’s all-time leader in earnings with more than $465 million. “All I can say, when you try to ride your best and the horse responds to everything you want him to do, that’s all it takes; the horse giving you everything they can. That’s what you hope for and that’s what he did.”
National Treasure and jockey John Velazquez are led to the winner’s circle after winning the Preakness Stakes
It was also an uplifting moment for the ownership group of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan, which supported Baffert with great loyalty in the aftermath of the suspensions that followed the disqualification of Medina Spirit from a victory in the 2021 Kentucky Derby due to a failed drug test. Medina Spirit was one of multiple drug positives for Baffert over a one-year period.
“We’ve always had Bob’s back,” said Sol Kumin, head of the Madaket Stables group. “He’s been doing this a long time and he’s been treated unfairly. There’s never been any wavering from anybody in this group … and we will continue (to support him).”
Connections of National Treasure celebrate in the winner’s circle
For National Treasure, the Preakness was his second victory in six starts and followed a fourth-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby (G1) when he was transferred to trainer Tim Yakteen for a failed attempt to gain enough qualifying points to start in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, where Baffert was not permitted to race this year due to a private-property suspension issued by the track operator. Returned to Baffert, the Hall of Famer used the six weeks between then and the Preakness to have National Treasure ready to reach his full potential in the Preakness at Pimlico, where the trainer remained eligible to compete.
“We thought his Santa Anita Derby race—it was okay,” said Baffert, who will wait a few days before deciding National Treasure’s status for the June 10 Belmont Stakes (G1). “But you could tell he was still green, figuring it out … We were hoping for something like this. I know I didn’t want to be the spoiler. … We love these horses and when you see one of your horses (win), it’s like one of your kids winning.”
Bred by Peter E. Blum Thoroughbreds in Kentucky out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Treasure , National Treasure was purchased in 2021 for $500,000 from the Bridie Harrison consignment at The Saratoga Sale, Fasig-Tipton’s New York Sale of Select Yearlings. He is the lone stakes winner from four foals to race out of his dam, who has a yearling Authentic filly named Renoir.
National Treasure covered the 1 3/16 miles in 1:55.12 and paid $7.80 as the 5-2 second choice.
National Treasure (inside) leads the Preakness Stakes field into the final turn
Brown lamented the slow pace and wide trip that hurt the chances of Blazing Sevens, a son of Good Magic .
“The horse just got a very, very wide trip and he came up just short,” said Brown, who won the 2017 Preakness with Cloud Computing and last year’s race with Early Voting , both of whom skipped the Kentucky Derby, just as Blazing Sevens did. “I knew the race was void of speed but I thought there would be a little bit more pressure. I’m very proud of his effort. We won this race a couple of times and had really good trips. Today we did not have quite the trip we wanted. It goes both ways. That’s horse racing.”
The slow pace was even more costly for Mage, who closed from 16th to win the Derby. He was fifth after six furlongs and moved into third in the stretch but then the Good Magic colt drifted in a bit and could not sustain his bid, finishing 2 1/4 lengths behind Blazing Sevens.
“The pace,” said Javier Castellano, who rode Mage. “There was not much speed in the race. The way it unfolded it was a disadvantage for the horses coming from behind.”
Too Tough to make up ground into a 1:13 pace; a G1 Preakness🥉for our Mage who ALWAYS shows up. Congrats to the winners.
The last 5 months have been a MAGE-ical ride, we even got to win the Kentucky Derby 🌹
Couldn’t be prouder of our talented colt. Onto the next one 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/ZIHnlmVoqV
— Ramiro A. Restrepo (@RamiroRestrepo) May 20, 2023
Owned by OGMA Investments, Ramiro Restrepo, Sterling Racing, and CMNWLTH, Mage was attempting to become the rare closer from the clouds in the Kentucky Derby who serves up an encore in Baltimore.
“We took the shot, it was worth the shot, and we got beat,” said Gustavo Delgado Jr., son and assistant to trainer Gustavo Delgado.
Trainer Gustavo Delgado (R), assistant trainer Gustavo Delgado Jr. (L), and jockey Javier Castellano after Mage runs third in the Preakness Stakes
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