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 Call for change Some say Derby field should be reduced
Posted: Sunday May 09, 1999 11:29 AM
NEW YORK (CNN/SI) -- Once again, people are calling for the Kentucky Derby to be reduced to 14 starters from the present 20-horse limit. Some say the large field resulted in as many as nine of the 19 starters not getting a fair shot at winning. The loudest complaints, however, seemed to come from professional handicappers, who want to brag about picking the Derby winner. There also have been some yelps from losing trainers. How the big bettors feel about big Derby fields is not known, but it can be assumed that if they feel the situation is not favorable, they lay off. As for most of the people who show up at Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May (151,051 this year), and for those who play office pools and attend parties, the size of the field is not important, nor is picking the right horse. Many of them, for various reasons, don't even get a glimpse of the wrong horse. The manager of a bar-restaurant in midtown New York City drew Charismatic in a pool. So he sent a bartender to a nearby off-track betting parlor to wager $20 on the colt, whose on-track payoff of $64.60 was the third largest in Derby history. To many people, the Derby is much more than a horse race. It's an event. Do only motor racing fans follow the Indy 500? Are parties a big reason to watch the Super Bowl? So it was with Kentucky Derby CXXV. "They call it a roller Derby. It's rough," trainer D. Wayne Lukas said. "But that's what makes it unique." Lukas, of course, was the winning trainer on Saturday for the fourth time, but he has also been in 15 other Derbies in which he lost and in which the smallest fields were 13 twice and the largest were 20 twice and 21 once. Asked about reducing the size of the field, trainer Nick Zito said you shouldn't narrow the dream of running in and winning the Derby. Zito, who has won two Derbies, finished 14th with Stephen Got Even, the second betting favorite, and 17th with Adonis. Trainer Elliott Walden, whose Menifee was beaten by a neck by Charismatic, after being far back and being checked by traffic on the final turn, said he thought about reducing the size of the field, but he also said, "I might win it some day because another horse gets into trouble." One reason for this year's big field was that it was the 125th anniversary of America's Race. On the 100th anniversary, there were 23 starters. There were 21 starters in 1981, after litigation. Since then, however, the 20-limit rule has been made court-proof. Safety, of course, is a concern, but while the Derby is often roughly run, it seems the rough tactics aren't necessarily a result of rough riding. After, all, jockeys have to be aware of the consequences of a spill. One of the problems Saturday was that the filly Three Ring (post No. 2), who was expected to get out and set the pace, allowing the field to string out a bit, was bumped at the start and then had her saddle slip. No rider on any other starter was especially anxious to take the lead, and so the field reached the first turn almost as one. Perhaps a certain number of front runners should be required. Just kidding. It's the Derby. Let it alone, unless the risks can be proven to be unacceptable. And reducing risk doesn't seem to be a main reason behind the calls for change.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. | |||||||||||||||||
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