ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, May 5, 1996 TAG: 9605070014
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LOUISVILLE, KY.
SOURCE: Associated Press
A son of Unbridled won the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. But his name was Grindstone, not Unbridled's Song.
Guess who trains him? It was D.Wayne Lukas, who extended his incredible streak of victories in Triple Crown races to six.
The streak, however, was not kept alive until the final breathtaking second before a roaring crowd of 142,668 at Churchill Downs.
So close was the finish that Jerry Bailey on Grindstone and Chris McCarron on second-place Cavonnier thought it might have been a dead heat.
``I didn't cheer when I crossed the finish line,'' Bailey said, ``because I didn't know if I'd won.''
The defeat of Unbridled's Song, who finished fifth, extended the streak of beaten favorites to 17, which began after Spectacular Bid's triumph in 1979.
One person who couldn't have been surprised by the upset was Carl Nafzger, who trained Unbridled, the 1990 Derby winner. Nafzger had said that while Unbridled's Song looks more like his sire, Grindstone's racing style had more in common with that of Unbridled.
The official margin was a nose, and it had to be a small nose.
``I've never, never been prouder,'' said Lukas, 60. ``It's the highlight of my career to win this one for Bill Young and Overbrook Farm.''
Young, winning his first Derby at age 78, also bred Grindstone at his Overbrook farm near Lexington, Ky.
Grindstone, who raced as a Young-owned entry with Editor's Note, was one of a Derby-record five starters saddled by Lukas. Prince of Thieves finished third, Editor's Note was sixth, Victory Speech finished 10th and Honour and Glory was 18th in the 19-horse field.
It was the second consecutive year Lukas horses finished first and third in the Derby. Thunder Gulch won last year while Timber Country was the show horse.
``When we hit the wire, we erupted,'' Lukas said. ``Then it hit me right between the eyes: Hell, maybe we didn't win it.''
As Lukas headed toward the rail after the race, he asked practically everyone he met: ``Did we get it? Did we get it? ``Fifty percent said yes. It was great to see the number come up.''
Grindstone got the perfect trip to the winner's circle after breaking from the No.15 post.
``The ride was scarily reminiscent of my ride with Sea Hero,'' said Bailey, who won the Derby with Sea Hero in 1993.
Grindstone broke slowly, and Bailey said ``there were 14 or 15 horses ahead of us, but it looked more like 114 or 115. But I never had to check once and I picked all the right spots.''
Bailey had Grindstone close to the rail in the run down the backstretch, but was back in the pack as Honour and Glory led, followed by Matty G and Unbridled's Song. When the field passed the half-mile pole, Bailey guided Grindstone to the rail as Unbridled's Song took the lead. On the final turn, Grindstone began passing horses, and at the top of the stretch, he moved to the middle of the track to begin his winning drive.
McCarron then sent Cavonnier past tiring Unbridled's Song, ridden by Mike Smith, with about a sixteenth of a mile to go and appeared ready to win before Grindstone came charging up on the outside to grab the glory and the roses.
Grindstone covered the 11/4 miles on a fast track in 2:01 and paid $13.80, $6 and $4. Cavonnier, coupled with Semoran, paid $6.20 and $4.40 after finishing 31/2 lengths in front of Prince of Thieves, who paid $4.60. Fourth-place Halo's Sunshine was another head back.
Completing the order of finish were Unbridled's Song, Editor's Note, Blow Out, Alyrob, Diligence, Victory Speech, Corker, Skip Away, Zarb's Magic, Semoran, In Contention, Louis Quatorze, Matty G, Honour and Glory and Built for Pleasure.
Each starter carried 126 pounds.
For Unbridled's Song, there seemed to be too many problems to overcome.
He had a crack on the hoof and a cut on the heel of his left front foot, and wore bar shoes to protect the injury. He also started from the No.19 post, forcing him to cover more ground at the start of the race.
Buzz Chase, manager of the Ernie Paragallo racing stable, said Unbridled's Song came back sound after the race.
Lukas said after the victory that he had been asked all week to identify his best horse. He was asked again Saturday.
``I'm still confused,'' Lukas said. ``I guess you can say he Grindstone] was the best horse tonight.''
Grindstone had won the Louisiana Derby, but in his final prep for Saturday's run, he finished second to Zarb's Magic in the Arkansas Derby.
Grindstone earned $869,800 from a purse of $1,169,800, boosting his career earnings to $1,224,510 on three victories and two seconds in six starts.
Lukas, who won his only other Derby besides those in the streak with the filly Winning Colors in 1988, broke the record of four starters in a single Derby set by James Rowe Sr. in 1923. Rowe's best finisher that year was sixth-place Enchantment.
The five starters also boosted Lukas' Derby record to 31 starters since 1981.
His incredible Triple Crown streak began in 1994 with victories by Tabasco Cat in the Preakness and Belmont. Thunder Gulch won the Derby last year, then Timber Country won the Preakness and Thunder Gulch came back to win the Belmont.
Lukas had said that if he won his sixth consecutive Triple Crown race, the accomplishment should be chiseled in stone because it would be awfully tough to top.
Not many people thought Lukas could top himself.
LENGTH: Long : 106 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. Jerry Bailey rides Grindstone (left) to the Kentuckyby CNBDerby victory Saturday, barely beating Chris McCarron and Cavonnier.
color. KEYWORDS: HORSE RACING