by Steve Haskin
Two days before the May 5 Kentucky Derby (gr. I), Bob Baffert marched into Barn 45 at Churchill Downs, his family in tow, and sought out Sheikh Mohammed al Maktoum, owner of Express Tour. "Hey man, you're breathing my air when you come here," he said. The good-natured quip was in response to a similar comment the sheikh had made to Baffert in Dubai this past March.
This indeed was Baffert's air, which swirled around his two chestnut powerhouses, Point Given and Congaree. Ironically, Sheikh Mohammed had just finished talking to the media about the tragic and untimely death of his pride and joy, Dubai Millennium. With tears welling in his eyes, he used an old Arab proverb to describe his feelings for the colt: "The air of heaven blew between his ears."
When it comes to the Triple Crown in America, many believe the air of heaven blows between Bob Baffert's ears. Since 1996, Baffert had won two Kentucky Derbys and two Preaknesses, and was narrowly beaten in two Belmont Stakes and another Kentucky Derby. Although Baffert's heavenly air went still on a hot May afternoon in Louisville, when Congaree and Point Given managed to come away with only third- and fifth-place finishes, respectively, it blew into Baltimore May 19 like a nor'easter off Chesapeake Bay.
Before a record crowd of 104,454, Point Given meandered his way down the Pimlico stretch to win the 126th Preakness Stakes (gr. I) by 2 1/4 lengths, with Congaree just getting nailed for second in the final jumps by A P Valentine.
This latest Baffert blast was so powerful it was felt halfway around the world in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where another true lover of the Thoroughbred, Prince Ahmed Salman, owner of Point Given, could barely contain his emotions. Salman, whose lifelong ambition is to win the Kentucky Derby, was crushed by Point Given's defeat in Louisville and the way the race unfolded. Baffert and jockey Gary Stevens felt in some way they had let the prince down. Their only regret following the Preakness was he was not there to share in one of his greatest moments.
But the winds Point Given had stirred in Baltimore had also blown through the deserts of Saudi Arabia with the force of a sirocco. Salman was overcome with joy following the race, and he tried to convey his feelings on the phone to manager Dick Mulhall, who relayed his words as he spoke. "He said he's the happiest man on the planet Earth today," Mulhall said. "He has tears in his eyes...and he loves America."
Mulhall, with a wide grin on his face, told the prince, "Congratulations. He ran a helluva race, didn't he? Or should I have said a heckuva race? Either way, he ran great, and you deserve it. I'm sorry we missed the Derby, but we'll get the next one, too." Mulhall, of course, was referring to the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) on June 9.
Salman, who has built The Thoroughbred Corp. into one of racing's most powerful international operations, felt Point Given was too close to a suicidal pace in the Derby. He was adamant the colt be taken back near the rear of the pack in the Preakness, as in last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I). Baffert, Stevens, and Mulhall fully supported the prince's edict, and they sat back over the next two weeks and waited for the heavenly breezes to begin building up force once again, as they had in the San Felipe Stakes (gr. II) and Santa Anita Derby (gr. I).
After the Preakness, Salman, feeling gratified about the victory and his tactics, told Mulhall, "I'm going to change my title from the prince to the general."
While Salman was in Saudi Arabia tending to his many businesses, Baffert had to deal with restoring Point Given's reputation that at one time had reporters and fellow trainers predicting a Triple Crown sweep. The 17-hand son of Thunder Gulch was such an imposing presence he inspired quotes such as the one from trainer Jim Cassidy, trainer of Jamaican Rum, who commented on his first encounter with Point Given in the San Felipe: "When I looked at him, I thought the race was for 3-year-olds and up, and he was the up." Dave Hofmans, trainer of Millennium Wind, said of his horse, "I've never seen him afraid of anything...except Point Given. God forbid he runs into you."
Not only did Baffert have to contend with the training of Point Given and Congaree, he also had to answer for Point Given's well-publicized Lipizzaner stallion impersonations, in which he'd rear several times in succession without warning, nearly flipping over or getting loose. And then there were the rumors and written reports of the colt being "dead lame." By the time he arrived in Baltimore from Louisville three days before the Preakness, his "unofficial" medical reports had him with every pastern injury known to veterinary science. One expected to see him hobble off the van, with his legs wrapped in bandages. One trainer said he wouldn't make it to the half-mile pole.
But what came off the van was the same tall, stately chestnut, packing his Derby weight, his coat glistening in the sun. And not a hobble to his walk. Right behind was Congaree, bouncing along like a frisky 2-year-old. Also on the flight from Louisville was Dollar Bill, who should have been equipped with a rabbit's foot and a lucky horseshoe after all the hard luck he'd encountered in his three previous races.
Awaiting them in the refurbished Pimlico stakes barn was the mighty Monarchos, brilliant winner of the Derby, and last year's Champagne (gr. I) winner A P Valentine, who had taken some strange side trips in his journey to the Triple Crown this year, the result of bucked shins suffered in the Breeders' Cup. Trainer Nick Zito brought A P Valentine to Baltimore on a road that, as he put it, "wasn't pretty." But Zito believed it was now time for God and racing luck to make things right again after A P Valentine passed seven horses in the final eighth of the Derby, despite being stopped cold twice in the race.
"The Derby was so frustrating; the next day I cried, honestly," Zito said. "What a business having to defend yourself and your horse all the time, knowing neither of you are guilty." A super work on the Monday before the Preakness by the son of A.P. Indy raised Zito's spirits.
The stage was set. All the players were now ready for their battle in Baltimore. But there were more questions than opinions. Could Monarchos duplicate his explosive victory in the Derby, in which he became the only horse other than Secretariat to break the two-minute mark for the mile and a quarter? Could the lightly raced Congaree maintain his form after pressing the fastest pace in Derby history, then opening up a clear lead in the stretch?
Could Point Given, who had been sent to Rood and Riddle veterinary clinic for a post-Derby check-up, rebound off his disappointing performance? Was he victimized by being too close to the pace? Was post 11 going to hurt him? Was he trained too fast for the Derby? Was he not trained enough? Was he sound? Was he even as good as people made him out to be? In his own camp, there were none of those questions. He still was Point Given: Superhorse.
The morning before the Preakness, Point Given went out for a routine gallop. The day before, his first morning back to the track after a work on May 14, was the day the alarm light was on in the Baffert camp. Equipped with a special lip cord, Point Given was a perfect gentleman, other than giving a half-hearted attempt to rear on the horse path. That was stopped in its tracks by a crack of the whip over his shoulder by exercise rider Pepe Aragon. On the morning of May 18, however, Point Given was not wearing his lip cord. A few strides out of the barn, walking on the wood chip path, he put his foot down awkwardly, turning his ankle, which really set off the fireworks. The colt reared six or seven times. Aragon once again found himself staring at the sky, holding on to anything he could grab--reins, bridle, neck.
When someone later commented that Point Given had "gone insane again," Mulhall, standing nearby, could only laugh. "I'm getting used to all that," he said. "He's just playing. He's like a big kid. He knows exactly what he's doing when he rears. He knows just how far he can go up."
When asked how many times Point Given has reared, Aragon said, "He averages about every other day, sometimes three, four, or five times. You just deal with it. I don't even think about it. If I did, then I'd be afraid of him, and he'd sense that fear. He's really a nice, calm horse in his stall. He likes to come over and play with you."
As a yearling, Point Given was no different than any of the other horses, said Alice Chandler, who raised the son of Thunder Gulch at her Mill Ridge Farm near Lexington. "He was an average horse, slightly larger than the others," she said. "Then, all of a sudden, he started to grow...and grow. By the time he left us, he was absolutely huge. He was clean and correct, and we never even had to put a bandage on him. He had a lot of personality, and never tried to get loose. He was never any trouble until the day he left and he refused to get on the van. It was some doing trying to shove this big hunk of a horse onto the van."
After Point Given was broken and sent to Baffert, Mulhall sold the dam, Turko's Turn, for $160,000. A few days later, Baffert entered Point Given in a maiden race and told Mulhall, "You know, I think this colt can really run." A stunned Mulhall replied, "Huh? I just sold the mare. Now I gotta go see if I can get her back." Mulhall contacted the new owner and bought her back for $400,000.
Mulhall also laughed at the rumors that Point Given was dead lame. "Dead lame? He's never been lame in his life," he said. "Believe me, if there was anything wrong with him, we would have taken him home. He's absolutely no different than he was last year. He has one cracked heel, and when you have that, it's the skin that hurts, not bone. There have been a few days when he's walked out of his stall on his hind foot and kind of pointed it for about five steps. Then he's fine again. It's nothing, and it's not new."
"After the Derby, we checked him out at Rood and Riddle and everything was fine," Baffert said. "He has had a problem with a hind pastern, where he gets the cracked heels, but it's basically just cosmetic."
Overnight rains on Preakness Eve gave way to hazy skies and high humidity. A wide variety of emotions ran through the stakes barn. All was quiet with the Derby winner, as Monarchos played with his new stuffed animal--a horse which, of course, was gray. Trainer John Ward said Mouse, the lead pony, would appreciate his upcoming days off after being manhandled by Monarchos every morning.
At the opposite end of the barn, Point Given poked his head out of the stall throughout the morning, gawking at all the activity. A laid-back Congaree showed off his other end, and could only muster a yawn as his mane was being braided. Joanne McNamara, exercise rider of Dollar Bill, was getting good vibes, and believed the black cloud that had been hanging over the colt was about to lift. "I really have a good feeling," she said. "He's just been so happy here, and he ran Dallas (trainer Stewart) out of his stall this morning. And he never does that to Dallas."
Jennifer Leigh-Pedersen, recruited off the farm by owner Ernie Paragallo to train Griffinite and his other horses, said she was going back to the hotel to meditate and pray. "He won't disappoint me today; he just won't," she said. "He will give 100%. I know he will." She then planted a big kiss on the colt's cheek. "He knows I love him to death," she said.
Despite all the rumors and questions, Point Given still was made the co-favorite with Monarchos at 2-1, although there were a few more dollars wagered on Point Given in the win pool. Baffert was hoping Congaree, with new rider Jerry Bailey, would be able to settle in behind horses and not be shown daylight for as long as possible. But when Congaree bobbled at the start and ducked toward the inside, it got his blood up, and he took off after pace-setting Richly Blended. Point Given, as per Salman's instructions, was taken hold of by Stevens, who dropped him in behind the field. Monarchos, who seemed to be struggling with the track from the outset, fell back to last as they went into the first turn after a quarter in :23.84.
Down the backstretch, Richly Blended opened up by about three lengths, with Congaree, racing without cover, in second, and pulling Bailey. Victor Espinoza, who landed the mount on A P Valentine after being taken off Congaree, had his colt in good position in sixth. Passing the five-eighths pole, Stevens put Point Given in gear, and he began picking off horses from the far outside. A P Valentine was in tight quarters and had to duck to the inside to avoid Percy Hope, just as Point Given was charging up alongside him. Dollar Bill was in good striking position for a change, but that wouldn't last long. Nearing the half-mile pole, Shaun Bridgmohan, on Griffinite, flipped his goggles, and the colt suddenly ducked out right into poor old Dollar Bill, whose collision rates are skyrocketing with each race. Just like that, Dollar Bill was last. A snake-bit Pat Day could only steer him to the outside and circle the field. A P Valentine, meanwhile, was also having traffic problems and lost some momentum at a crucial time.
As they approached the quarter pole after a half in :47.32 and three-quarters in 1:11.86, Point Given and Congaree ranged up alongside Richly Blended, who was about to call it a day. The Baffert Boys headed for home eyeball-to-eyeball. Stevens and Bailey looked at each other and smiled, then looked back for any signs of Monarchos, who was struggling back in the pack. Point Given then went into his drunken sailor routine, as his big rear end rammed against Congaree. With his head cocked and running on his left lead, he was all over the place as Stevens kept tossing the reins around, trying to straighten him out. Still, he began to draw off, despite trying to gawk at the infield. Stevens gave him a little flick of the whip with his left hand to prevent him from ducking in. Point Given kept increasing his lead, finally changing his leads inside the sixteenth pole.
A P Valentine had split horses and was closing in on Congaree, with Dollar Bill flying on the far outside after going nine-wide turning for home. Point Given was now in full gear, and threw his ears up as he crossed the wire. A P Valentine just got up to beat out Congaree by a neck. It was another 1 1/4 lengths to Dollar Bill, followed by Griffinite and Monarchos, who never did get a hold of the track. The final time over the dull track was 1:55.51.
"Let's go get the silver," Baffert said, as Point Given returned at a full gallop on the grass course. "Hey, Bob," Stevens called. "He loves the turf." While waiting for the cue from NBC to lead the horse into the winner's circle, Baffert called his mother, Ellie, in Nogales, Ariz. "Wish you were here, Momma," he said. "I'll talk to you later. We're gonna go to the winner's circle right now." Baffert then grabbed the reins to lead the colt in, but quickly dropped them. "You know what?" he said. "I'm not leading in that wild s.o.b."
Even in all the revelry, Baffert couldn't help recognize another extraordinary performance by Congaree. "He ran his heart out," he said. "He tried so hard. But Jerry just couldn't get him back off that pace. It just goes to show you how good this horse is."
The following morning, as a salmon-pink sunrise emerged over Old Hilltop, the sound of horse vans roared behind the stakes barn, as horses began moving out. Zito was the first to leave, heading for Belmont Park. Dollar Bill walked the shed and stopped in front of Baffert's stalls after eyeing the blanket of black-eyed Susans draped over the railing. As if to finally make a statement and get a piece of the glory he's been denied, he reached over and snatched a flower, then walked off, the yellow and black petals protruding from his mouth. Griffinite, emerging as a new star in the making, sported a gash on his left hind leg, the result of being stepped on during the race. The beaming smile on Leigh-Pedersen's face spoke volumes of the pride she had in her horse and the magical experience she had just been part of.
Finally, there was Point Given and Congaree in the exact same positions they had been the previous morning, with the winner's head out the door, checking out everything around him, much as he had done down the stretch of the Preakness.
Now comes the Belmont, and a much-anticipated rematch between Point Given and Monarchos. Congaree likely will not show up following three gut-wrenching races. But there will be heavy support for A P Valentine and Dollar Bill. Awaiting them all will be Kentucky Derby runner-up Invisible Ink and Derby fourth-place finisher Thunder Blitz, along with Arkansas Derby (gr. II) and Turfway Spiral (gr. II) winner Balto Star, Team Valor's English import Dr Greenfield, and possibly Godolphin's E Dubai, a 12 1/2-length winner of a Belmont allowance race May 11.
Despite the victory, certain aspects of the Preakness were bittersweet to Baffert. He wishes Congaree could have held on for a one-two finish, and he now knows that Point Given could possibly have fulfilled Salman's Kentucky Derby dream under different circumstances. He also would love to have shared the Preakness victory with the prince in person. "I really wish he could have been here," Baffert said. "It would have been so great for him to be part of it."
But, for Salman, it didn't matter whether he was in Baltimore or Riyadh. He still could feel the air of heaven blowing through Point Given's ears.
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It's hard to enjoy a private and special moment with 100,000 screaming fans around you. But after Point Given rolled to a 2 1/4-length victory at Pimlico May 19, trainer Bob Baffert grabbed his cell phone and tuned out the roar of the Preakness (gr. I) crowd. While watching the big red colt jog toward the winner's circle, Baffert called his 78-year-old mother in Nogales, Ariz.
Just two days earlier, Ellie Baffert had been in the hospital. But now she was back home and feeling much better. With a heady mixture of relief and elation coursing through him, the white-haired trainer from California wanted to share his third, and perhaps most satisfying, Preakness triumph with Mom.
"It was very emotional," Baffert said. "I almost started crying. I told her, 'I wish you were here with us. We miss you.' I know she wanted to be here with us, too. She's had some things go wrong, and she's got a fight in front of her, but she'll be fine."
Two weeks prior to the Preakness, Baffert's mom was visiting her son at Churchill Downs, where he hoped to give her a Kentucky Derby (gr. I) victory as an early Mother's Day gift. The trainer had the favorite, Point Given, who had dazzled just about everyone with his imposing stature and sharp training moves, as well as another top contender, Congaree.
The trainer was confident; his mother was excited.
But instead of dominating the Derby, Point Given struggled. The 17-hand son of Thunder Gulch wound up a well-beaten fifth without any obvious excuse. Congaree, meanwhile, performed heroically, running close to a torrid early pace, then hanging on for third, just a nose behind Invisible Ink.
"Bob was really crushed," Florida horseman Kevin McKathan said. "He really thought this horse (Point Given) would be his Triple Crown winner, so it was tough on him. We talked and came up with all sorts of theories. By the end of the night, we were joking and saying it was everybody's fault but ours."
There were lots of ideas, but no firm conclusions: The track was too hard...the weather was too hot...the pace was too fast. Between the Derby and the Preakness all were discussed--both within Baffert's inner circle and in public during various interviews. The trainer even had the monstrous chestnut examined thoroughly at a Lexington veterinary clinic.
"We never had any real doubts about Point Given's ability, but we were all puzzled," Baffert said. "Churchill is a weird strip. Sometimes horses don't get over it like they are comfortable, and Point Given wasn't comfortable that day. So we looked him over, and when we couldn't find anything wrong, we decided we would go on to the next one."
In the Preakness, jockey Gary Stevens changed his riding strategy, allowing Point Given to relax early. Afterward, Stevens and Baffert agreed that the more patient approach might have been the key to victory. They also thanked owner Prince Ahmed Salman of The Thoroughbred Corp. for suggesting that they might want to stop rushing the colt.
"Prince Ahmed told us, 'Hey, please, please take him back. Listen to me.' So we did," Baffert said.
The win provided redemption for the beaten Derby favorite. And it also was an important turning point for his 48-year-old trainer.
Baffert is recognized as one of the leading handlers of racehorses in the world. He has a trio of Eclipse Awards as outstanding trainer, and is the holder of three consecutive North American earnings titles.
But before Point Given's Preakness rebound, Baffert had not saddled the winner of a Triple Crown race since 1998, and he was getting a little frustrated.
"If you want to compare it to other sports, Bobby is the guy who wants the ball when it's fourth and one," said Baffert's friend and longtime client Mike Pegram. "If there's five seconds left in the game, he wants the last shot. That's what the Triple Crown is all about, and he likes winning."
At first, Baffert made it look so easy. When he burst onto the Triple Crown scene in 1996 with Cavonnier, the former Quarter Horse trainer charmed the press and much of the Thoroughbred industry with his laid-back attitude and self-deprecating humor. He also just missed winning the Kentucky Derby. Then Baffert enjoyed an amazing two-year run, capturing both the Derby and Preakness with Bob and Beverly Lewis' Silver Charm in 1997 and Pegram's Real Quiet in 1998. A Belmont Stakes (gr. I) win eluded Baffert and his horses both times, but the trainer was gracious in defeat, gaining more admirers. He was one of the sport's fastest rising stars, and he glowed in the limelight.
But as the glare of publicity intensified, Baffert's image lost some of its luster, which is one of fame's inevitable curses. His marriage soured, and his personal life was scrutinized and criticized by the same reporters who once chuckled at his jokes. Even though he snared his third straight earnings crown in 2000, newspaper articles suggested he was losing his magic touch. In addition, there were persistent rumors that Baffert used illegal drugs to aid his horses--something the trainer denied and blamed on jealousy about his success.
Former assistant Eoin Harty, who left Baffert to take a job training for Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin, agrees. "It's ridiculous," Harty told the Baltimore Sun. "The better he did, the more rumors there were. As God is my witness, on the life of my children, we never used anything illegal. At the end of the day, he's probably just a better trainer than the other ones."
But last May, one of Baffert's horses, Nautical Look, tested positive for morphine after winning an allowance race at Hollywood Park. Inadvertent contamination was the trainer's defense. His lawyer argued the case should be dismissed because a blood sample was thrown out in a cost-saving move and never tested. This year, right before the Preakness, an attorney with the California Horse Racing Board recommended a $10,000 fine and a stiff six-month suspension as Baffert's punishments. However, the stewards have not issued a ruling.
"I think this Preakness means more to him in a lot of ways than the other ones did," said the oldest of Baffert's three brothers, Bill. "He now knows what a gift it is, how hard it is to win a classic race."
The victorious Preakness trainer of 2001 echoed that sentiment.
"I'm probably more excited about this one because it's been a few years since I've won a Triple Crown race. It seems like it's been forever," said Baffert, whose pleasure was enhanced by another third-place classic effort from Congaree. "The other times we won the Preakness, we were still flying high when we got to Baltimore. It almost didn't matter if we won or lost. This time, we had been beaten down because it was such a disappointment when Point Given didn't run well in the Kentucky Derby."
But it was big brother Bill who put the latest Preakness experience into perspective.
"Our mom feeling better is better than anything else," he concluded. "For all of us, it's been a great day."
by Tom LaMarra
Prince Ahmed Salman likes quality, and he believed he had the goods in Point Given. He made the long trip from Saudi Arabia to Kentucky for the first Saturday in May to chase immortality.
The Thoroughbred Corp., his racing and breeding operation, has been cranking out top racehorses for years. There have been three Breeders' Cup winners, owned exclusively or in partnership, but no classics trophies in the United States.
On May 4, the day before the Kentucky Derby (gr. I), Salman celebrated in the winner's circle with his uncle, Juddmonte Farms owner Prince Khalid Abdullah, after Flute won the Kentucky Oaks (gr. I). It had the makings of a dandy double for the royal family from Saudi Arabia, but it wasn't meant to be.
Point Given, for the first time in eight races, didn't fire his best shot. Salman, a consummate horseman who loves racing strategy, thought the colt was too close to the pace given the rapid fractions in the Derby and was taken out of his game.
On May 19, the old Point Given--the one who appears to cover more ground in one stride than the average racehorse--was back. The son of 1995 Derby winner Thunder Gulch was the Preakness Stakes (gr. I) victor, but Salman, who had just returned to Saudi Arabia, didn't make the trip to Maryland.
Instead, he watched the race in the wee hours of the morning in the Middle East via satellite. His faith in homebred Point Given was justified. Maybe it came two weeks late, but Salman had a classic's trophy, and he is believed to be the first owner from the Middle East to do so.
"He was very happy," said Richard Mulhall, president of The Thoroughbred Corp., after he spoke to Salman by telephone following the Preakness at Pimlico Race Course. "He's very happy with the way the horse ran, and has a good feeling that the horse is back again. One of the people with him said he had tears in his eyes while he watched."
There was plenty of second-guessing after Point Given's fifth-place finish in the Derby. Salman apparently gave Mulhall, trainer Bob Baffert, and jockey Gary Stevens a few suggestions. If there was nothing physically wrong, it had to be the trip. After all, the colt's cakewalk in the Santa Anita Derby (gr. I) had many observers ready to concede the Triple Crown about a month before it began.
"The prince felt Point Given needed to be ridden a little more patiently (in the Preakness)," Stevens said shortly after he won his second Preakness. "I felt bad for Prince Ahmed after the Derby. Any time you put horses on a pedestal, you're setting yourself up for a fall. I know what we have, and Bob (Baffert) knows what we have, but how do you explain that to an owner?"
Much of that job goes to Mulhall, who retired from training in 1995 to take over as racing manager for The Thoroughbred Corp. Mulhall called Salman a strategist--"Sometimes that's good, but sometimes that's bad," he said with a laugh--who understands the game because he grew up with a love of horses.
Salman, born in 1958 in Saudi Arabia, is a graduate of the University of California-Irvine. His publishing business, with operations in Saudi Arabia and England, includes four newspapers and about 10 magazines.
The horse business, of course, probably isn't as profitable. But it was horses that led him to contact Mulhall, a college friend, when he needed a trainer. Mulhall trained for Salman, as well as other clients, for years before he took the full-time job with The Thoroughbred Corp.
One of the operation's more prominent runners was Sharp Cat, a seven-time grade I winner and earner of over $2 million whom Mulhall said remains Salman's favorite. The Breeders' Cup winners were Spain (Distaff, gr. I, 2000); Anees (Juvenile, gr. I, 1999); and Jewel Princess (Distaff, 1996). His other classic winner is Oath, who took the 1999 Epsom Derby (Eng-I).
The Thoroughbred Corp., with headquarters in Bradbury, Calif., finished third in earnings in North America last year with $5,880,705. Mulhall breaks the yearlings in California, while Mill Ridge Farm near Lexington houses a majority of the operation's broodmares.
The Thoroughbred Corp. made a splash when it was the leading buyer at the 1996 Keeneland November sale with $4.5 million in purchases, and the 1997 Barretts select sale of 2-year-olds with $3.56 million in purchases.
Mulhall said there are no partners in The Thoroughbred Corp., though the entity does from time to time own horses with others. For instance, Jewel Princess was co-owned by Richard and Martha Stephen.
Salman has roughly 60 horses in training, but when asked for an exact number, Mulhall said: "We have enough to accomplish our goal, which is to win classic races."
There have been some ups and downs in the training department for The Thoroughbred Corp. Initially, Baffert, Gary Jones, and D. Wayne Lukas had horses for Salman. In 1997, Wally Dollase became the private trainer, but he and the organization split in 1999.
Alex Hassinger Jr., who conditioned Anees, took over from Dollase but parted company with Salman in 2000. Currently, John Shirreffs handles most of the string in California, though Baffert still gets some horses. One of them is Point Given, whom he has trained since the colt made his first start in August of last year.
Salman and Baffert have a good working relationship.
"You can't b.s. the prince," Baffert said after Point Given returned to the Pimlico stakes barn following the Preakness. "He's a horseman. He follows his horses, studies the game, knows pedigrees, and has some ideas. The prince has been a very good owner, and he wants a good horse.
"He's very competitive, but he just has so much passion for the horse. I wish he was here for this."
Baffert said Salman is quite generous, too. When Point Given won the Hollywood Futurity (gr. I) last December, he received a new watch. For the Preakness engagement, Baffert got a sharp new outfit. "We have a mutual respect for each other," he said.
Under Baffert's care, Point Given has earned $1.86 million for Salman. Not bad for a colt that, as a yearling on the farm in California, didn't necessarily send the message he'd be ready for prime time.
"To be honest, when I broke him and sent him to Bob, he was just a gangly colt," Mulhall said. "I ended up selling the mare because I really didn't like her other foal. But one day Bob called me and told me this colt could run, so I bought the mare back. I'll admit she cost a lot more money, but it was worth it."
Who knows? Maybe Turko's Turn will produce another Sharp Cat or Point Given. Remember, Salman is always on the lookout for a good horse.
