PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release February 29, 2016
MOHAYMEN SOLIDLY ON TOP; ZULU MOVES TO 6TH IN WEEK 3 OF ULTIMATE KENTUCKY DERBY POLL PRESENTED BY BRISNET.COM
Mohaymen’s impressive victory over Zulu February 27 in Gulfstream Park’s Grade II Fountain of Youth kept Shadwell Stable’s Tapit colt entrenched on top in Week 3 of the Ultimate Kentucky Derby Poll presented Brisnet.com. Trained by Kentucky-raised, New York-based Kiaran McLaughlin, Mohaymen now is 5 for 5 and garnered 11 of 13 first-place votes, the others going to undefeated 2-year-old champion Nyquist, who like Mohaymen is scheduled to meet in the April 2 Florida Derby.
The Ultimate Kentucky Derby poll appears every Monday morning at horseracingradio.net, the website of Eclipse Award-winning Horse Racing Radio Network (HRRN), which is partnering with Brisnet.com, the official data source of the Kentucky Derby, to produce the rankings.
Mohaymen earned a 102 Bris speed figure in the 1 1/16-mile Fountain of Youth, matching his career-best in last fall’s Remsen at 1 1/8 miles.
But a word of caution comes from voter James Scully, Editorial Department head at Brisnet.com and contributor-content manager for TwinSpires.com’s blog and Kentucky Derby website.
“Can’t criticize Saturday’s performance, but waiting for the bubble to burst on Mohaymen after watching the Fountain of Youth,” said Scully, who has Mohaymen on top. “The one advantage he could have, similar to California Chrome in the 2014 Kentucky Derby, is that he may be able to overwhelm a relatively weak field. (Chrome didn’t have to face the top 3-year-old that year, Shared Belief). But I remain optimistic that the three-year run of favorites winning the Kentucky Derby will come to an end.”
The horse making the biggest movement was Zulu, who had been 2 for 2 but had never raced around two turns or on a fast track. The son of Bernardini advanced from No. 9 to No. 6 in the Ultimate Kentucky Derby poll. Zulu earned a 99 Bris speed figure in the Fountain of Youth, matching his prior best in an allowance race.
“The only change is to move Zulu up a bit within the top 10,” said pollster Caton Bredar, the prominent racing analyst who is based at Gulfstream in the winter. “I thought his effort in the Fountain of Youth behind Mohaymen was admirable considering how washed out and unglued he was prior to walking in the gate. That said, he will have to contend with even more pressure pre-race in the future. Also, I dropped Gift Box as he hasn’t been working and would be up against it to make any kind of prep.”
The Ultimate Kentucky Derby Poll presented by Brisnet.com is overseen by five-time Eclipse Award-winning turf writer Jennie Rees, who provides comments on the consensus top 10 at horseracingradio.net.
Other Ultimate pollsters are Michael Beychok, 2012 National Handicapping Champion and Eclipse Award Handicapper of the Year; reigning NHC Tour winner Jonathon Kinchen; Ed DeRosa, director of marketing for Brisnet.com and director of communications for TwinSpires.com; HRRN president and co-founder Mike Penna; Jude Feld, HRRN analyst and former trainer; HRRN analyst and 2014 Miss Connecticut Acacia Courtney; Steve Byk, host of the popular weekday racing show At the Race with Steve Byk, Jim Mulvihill, director of media and industry relations for the National Thoroughbred Racing Association; Gary Palmisano, VIP services manager for Churchill Downs/TwinSpires.com; and Jeff Siegel, long-time horse owner, racing analyst and public handicapper based in California.
About HRRN
The Horse Racing Radio Network is your home for Eclipse Award winning coverage of the biggest events in racing throughout the year. HRRN broadcasts more than 100 stakes races and is the official radio network of the Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup World Championships. HRRN also produces a series of popular talk shows aired throughout the week on SiriusXM satellite radio: Xpressbet Radio on HRRN (Wednesday – Friday, 3-6 p.m. ET), Jock Talk presented by Tito’s Handmade Vodka (Tuesday, 6-7 p.m. ET), Trainer Talk presented by Fasig-Tipton (Wednesday, 6-7 p.m. ET), Brisnet Call In Show (Thursday, 6-7 p.m. ET), Xpressbet Weekend Stakes Preview (Friday, 6-7 p.m. ET) and the Equine Forum (Saturday, 8-10 a.m. ET).
For more information visit www.horseracingradio.net, follow us on Twitter @HRRN and like “Horse Racing Radio Network” on Facebook.
About Brisnet.com
Brisnet.com is the official data source of the Kentucky Derby, TwinSpires.com, and Churchill Downs Inc.’s family of racetracks. Founded in 1971 by Richard “Dick” Broadbent III as Bloodstock Research Information Services, Brisnet.com was the first large-scale website to offer past performances online when it launched in 1996. Acquired by CDI in 1996, Brisnet.com is a leading provider of horse racing information. Follow Brisnet.com on Twitter @Brisnet.
About Jennie Rees
Jennie Rees, a five-time Eclipse Award winner and 2014 inductee into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame’s Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor, covered racing for The (Louisville) Courier-Journal for 32 years before leaving newspaper journalism to specialize in horse-racing communications, advocacy and fan education. Follow her on Twitter @TracksideJennie and at “Trackside Jennie” on Facebook.