By Noel Michaels
Morning-line favorite Point Given will break from the rail in a field of eight drawn Wednesday for Saturday's $750,000 Santa Anita Derby. Regular rider Gary Stevens will have the mount.
The list of challengers to Point Given in the Grade 1 1 1/8-mile prep for the Kentucky Derby is led by San Rafael winner Crafty C.T., who drew post three with Eddie Delahoussaye aboard.
Point Given won his seasonal debut last time out in the San Felipe Stakes, and will probably cement his role as the favorite for the Kentucky Derby with another win on Saturday.
Other challengers to Point Given include San Felipe runner-up I Love Silver, who drew post two with Laffit Pincay aboard, Startac, who drew post four with Alex Solis, and Palmeiro, who drew post seven with Kent Desormeaux.
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by Blood-Horse Staff
The Thoroughbred Corp.'s Point Given, winter-book favorite for the Kentucky Derby (gr. I), drew the rail for Saturday's Santa Anita Derby (gr. I). He has been installed the even-money morning line choice for the $750,000 1 1/8 mile race that drew a field of eight 3-year-olds.
Post time for the Santa Anita Derby is approximately 2:40 p.m. PDT, or 5:40 p.m. EDT.
A nose shy of winning last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I) and runner-up in the voting for the Eclipse Award for top 2-year-old male, Point Given won his 2001 debut last month in the San Felipe Stakes (gr. II) also at Santa Anita. Hall of Fame rider Gary Stevens will be back in the saddle on the Bob Baffert-trained colt.
It's likely Point Given will go postward odds-on for the race, and if he succeeds, will the lowest-priced winner since Brocco was victorious in 1994 at 70 cents on the dollar. In the '90s, there were three odds-on winners: Brocco, A.P. Indy ('92), and Mr. Frisky ('90).
Baffert said the San Felipe winner has been training well up to the race and appears ready for the challenge. "We're looking for a really good race out of him," he said. "We want to get this race out of the way so we can prepare for the Kentucky Derby."
Early Flyer is expected to travel north to run in the $200,000 California Derby at Bay Meadows next weekend. The rest of the field includes I Love Silver, Crafty C.T., Startac, Scorpion, Palmiero, and Cherokee Kim.
Dean Greenman, trainer of I Love Silver, who finished second to Point
Given in the San Felipe Stakes, said he expects another good showing from his colt. He admitted beating the favorite would be tough.
"I don't think we can knock him off," Greenman said. "If he runs the same race he did last time out, we'll be happy."
The speed of the race could be Crafty C.T., a late-blooming colt who scored a wire-to-wire win in the San Rafael Stakes last month. Trainer Howard Zucker has shied away from saying his horse would be pointed to the Kentucky Derby, but he hasn't ruled it out completely.
"This horse is a kid among men," Zucker said. "I can give you a better answer on Sunday. We just don't want to go to the well too early."
Seven horses, or 11.1% of those breaking from the rail, have won the Santa Anita Derby in its previous 63 runnings. Twenty-seven favorites, or 43.5%, have also won Southern California's top Kentucky Derby prep race.
A win for Baffert would tie him with trainer D. Wayne Lukas for most wins in the race with four winners. Baffert's other Santa Anita Derby winners were Cavonnier ('96), Indian Charlie ('98), and General Challenge ('99). Lukas will be reprented in this year's race by Scorpion.
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By Jay Privman
ARCADIA, Calif. - In a world accustomed to the packaged neatness of CD's, Point Given still spins like an old 78 record.
He is in constant motion, at the barn and on the track, a whirling dervish whose antics are, while not encouraged, certainly tolerated.
He has thrown his exercise riders in the morning, has gotten loose from his handlers and run to an adjoining trainer's barn. He rears on his hind legs as if he were trying to emulate the Lone Ranger's trusty steed, Silver. And as long as he continues to race well, no one at the barn of trainer Bob Baffert is going to try to blunt his exuberance.
"He's playful. You don't want to take that away from him," Baffert said. "You don't reprimand a horse if he's having fun."
Point Given has developed into the pro tem favorite for the May 5 Kentucky Derby. His final prep will be in Saturday's $750,000 Santa Anita Derby, for which he is the 4-5 favorite on Mike Watchmaker's morning line. He is the most accomplished horse running this weekend, one that features four important Kentucky Derby prep races.
At Lone Star Park, Louisiana Derby winner Fifty Stars faces El Camino Real Derby winner Hoovergetthekeys in the $500,000 Lone Star Derby. At Hialeah, Florida Derby runner-up Outofthebox meets turf star Proud Man in the $250,000 Flamingo Stakes. And at Sportsman's Park, Dream Run, the fourth-place finisher in the Florida Derby, faces the rapidly improving Distilled in the $500,000 Illinois Derby. Next weekend finds Congaree, Monarchos, and Ommadon in the $750,000 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct; Dollar Bill, Hero's Tribute, Invisible Ink, and Millennium Wind in the $750,000 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland; and Crafty Shaw and Strike It Smart in the $500,000 Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park.
Those horses may get a chance to go after Point Given at Churchill Downs. This weekend, horses such as Crafty C.T., I Love Silver, Palmeiro, and Startac will try to dethrone Point Given. Few have been able to beat him. In seven starts, Point Given has been beaten by a total of three horses. He has won four times and been second three times, his most notable loss coming in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, when he just missed catching Macho Uno. He was also second in the Champagne Stakes and in his debut last summer at Del Mar, when he gave a preview of his antics.
Point Given reared up in the paddock and threw his jockey, Yutaka Take, before his first start. He then finished furiously to place second while racing 5 1/2 furlongs.
He has thrived at longer distances, which both his pedigree and physique would have indicated. Point Given, by 1995 Kentucky Derby winner Thunder Gulch, was bred and is owned by Prince Ahmed Salman's The Thoroughbred Corporation. He is a large chesnut-colored horse, with long legs and a powerful torso, and he weighs nearly 1,300 pounds, about 200 more than average.
"He reminds me a lot of his father in his temperament," said Gary Stevens, who won the 1995 Derby on Thunder Gulch and has ridden Point Given in his last three starts. "He's aggressive in his behavior, but he's workmanlike on the track." Although Point Given is as tall as General Challenge, the 1998 Santa Anita Derby winner, Stevens said they are "two totally different types of individuals."
"Point Given has traveled all over the United States. He's won all over the place," Stevens said. "He handles getting dirt kicked in his face fine.
Point Given probably would throw dirt at his rivals, if he could. He's a mischievous child. He has thrown his regular exercise rider, Jose "Pepe" Aragon, and often rears on his hind legs. "Pepe thinks it's funny," Baffert said, shaking his head. "He's so big, when he goes up, he gets really high." Several times, Baffert said, Point Given has "gotten up on his hind feet and fallen over."
To try to keep Point Given from acting up on the track, both Aragon and Dana Barnes, who rides Point Given in his workouts, don't allow him to dawdle.
"When you hit the track, you've got to go," Baffert said. "You can't give him a chance to think, or he'll be a handful. If you brought him out and stopped, he'd be like a grizzly bear." When the colt pulls up after a workout, "we get him off the track right away," Baffert said.
Point Given is better behaved on work days. "He never tries to pull anything with Dana," Baffert said. "He knows if she's on, it's business."
Back at the barn, however, Point Given will continue playing. Baffert assigned Point Given to one of his top grooms, Roberto Luna, a large, quiet man who was the groom for Silverbulletday.
But Point Given tests Luna, too. "He's gotten loose. He runs away to Mandella's barn," Baffert said, referring to Richard Mandella, whose barn is adjacent to Baffert's barn at Santa Anita.
As long as Point Given's attitude is good-natured, Baffert will tolerate it. "He's just playful. He's not mean," Baffert said. But, Baffert admitted, "he keeps us on pins and needles."
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By Jay Privman
ARCADIA, Calif. - Point Given, leaving no doubt as to his position among the nation's 3-year-olds, overpowered five rivals in Saturday's $750,000 Santa Anita Derby and now heads to Louisville as the favorite for next month's Kentucky Derby.
Point Given could not have been any more impressive. He showed unusual speed leaving the gate to get early position, engaged pacesetter Crafty C.T. midway down the backstretch, then drew off with his long, powerful strides to cruise to a 5 1/2-length victory over Crafty C.T. It was another three lengths back to I Love Silver in third.
Palmeiro was fourth, followed by Cherokee Kim and Scorpion, whose last-place finish continued a disastrous spring for his trainer, D. Wayne Lukas. Scorpion returned with a nasty gash on his right front hoof.
Early Flyer and Startac were scratched, the latter because the track was off. The trainers of both colts said they would run in Saturday's $200,000 California Derby at Bay Meadows.
The track was rated wet-fast after an inch of rain fell here Friday night and Saturday morning. The track was sealed Saturday morning, and workouts were not permitted. Point Given covered 1 1/8 miles in an excellent 1:47.77. This was the first time the Santa Anita Derby ad been run on an off track since 1957.
Point Given, the 7-10 favorite, paid $3.40 to win, and he completed a national pick three that began with Distilled in the Illinois Derby and Percy Hope in the Lone Star Derby. It paid $28.60 for $1.
Point Given, a colt by Thunder Gulch out of the Turkoman mare Turko's Turn, has now won five times in eight starts for his owner and breeder, Prince Ahmed Salman's The Thoroughbred Corporation. Point Given finished second in each of his three losses. Saturday's winning purse of $450,000 brought his total earnings to $1,218,500.
Both Bob Baffert, the trainer of Point Given, and jockey Gary Stevens scored record-equaling victories in the race. Baffert won the Santa Anita Derby for the fourth time, tying Lukas; Baffert has had eight starters in the race to Lukas's 30. Stevens won the race for the eighth time, tying him with Bill Shoemaker.
"That's pretty select company, and quite an honor," Stevens said.
Point Given broke sharply from the inside post and went with Crafty C.T. for the first furlong. Stevens then let Crafty C.T. go, and switched Point Given to the outside, where he stalked Crafty C.T. until midway down the backstretch. "I just had to pull the trigger when it was time," Stevens said.
Point Given cruised to the lead on the turn, then kicked clear once Stevens tapped him on the shoulder at the top of the stretch. Stevens said Point Given was ready for the next step.
"The last time I felt this confident was in 1988 with Winning Colors," Stevens said, referring to his first Kentucky Derby victory. "She's the only [Santa Anita] Derby winner I've ridden that won with the comfort level that this colt did today."
Baffert said Point Given would be flown to Kentucky on April 18.
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By Blood Horse Staff
The Thoroughbred Corp.'s homebred Point Given tracked pacesetter Crafty C.T. through the early going, went by the leader approaching the second turn, and pulled clear in the stretch to an impressive 5 1/2-length victory in Saturday's $750,000 Santa Anita Derby (gr. I). On a track listed as muddy, Point Given completed the 1 1/8 miles in 1:47.77 under jockey Gary Stevens.
"He jumped out of the gate very well," Stevens said. "From the half-mile pole on he was just dragging me."
The win marks the eighth time Stevens has won the race, tying him with Bill Shoemaker for most Santa Anita Derby wins by a jockey.
"Bob (Baffert, Point Given's trainer) said he was wondering what I was going to do from the half-mile pole home, when I was in front so easy, and believe it or not, at the three-eights pole, it did come into my mind, that I was about to tie (Bill) Shoemaker (for most Santa Anita Derby wins). That's pretty select company and quite an honor."
Eddie Delahoussaye said he thought his horse, Crafty C.T., didn't handle the wet track very well but was pleased with his colt's performance.
"He ran his heart out," Delahoussaye said. "The only thing I didn't like about my horse was that he didn't handle the track as well as I would have liked. I'm not saying we would have beaten the winner, but he would have turned in a much better performance if he'd been grabbing right. ... When I saw Point Given laying up there in second, I knew they were changing strategy today. So when we were going into the first turn, I thought I'd try to tighten it up on them, but Gary saw what I was doing and he eased back and went around. So that's another thing about Point Given, he's versatile. I'm not surprised because I rode against him in a maiden race at Del Mar, and he showed speed that day. It's just another one of his weapons."
The win was the second in two starts as a 3-year-old for Point Given, who currently stands as the 5-2 favorite in Pool Three of Churchill Downs' Kentucky Derby Future Wager. Point Given (Thunder Gulch -- Turko's Turn, by Turkoman) has won five of eight career starts, while finishing second in each of his three losses, including a nose defeat in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I). He earned $450,000 for the win, increasing his career earnings to $1,218,500.
"We know he can handle the mud," Baffert said. "He answered that question."
Crafty C.T. finished second, three lengths ahead of I Love Silver. Palmeiro, Cherokee Kim, and Scorpion completed the order of finish. Startac and Early Flyer were scratched.
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ARCADIA, Calif. (AP) -- As Point Given shot around the final turn, jockey Gary Stevens knew he was about to put his name beside that of a horse racing legend.
"About the three-eighths pole it came to my mind that I was about to tie Bill Shoemaker," Stevens said after equaling The Shoe's record of eight wins in the Santa Anita Derby on Saturday. "That's pretty selective company and a real honor."
Stevens now is in position to win the Kentucky Derby for the fourth time. Point Given's 5 1/2-length victory over Crafty C.T. solidified his role as favorite for the Derby on May 5 at Churchill Downs.
One of Stevens' Kentucky Derby wins came in 1995 on Thunder Gulch, the sire of Point Given.
The victory by the strapping chestnut colt gave trainer Bob Baffert his fourth in the race and tied him with D. Wayne Lukas. Point Given will leave for Louisville on April 18, where he will train for his bid to give Baffert a third Kentucky Derby win.
"I don't worry about things like that," Baffert said of tying Lukas. "We're trainers, we live from one big horse to another."
Point Given also solved gift-giving problems for Baffert.
The colt races for the Thoroughbred Corp. of Prince Ahmed Salman of Saudi Arabia. The prince was in Riyadh where his wife gave birth to a son a few days ago, but saw the race on television.
"What do you send a guy who has everything," Baffert said. "So I gave him the Santa Anita Derby."
Point Given took the lead with a little more than a half-mile remaining and scored his second impressive win in two starts as a 3-year-old.
He carried scale weight of 122 pounds over 1 1-8 miles in 1:47 3-5 on a muddy track in beating Crafty C.T. I Love Silver was another 3 lengths back and was followed by Palmeiro, Cherokee Kim and Scorpion.
Early Flyer and Startac were scratched.
Overnight rain totaling 1 inch produced the fourth off track in the 64-year history of the Santa Anita Derby and the first since 1957. By race time, however, the sun was shining.
Point Given paid $3.40, $2.40 and $2.10 and earned $450,000 from a purse of $750,000. Crafty C.T., ridden by Eddie Delahoussaye, returned $2.80 and $2.40, and I Love Silver, ridden by Laffit Pincay Jr., paid $2.10.
"He was traveling so easy under me," Stevens said. "It's like I had a loaded cannon, and all I had to do was pull the trigger."
"We know he can handle the mud," Baffert said. "He answered that question."
Crafty C.T. broke on top and led Point Given until the winner passed him approaching the half-mile pole. I Love Silver made a bid on the final turn, but when the field hit the stretch the Santa Anita Derby became a one-horse race.
It was Point Given's fifth win in eight career starts. He's never been worse than second.
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By Bill Christine
When you look at Point Given, a strapping example of thoroughbred horseflesh, it's hard to find any faults. But the colt does eat too much. And sometimes at the barn, he feels neighborly and runs off to visit other horses. Also, when he gets the lead in his races, he has a tendency to loaf.
No one's perfect, and trainer Bob Baffert and jockey Gary Stevens are addressing these minor defects. Since December, Baffert has had Point Given on a diet of sorts, though it hardly shows. He has lost all of 26 pounds and while down to 1,260 pounds he's still the biggest, most intimidating horse in the barn. In his races, as he did Saturday, Stevens will tap Point Given on the shoulder with the whip, just to make sure that his interest isn't flagging.
If Point Given has room to improve--shedding a few more pounds and paying more attention through the stretch--then his opponents face even greater trouble in the Kentucky Derby. Point Given's 5 1/2-length victory in the Santa Anita Derby before 31,759 was so authoritative that no matter what Monarchos, the Florida Derby winner, does next Saturday in the Wood Memorial, Baffert's colt will be the favorite May 5 at Churchill Downs.
"Point Given is the real thing," said trainer Howard Zucker, whose Crafty C.T. led Saturday for almost six furlongs before finishing second. "If he doesn't win the Triple Crown, something's wrong."
Point Given, who has now won three in a row and five of eight starts overall, showed new dimensions. He raced on an off track for the first time--completing 1 1/8 miles in a sharp 1:47 3/5 over a strip listed as wet fast--and tactically he gave Baffert and Stevens more to work with.
"Based on what I saw today, you can put him anywhere," Baffert said. "On the lead, off the pace, whatever."
Stevens, who has won the last three Santa Anita derbies in which he has ridden, won it for the eighth time, tying the record held by Bill Shoemaker. Stevens, who missed last year's race, temporarily retired because of arthritic knees, has amassed his total with 13 mounts since 1988.
"I'm in pretty select company with Shoe," Stevens said. "It's quite an honor."
These last three Stevens victories in the Santa Anita Derby have all come with Baffert horses--Indian Charlie (1998) and General Challenge (1999) preceding Point Given. Baffert's other win in the stake was with Cavonnier in 1996, but his two Kentucky Derby victories--with Silver Charm in 1997 and Real Quiet in 1998--came with horses that ran second in the Santa Anita Derby. Wayne Lukas is the only other trainer with four Santa Anita Derby winners.
"All I asked Gary to do was bring him back so tired that I won't have to do much with him between now and the Kentucky Derby," Baffert said.
Stevens had to gallop out Point Given an extra eighth of a mile past the finish, and still the colt didn't look fatigued. The Derby distance of 1 1/4 miles should not be an obstacle.
"I have to apologize to Bob about not getting him tired," Stevens said. "He's pretty fit right now, and he barely broke a sweat today. At the top of the stretch, he was just galloping. When he got to the front, he responded better today than he did in his last race."
A son of Thunder Gulch, winner of the 1995 Kentucky Derby with Stevens aboard, and the Turkoman mare Turko's Turn, Point Given paid $3.40 as the heavy favorite. He earned $450,000, sending his career purses over the $1.2-million mark. Point Given is owned and was bred by Amed Salman, the Saudi Arabian prince who excitedly watched on television back home, where his wife gave birth to their son last week.
I Love Silver, second to Point Given in the San Felipe Stakes, was third this time, beaten by 8 1/2 lengths. With Early Flyer and Startac scratched, the rest of the order of finish was Palmeiro, Cherokee Kim and Scorpion, one of the last hopes for Lukas, a four-time Kentucky Derby winner. None of the horses behind Point Given are expected to run in the Kentucky Derby.
Crafty C.T., who had won the San Rafael Stakes on the lead, set the early pace with fractions of :22 2/5 and :46 2/5. Point Given, who broke from the inside post, was a length off the lead after half a mile and collared Crafty C.T. going into the far turn.
"I let Gary pass me," said Eddie Delahoussaye, who rode Crafty C.T. "I tried to come back on, but the other horse was superior. Point Given was awesome. When we were going to the first turn, I thought I'd try to tighten up on them, but Gary saw what I was doing and eased back and went around. So that's another thing about Point Given, he's versatile. It's just another one of his weapons."
Baffert said he didn't know what to expect because of the wet track, but Stevens sensed from the start that this was going to be another of Point Given's banner days.
"Once I got to slide to the outside at the seven-eighths pole on the first turn, I was very, very confident," Stevens said. "He was traveling so easy underneath me. It was like he was in a high gallop, just like in the San Felipe. It was like I had a loaded cannon and all I had to do was pull the trigger when it was time."
Besides Thunder Gulch and Silver Charm, Stevens' other Kentucky Derby winner was Winning Colors, the filly who won in 1988 after winning the Santa Anita Derby by 7 1/2 lengths.
"Winning Colors was the last time I went into a Derby with a comfort level that I'll have for this one," Stevens said. "This is a very, very special horse."
According to Baffert, who won two other races on the 11-race card, Point Given is a cross between "an eating machine" and a "locomotive." The colt will be flown to Louisville on April 18. If the ongoing diet doesn't work better by then, Baffert may have to ask Churchill Downs for special accommodations.
"This horse is big," he said. "He's so big that when you pull him out of his stall, he just keeps coming."
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by Steve Haskin
It's rare to see perfection in a young colt prepping for the Kentucky Derby, but that's just about what we saw from Point Given in the Santa Anita Derby. Frankly, we can't think of anything left for this colt to prove. Taking every factor into consideration, other than soundness, we've got a horse who has the right trainer; the right jockey; the right pedigree; is a dual qualifier; is not only bigger and stronger than his opponents, but is also quicker and faster; can come from the clouds, lay in mid-pack, or stalk the leaders; can handle dry and wet tracks; and has already shown he likes Churchill Downs.
By getting beaten a nose in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, he doesn't have the stigma of winning that race or being the 2-year-old champion hanging over his head. After annihilating his opponents on Saturday, all that was left was to watch the head-on replay to see how straight he ran through the stretch. He chose a path several yards off the rail and never left it the entire length of the stretch.
Gary Stevens, having looked back a couple of times on the far turn for any sign of competition, just waved his stick at Point Given, who drew off with ease, while striding out magnificently in the final furlong. His final time was a razor-sharp 1:47 3/5. Stevens, concerned that the colt might not have had to work hard enough to get him good and tight for the Derby, gave him a little back-handed flick of the whip across the shoulder after crossing the wire, then smooched to him two or three times. The big chestnut continued on with good energy, widening his margin with every stride. We timed that last eighth galloping out in :13.38, which is technically :13 1/5, but more realistically :13 2/5. That means Point Given galloped out the Derby distance of 1 1/4 miles in either 2:00 4/5 or 2:01, depending on how you want to look at it. Either way, they rarely run the Derby that fast. He also came home his final quarter in :24 3/5 and final eighth in :12 1/5.
Crafty C.T., a classy front-runner who was considered by many as a major threat in this race, had no answer when the big chestnut train roared alongside him between the five-eighths and half-mile pole. When Point Given opened a clear lead on the turn, one might have thought a horse with his humongous stride might lose interest and begin to pull himself up. But he was all business and just kept pouring it on. Crafty C.T.'s trainer Howard Zucker was effusive in his praise for the winner. "Bet your Triple Crown money now," he said. "If this horse doesn't win the Triple Crown, there's something wrong. He was scary when he won the San Felipe and he's twice as scary now. Those guys back there better watch out. If anybody comes out of this race to go back there, they're out of their mind. Look at him, he's a tree."
Well, you remember what Alfred Joyce Kilmer said about trees: "...only God can make a tree." Now, it's up to the Derby gods to decide what they have in store for this big oak on the first Saturday in May.
After a solo performance like this, Bob Baffert will no doubt put some serious works into Point Given over the next four weeks. Thoro-Graph's Jerry Brown said it's difficult to get a good line on the Santa Anita Derby this quickly because of the drying out track and small field, but he figures Point Given should get somewhere around a "1" after getting a "2 1/2" in the San Felipe. (Under Thoro-Graph's system, the lower number indicates the better performance.) From a speed figure standpoint, Point Given has reached about as far down the well as most horses can. But with him, it looks as if he hasn't even come close to hitting the bottom, which is why Brown believes Baffert has left enough in the tank to put three more enormous efforts into the colt. No one wants to come out and say it, but that spells a very tough horse for the entire Triple Crown series.
Tony Allevato, executive producer of TVG, shared an interesting tidbit of information with us. If Point Given wins the Kentucky Derby, Gary Stevens will become the first jockey in history to ride a father and son to victory in the Run for the Roses. Stevens rode 24-1 shot Thunder Gulch to win the 121st Derby in 1995. As rare as that is, Jerry Bailey has the same opportunity if he sticks with Hero's Tribute. Sea Hero, sire of Hero's Tribute, won the 1993 Derby under Bailey at 13-1 odds.
As for the others in the Santa Anita Derby, it's hard to tell if they simply were outrun or didn't care for the wet track, which did seem to favor speed most of the day. Earlier on the card, we saw Tribunal, coming off a third in the Santa Anita Handicap, make a strong run at the leaders on the far turn of the San Bernardino Handicap, only to fizzle out in the stretch and finish a well-beaten third. In the Santa Anita Derby, I Love Silver made a similar run, in which he split horses at the five-sixteenths pole and quickly burst into contention. It looked as if he we were going to give Point Given a run for his money, but he too flattened out, finishing a well-beaten third.
Palmeiro, who we felt would run a much better race, never was in the hunt at any point. So, it looks as if we're only going to get one horse coming out of the race.
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ARCADIA, Calif. -- As Point Given shot around the final turn, jockey Gary Stevens knew he was about to put his name beside that of a horse racing legend.
"About the three-eighths pole it came to my mind that I was about to tie Bill Shoemaker," Stevens said after equaling The Shoe's record of eight wins in the Santa Anita Derby on Saturday. "That's pretty selective company and a real honor."
Stevens now is in position to win the Kentucky Derby for the fourth time. Point Given's 5½-length victory over Crafty C.T. solidified his role as favorite for the Derby on May 5 at Churchill Downs.
One of Stevens' Kentucky Derby wins came in 1995 on Thunder Gulch, the sire of Point Given.
The victory by the strapping chestnut colt gave trainer Bob Baffert his fourth in the race and tied him with D. Wayne Lukas. Point Given will leave for Louisville on April 18, where he will train for his bid to give Baffert a third Kentucky Derby win.
"I don't worry about things like that," Baffert said of tying Lukas. "We're trainers, we live from one big horse to another."
Point Given also solved gift-giving problems for Baffert.
The colt races for the Thoroughbred Corp. of Prince Ahmed Salman of Saudi Arabia. The prince was in Riyadh where his wife gave birth to a son a few days ago, but saw the race on television.
"What do you send a guy who has everything," Baffert said. "So I gave him the Santa Anita Derby."
Point Given took the lead with a little more than a half-mile remaining and scored his second impressive win in two starts as a 3-year-old.
He carried scale weight of 122 pounds over 1 1/8 miles in 1:47 3/5 on a muddy track in beating Crafty C.T. I Love Silver was another three lengths back and was followed by Palmeiro, Cherokee Kim and Scorpion.
Early Flyer and Startac were scratched.
Overnight rain totaling an inch produced the fourth off track in the 64-year history of the Santa Anita Derby and the first since 1957. By race time, however, the sun was shining.
Point Given paid $3.40, $2.40 and $2.10 and earned $450,000 from a purse of $750,000. Crafty C.T., ridden by Eddie Delahoussaye, returned $2.80 and $2.40, and I Love Silver, ridden by Laffit Pincay Jr., paid $2.10.
"He was traveling so easy under me," Stevens said. "It's like I had a loaded cannon, and all I had to do was pull the trigger."
"We know he can handle the mud," Baffert said. "He answered that question."
Crafty C.T. broke on top and led Point Given until the winner passed him approaching the half-mile pole. I Love Silver made a bid on the final turn, but when the field hit the stretch the Santa Anita Derby became a one-horse race.
It was Point Given's fifth win in eight career starts. He's never been worse than second.
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ARCADIA, Calif. -- A colt like Point Given makes Gary Stevens' aching knees feel better.
Stevens, 37, who retired from riding for 10 months because of degenerative arthritis in his knees, will ride favored Point Given Saturday in the Santa Anita Derby.
"As you know, there is no cure for it," Stevens said of the arthritis. "But as long as I keep riding the likes of War Chant and Point Given, the knees are fine."
Stevens won the Breeders' Cup Mile on now-retired War Chant last Nov. 4, a month after ending his retirement. Point Given, an impressive winner of the San Felipe in his 3-year-old debut March 17, is the early favorite for the Kentucky Derby May 5.
The huge chestnut colt, trained by Bob Baffert, is the even-money favorite in the early line to win the 1 1/8-mile Santa Anita Derby. He has four victories and three seconds in seven career starts.
"He reminds me of his father," said Stevens, who scored one of his three Kentucky Derby wins in 1995 on Thunder Gulch, Point Given's sire. "He's very workmanlike on the race track."
Stevens has won the Santa Anita Derby seven times.
The second choice at 9-5 is Crafty C.T., who did not race last year but has two victories and a second this year. In his stakes debut, he was an impressive front-running winner of the one mile San Rafael March 3.
Others entered were I Love Silver, second in the San Felipe; Palmeiro, runner-up in the San Rafael; Early Flyer, winner of the San Vicente and third in the San Rafael, and Scorpion, Startac and Cherokee Kim.
Indications were that Early Flyer would be scratched and sent to Bay Meadows for the California Derby April 14.
Despite Point Given's size -- the colt stands 17 hands and weighs 1,280 pounds -- Stevens said he was "very athletic."
"He's very nimble on his feet for as big as he is," Stevens said. "He can change direction quicker than any horse I've ridden. He a combination of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. He can slam dunk or sit back and hit a 3-pointer."
As for Point Given going to the Kentucky Derby off only two starts this year, Stevens said, "He's well seasoned, People forget how many races he had as a 2-year-old. The plan was mapped out shortly after the Breeders' Cup last year."
Point Given finished second by a nose to Macho Uno in the 1 1/16-mile Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Churchill Downs, then concluded his 2-year-old campaign by winning the 1 1/16-mile Hollywood Futurity Dec. 16.
Stevens, who has ridden more than 4,500 winners, last won the Santa Anita Derby on the Baffert-trained General Challenge in 1999. He announced his retirement Dec. 26 of that year and worked as a trainer, then as a jockey's agent until he came back last Oct. 4.
Helping him come back was a new remedy that lubricates his joints.
"It has helped my whole body," he said. "I've also reduced my work load quite a bit. I don't know if I'll be riding in five years or five weeks from now."
In four weeks, however, he expects to be riding Point Given in the Kentucky Derby.
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by Steve Schuelein
When trainer Howard Zucker grew up in New York City, he recalled playground basketball games in junior high school against an imposing beanpole named Lew Alcindor, who would go on to bigger and better things as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Zucker felt a similar sensation after sending out second-choice Crafty C. T. against the intimidating presence of The Thoroughbred Corp’s. Point Given in the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby (G1) on April 7. Point Given enhanced his credentials for Kentucky Derby (G1) favoritism on May 5 by pulling away in the stretch to win by 5 1/2 lengths over a game but overmatched Crafty C. T. in 1:47.77 for 1 1/8 miles on a wet-fast track. I Love Silver finished third, another three lengths back, in the field reduced to six by the scratches of Startac and Early Flyer.
"That other horse is the real thing," said Zucker of the big, nimble colt that jockey Gary Stevens has likened to National Basketball Association star Shaquille O’Neal. "He could win the Triple Crown."
Stevens and trainer Bob Baffert like their chances in the Run for the Roses with Point Given after the strapping son of 1995 champion and Kentucky Derby winner Thunder Gulch stalked the early pace, took command under a hold approaching the far turn, and drew off in the lane under a shower of accolades from track announcer Trevor Denman.
"The last time I felt this positive going to Kentucky was in 1988 with Winning Colors," said Stevens, referring to the amazon filly who won the Santa Anita Derby by 7 1/2 lengths in nearly identical time before winning the Kentucky Derby. Stevens equaled Bill Shoemaker’s record of eight Santa Anita Derby victories, while Baffert tied D. Wayne Lukas with his fourth victory in the race.
At this time last year, Stevens was in the midst of a nine-month retirement caused by arthritic knees. Meanwhile, Anees, the colt Stevens rode to win the 1999 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) for The Thoroughbred Corp., struggled to a fourth-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby before eventually being retired to stud at Mill Ridge Farm near Lexington without another victory. Stevens returned to the saddle a month before riding Point Given to a fast-closing second-place finish in the 2000 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last November. Now he hopes to present Ahmed bin Salman, owner of The Thoroughbred Corp., with his first Kentucky Derby victory.
Richard Mulhall, general manager of The Thoroughbred Corp., relayed the good news by cell phone to Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he and his wife celebrated the birth of his first son, Faisel, a few days earlier.
"What do you send somebody who has everything?" asked Baffert rhetorically. "His first Santa Anita Derby victory."
Point Given, recording his third straight victory, won for the fifth time in eight starts to become the sport’s newest millionaire-the $450,000 first-place prize raised his earnings to $1,218,500. A crowd of 31,759 was on hand to witness his triumph.
"He’s so big, he intimidates us in the morning," said Baffert of the chestnut colt. "He barely fits into the stall. He’s an eating machine. I had to keep him on a diet all winter. He is the only horse I ever weighed. He weighed 1,286 pounds before the Hollywood Futurity (G1) in December, and he was 1,260 today.
"He’s a big kid, finally growing into this man. He’s like a locomotive. I didn’t sleep after 3 a.m. this morning after I heard the rain hitting the roof, but now we know he likes the mud, too. You can place him anywhere. I just told Gary to bring him back tired so I wouldn’t have to do much with him the next 30 days. We plan to leave for Kentucky on April 18."
Stevens added with a smile, "He didn’t come back tired, and I apologize to Bob. He barely broke out in a sweat. He’s dead fit. He was just galloping entering the stretch. He showed in his last race he would respond in front, and he did more so today."
Point Given, the 0.70-to-1 favorite, had little trouble overcoming the rail post. "People forget this horse has a lot of natural speed, and he is a lot sharper than he was last year," said Stevens.
Zucker had seen enough of the burgeoning giant. He said Crafty C. T. would get a rest, skip the Triple Crown, and try to avoid Point Given in any future races.
Dean Greenman, trainer of I Love Silver, also was not interested in a rematch in Louisville. He listed the Preakness (G1) or Peter Pan (G2) Stakes as future possibilities.
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GARY STEVENS, POINT GIVEN, WINNER: "No, he didn't come back tired and I apologized to Bob (Baffert) already. I made him (Point Given) gallop out another eighth of a mile. Bob said he was wondering what I was going to do from the half-mile pole home, when I was in front so easy, and believe it or not, at the three-eights pole, it did come into my mind, that I was about to tie (Bill) Shoemaker (for most Santa Anita Derby wins, eight). That's pretty select company and quite an honor. Once I got to slide to the outside at the seven-eighths pole on the first turn, I was very, very confident. He was just traveling so easy up underneath me. It was like he was in a high gallop, just like (in) the San Felipe. It was like I had had a loaded cannon and alls I had to do was pull the trigger when it was time."
BOB BAFFERT, POINT GIVEN, WINNER: "He likes the mud. We found that out today. I really didn't know what to expect today. I knew he was doing great, so I almost told him (Stevens) to jump him out of there and maybe put it to him early, and if he got beat, I didn't want to take the blame for it, so I'm glad that Gary decided to do that (press Crafty C.T. early). I just told him to bring him back tired so I don't have to do that much with him the next 30 days. He's scheduled to leave for Kentucky on the 18th (of April). I'm looking forward to going to my old suite at the Executive West and camp out there."
(On tying Lukas for most Santa Derby wins): "I don't worry about stuff like that. Trainers, we just live from one big horse to another, so we're just hoping to get another one next year. Hopefully, the Prince (Ahmed bin Salman) and Richard Mulhall will lay some of these monsters in my lap again. I just feel fortunate that The Thoroughbred Corp. came to me at a time when I really needed them. I had just lost a big owner (Aaron Jones) and Richard said we'll pick your head up and you'll pick some horses and we'll give you some, and one of them happened to be him (Point Given). I remember one choice never made it to the races, but that happens. This business is all timing and being in the right place at the right time. You can't take things for granted. You never know when somebody's going to help you out. The Prince just had a baby boy and he's so excited about it, he said this could be the best gift that I could give him. I was thinking of something to send him, but what do you send a guy who has everything? He didn't have a Santa Anita Derby (win), so this makes it great."
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