The Gotham Stakes

The New York road to the Triple Crown got into full gear on St. Patty's Day. Under chilly, threatening skies the 50th edition of this race drew two top contenders, Michael Tabor's Mayakovski and Cynthia Phipps' Saarland. Both colts were coming off long layoffs and in the end both trainers were happy with the results. Mayakovski won this battle running the mile in a respectable 1:34.9 although he drifted out towards the finish line. Saarland ran well and seemed to be closing the gap near the end. The extra eighth of a mile in the Wood Memorial will give us a better idea of these colts' Derby chances.

Mayakovski goes to post in the Gotham

The Wood Memorial

The 78th running of The Wood Memorial, New York's last major prep race leading up to the Kentucky Derby  proved to be an exciting renewal. Laffit Pincay on Medaglia  d'Oro and Pat Day on Buddha ran in tandem from the start of the backstretch to the line. After dueling for the lead for over a mile Buddha reached the line a head in front. Look for both of these horses to be  factors in The Kentucky Derby.

Medaglia d'Oro & Buddha battle in The Wood

The Carter Handicap

The Grade I Carter Handicap for older horses gave fans good reason to stay after the running of the Wood. Eight-year-old Affirmed Success proved he still belongs with the good ones as he swept to the lead at the turn and held on for length victory over long shot Voodoo.

Affirmed Success (center) moves for the lead