LOUISVILLE – Where Julie Krone has been, Jenine Sahadi is hoping to go. Krone, whose election to the Racing Hall of Fame was announced at Churchill Downs yesterday, is the only woman jockey ever to win a Triple Crown race, riding Colonial Affair in the 1993 Belmont.
On Saturday, Sahadi can make history by becoming the first female trainer to win a Triple Crown
race when she runs The Deputy in the Kentucky Derby. Nine other women have saddled a starter in the Derby; only Shelly Riley came close, finishing second with Casual Lies in 1992.
The Deputy, winner of the Santa Anita Derby, is one of 20 horses expected to fill the field for the 126th Run for the Roses when entries are taken this morning. The post draw will be televised live by ESPN from 5-6 p.m. The Derby Day forecast calls for partly cloudy skies and 86 degrees.
Drawing on her own experience, Krone described “the obviousness of what winning the Derby would mean to Jenine.”
“Going into the race, she is just a trainer,” Krone said. “There’s no female aspect that goes into her training. But if she wins the Derby, there’s going to be a double standard of reward because of the acknowledgment and attention of being the first female trainer to do it.
“Maybe when she’s older, she’ll look back in afterthought, like I found myself doing, and say, ‘Can you believe I did that?’ But right now she has no concept of that. She’s so into what she’s doing, there’s such a sense of focus and desire, she will deny any gender-related questions.
“But when it’s over, if she wins, it is going to be a multi-dimensional constellation of things she’s not able to conceive now – because she’s a girl trainer.”
So far Sahadi – the only woman ever to win a Breeders’ Cup race – has done a superb job with The Deputy, who’s never been worse than third in nine starts. As a 2-year-old, the Irish-bred son of Petardia raced exclusively on turf in England, and in first start for Sahadi he won a grass stakes at Santa Anita in his debut as a 3-year-old.
Then The Deputy showed a new dimension. In his first start on dirt, he won the Santa Catalina. Next, he was a close second in the San Felipe to Derby favorite Fusaichi Pegasus. Then came his victory in the Santa Anita Derby. In those three starts, such top Derby contenders as High Yield, War Chant, Captain Steve and Anees finished in his wake.
Barry Irwin, president of Team Valor Stable, which bought The Deputy and imported him to the U.S., explained why he picked Sahadi as the colt’s trainer.
“I thought he had a shot to be a dirt horse because of the way he looks and moves,” Irwin said. “I thought he needed someone that was creative and open-minded, that wasn’t just going to follow the path everyone else followed.
“I don’t have to have a horse with Nick Zito or D. Wayne Lukas to make the Kentucky Derby. There’s plenty of good trainers, and the trick is matching the horse up with the trainer. If they click, then you get there.”
Yesterday, with Derby jock Chris McCarron up, The Deputy showed there’s plenty of gas left in the tank by turning in one of the morning’s best workouts, five furlongs in 1:00.
The early fractions were steady: :24.1, :37 and :48.2. He galloped out six furlongs strongly in 1:13.
“I couldn’t be happier,” said McCarron, a Hall of Famer who’s won the Derby with longshots Alysheba and Go for Gin. “I know you’ve all heard that before, but after three weeks here a lot of horses are drawn with their heavy work schedule. But he’s held his weight extremely well and is still strong.”
McCarron said The Deputy is “no different” from when he won the Santa Anita Derby.
“I’d love to say he’s better,” he said. “But he was so good going into the Santa Anita Derby I don’t know if a horse could get any better than he was.
“I’m pleased to say he’s not regressed either. I’m just thrilled with all the signs he’s showing. He’s a very happy horse.”
Although The Deputy has been facing short fields in California, he’s the only horse with experience in a huge crowd of horses, having run in a 21-horse field in England.
“I saw the race on tape,” McCarron said. “That day he was stuck behind a wall of horses that was going nowhere. He finally found some room down on the fence, got free at the eighth pole with six or seven lengths to make up, and he was flying. He got beat a head.”
Three years ago, Team Valor came here with the Derby favorite, Captain Bodgit. He finished furiously but lost to Silver Charm in a photo finish.
“Thanks for reminding me,” said Irwin. “Am I surprised to be here with another horse like this? Not at all. I want to come back every year. I’m an optimistic kind of guy.”