Palace Malice Wins Belmont Stakes 2013

 The other day, Palace Malice zoomed to the lead in the Belmont Stakes, with Orb waiting to make his move. Orb tried to catch up and take the lead, but failed. Oxbow passed him and placed third.

Belmont Stakes 2013, Part 2

The next seven horses are listed below:

Revolutionary(credit)
Revolutionary was sired byWar Pass. He broke his maiden
on Aqueduct's inner track, then won several stake races back-to-back,
including the Grade 3 Withers and the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby.
Out of seven starts, he has never placed worse than third.

Golden Soul(credit)
Golden Soul is out of Hollywood Gold, the
daughter of Mr. Prospector, the half-brother of Quintons Gold Rush.
His sire is Perfect Soul. One of his best finishes this year was when he ran second 11 1/2 lengths behind Oxbow
in the LeComte. He also finished third behind Orb in the Kentucky Derby.

Unlimited Budget(credit)
Unlimited Budget was sired by Street Sense. Her dam is Unlimited
Pleasure. As a two-year-old, she was purchased for $475,000.
In November of last year, she won her first start by 9 1/2 lengths,
then won three consecutive stake races:Grade 2 Demoiselle last year,
and the Grade 3 Rachel Alexandria and the Grade 2 Fair Ground Oaks
this year. Her first defeat came when her stablemate Princess of Sylmar and
two-year-old filly champion Beholder beat he in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks.
She will be the 23rd filly to compete in the Belmont. Only three fillies have won:
Ruthless in 1867, Tanya in 1905, and Rags to Riches in 2007.

Midnight Taboo(credit)
Midnight Taboo was sired by Langfuhr. His dam, Hot Red, was sired by
Thunder Gulch, who won the 1995 Belmont. In 2011, he was bought for $240,000
at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale. He raced only once as a two-year-old,
coming second at Saratoga, and broke his maiden this year in a mile long race at Aqueduct,
defeating older, more experienced horses. Next he placed second to Irsaal, a
well-regarded horse.

Palace Malice(credit)
Palace Malice is the son of two-time Horse of
the Year Curlin and the dam Palace Rumor. His only victory
was in his maiden race at Saratoga. This year,  out of five starts
he has two seconds, one at Gulfstream and the other in the
Grade 1 Blue Grass, and one third in Grade 2 Risen Star.

Vyjack(credit)
Vyjack was sired by Into Mischief, and his dam is Life Happened.
He won the first four starts of his career, which were all at
Aqueduct, including the Grade 2 Jerome and the
Grade 3 Gotham. He placed 18th in the Kentucky Derby and hasn't raced
since. Also, he is attempting to be the third gelding to
win the Belmont, the others being Creme Fraiche in
1985 and Ruler on Ice in 2011. His name comes from
his owner David Wilkenfield's parents: Vivienne
and Jack.

Will Take Charge(credit)
Will Take Charge was sired by Unbridled's Song, winner of
the 1995 Breeders' Cup Juvenile and the 1996 Florida Derby
and Wood Memorial. His dam is Take Charge Lady. In
his lifetime, he has only won two stake races: The Smarty Jones
and the Rebel, and came seventh in the Kentucky Derby an the
Preakness. As a yearling, he was purchased for $425,000.

Orb is 2013's Kentucky Derby Winner

 In this year's Kentucky Derby, Orb came from fifteenth place to capture the Triple Crown's first jewel. It was amazing to watch!
See Kentucky Derby Contestants, Part 2

Kentucky Derby 2013, Part 2

Here are the rest of the horses entering this year's Derby. Comment on which horse you think/want to win.

Charming Kitten(for credit, click here)
Charming Kitten's sire, Kitten's Joy, was an excellant turf runner
with lots of stamina. The question is, how will he perform on
dirt? All of Kitten Joy's foals we are turf runners, so Charming Kitten's
performance on dirt is questionable. His dam's side is even less
promising. Iteration failed to win eleven races. Charming
Kitten's ranking is eighteen.

Orb(for credit, click here)
Orb has a very promising pedigree, with a balance of both
speed and stamina. Malibu Moon, his sire, gives him speed.
He is infused with tremendous stamina from his dam, Lady Liberty.
Lady Liberty excelled at races over 1 1/2 miles. Orb is ranked 1.

Will Take Charge(for credit, click here)
Will Take Charge is sired by Unbridled's
Song. Unbridled's Song, son of 1990 Derby
winner, Unbridled, was not bred for long
distances. Take Charge Lady
also ran in the shorter races. However, she
won or placed in 16 stake races, and earned
$2.4 million. Will Take Charge is ranked
9.

Java's War(for credit, click here)
Java's War inherits plenty of stamina
form his dam, Java, but Java was a turf
horse. Already, he is showing that
he does not like to run on dirt.
War Pass, is his sire.
Java's War is ranked 4.

Frac Daddy(for credit, click here)
Frac Daddy has great potential, and a lot of stamina from his
dam's side. Scat Daddy, his sire, performed well in 2007,
his only poor performance being the Kentucky Derby.
Skipper's Mate, his dam, performed anywhere between 1 1/2
to 2 mile over hurdles in England. Frac Daddy is ranked
14. 

Itsmyluckyday(for credit, click here)
Itsmyluckyday is by Lawyer Ron, a champion who
performed best at 1 1/8 miles. His dam, Viva La Slew, however, was
better at speed. Her grandsire is Seattle Slew, the 1974 Triple Crown winner. Itsmyluckyday is ranked 10.

Falling Sky(for credit, click here)
Falling Sky's pedigree does not look
too promising, given the Derby's 1 1/4 mile
distance. Lion Heart, his sire, always took
early leads, and consequently came second
in 2004's Derby. Sea Dragoness, his dam, never
won in races greater than 5 1/2 furlongs.
Falling Sky is ranked 17. 

Lines of Battle(for credit, click here)
Lines of Battle is another one of those horses
with a well-balanced pedigree. His sire, War Front,
was sprinter. Black Speck, his dam, has
produced three other stake winners, including
Homebound and Battle Paint. Lines of Battle is
ranked 7 this season.

Verrazano(for credit, click here)
More Than Ready, his sire, never excelled at distances
greater than a mile, but was a great sprinter. He will rely on his dam,
Enchanted Rock, for stamina. Verrazano is ranked 2

Vyjack(for credit, click here)
Into Mischief, Vyjack's sire, never had a lot of stamina.
His three-year-old season, in which he ran only seven furlong
races, was cut short due to injury. Life Happened, Vyjack's
dam, never raced. Her bloodlines carried speed. Vyjack
is ranked 8.

Giant Finish(for credit, click here)
Frost Giant, Giant Finish's sire, was most famous for
his two victories of 1 1/4 miles. His dam is Apocalyptic. Her
sire, Hickman Creek, is son of Seattle Slew. Giant Finish is
ranked 20.

Kentucky Derby 2013, Part 1

The 2013 Kentucky Derby is right around the corner, and, as usually, I am excited to watch it. It always helps to know which horses are participating, so here you go:

Normandy Invasion(for credit, click here)
Normandy Invasion has a fair chance of winning. His pedigree
is mixture of both speed and stamina. Tapit, Normandy Invasion's
sire, has great stamina, while the speed comes from
Boston Lady, his dam. Normandy Invasion is ranked 13.

Overanalyze(for credit, click here)
Overanalyze's pedigree offers some
encouragement, but not much. His sire is Dixie Union, who is noted for winning the
1 1/8 mile Haskell.His dam has not been raced. Overanalyze is ranked 5.

Palace Malice(for credit, click here)
Palace was bred for longer distances.
His, Curlin, was Horse of the Year---twice.
Palace Rumor, his dam, has produced
three registered foals. Palace Malice
is ranked 12.

Black Onyx(for credit, click here)
Black Onyx's sire is Rock Hard Ten, and his dam is Kalhari Cat.
It is very likely that he inherits enough stamina from Rock Hard Ten
to perform well in the Derby. He has a ranking of 11 this season.

Mylute(for credit, click here)
Most people pass Mylute off as a sprinter, but there is more than
what meets the eye. Midnight Lute, his sire, mostly ran
as a sprinter. Even so, his trainer claimed that he was
something more. He may have inherited stamina
from his granddam, Winning Move, daughter of
Strike the Gold. Strike the Gold was 1991's Derby hero.
Mylute is ranked 15.

Goldencents(for credit, click here)
Goldencent's pedigree leaves most people uncertain
whether he will perform well in the Derby. His sire,
Into Mischief, only raced in seven furlong races
as a three-year-old due to injury. Golden Works, his dam,
only raced in a few six furlong races. Goldencents is
ranked 3.

Oxbow(for credit, click here)
Oxbow, too, is well suited to run a mile and a quarter. His
pedigree is marked with Breeder's Cup Classic
winners, such as his sire, Awesome Again.
Awesome Again is an outstanding sire,
and has sired four Breeders' Cup winners.
Oxbow is ranked 16.

Golden Soul(for photo credit, click here)
Golden Soul is good at the mile and a quarter, but his pedigree
is marked with turf champions. Perfect Soul, his sire,
was champion Canadian turf horse in 2003. On his dam's side
are many European horses. Golden Soul is ranked 19

Revolutionary(for photo credit, click here)
Revolutionary is a favorite among experts, and he inherits
stamina from his dam, Runup the Colors. From his sire, War Pass,
(War Pass was an undefeated two-year-old champion)
he receives blazing speed. He is ranked 6.