Another Triple Crown Winner?

The feat that seemed impossible, that a horse of the modern era could sweep the Triple Crown, suddenly doesn't seem the least bit daunting. It happened, of course, last year, with American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile) and, face it, there's no reason why it can't happen again in 2016.

So much for a son of Uncle Mo not being able to go a mile-and-quarter. So much for the less-than-scintillating speed figures. So much for the knocks on the GI Florida Derby, that when Mohaymen (Tapit) didn't show up the competition was suspect. So much for every last word of criticism leveled at Nyquist (Uncle Mo), criticism that seemed to shadow this horse from the instant his career began.

You can throw it all out the window. That much was obvious Saturday at Churchill Downs in the GI Kentucky Derby as Nyquist pounced on the far turn, spun a bit wide into the stretch and then said goodbye to 19 outclassed rivals. Yes, Exaggerator (Curlin) made a nice run to finish second, but he was never really a serious threat to Nyquist. This was Nyquist's day. Isn't it always?

So hop on his bandwagon. Despite all of Nyquist's accomplishments, there was plenty of room as the 20 horses loaded into the starting gate. But it's about to get crowded.

The horse that so few wanted to recognize as a star is now a superstar. He is unbeaten, a champion, a GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner, a five-time Grade I winner. He is the second coming of Seattle Slew. On paper, anyway.

So how does he lose the rest of the way?

The most obvious answer to that question is that in this sport so many things can go wrong. No one knows that better than he triumvirate of trainer Doug O'Neill, owner Paul Reddam and jockey Mario Gutierrez. They got through two-thirds of the Triple Crown with I'll Have Another (Flower Alley) in 2012 and couldn't even get him to the starting gate for the GI Belmont S. Any horse can go in the wrong direction at any time. Bad luck, bad rides and bad days have combined to trip up so many Triple Crown hopefuls, especially in the Belmont S.

But what will happen if everything goes smoothly for Nyquist between now and Belmont Day? Just how do you beat this guy?

It's too early to tell what the lineup for the GI Preakness S. will be, but it doesn't appear that there are any major horses ready to come out of the woodwork to beat him there. For the Derby winner, the Preakness has become the easiest race by far of the three Triple Crown races because so many quality Kentucky Derby horses don't run back in the Preakness in this day and age. So, how does Nyquist lose the Preakness? He doesn't.

Then it will come down to the Belmont. You might hear once again that there's no way a son of Uncle Mo can go a mile-and-a-half. You'll probably hear that the Triple Crown grind is still too tough and that it's still immensely difficult for a horse to win three races in five weeks, that American Pharoah was a once-in-a-lifetime horse. Should he show up, Exaggerator will have some backers, those who believe the 12 furlongs is perfect for him, the son of 2007 Belmont runner-up Curlin (Smart Strike). We'll surely come up with even more reasons why Nyquist can't win.

But will any of them be creditable? I can't think of one. Sometimes this sport really is simple and oftentimes we tend to overanalyze things. For anyone that bet against or picked against Nyquist Saturday they were definitely guilty of trying too hard. He was clearly the best horse in the race coming in and, really, nothing changed. Nyquist is just better than the rest. That was the story of the 2016 Kentucky Derby.

So it's on to Baltimore and the Preakness. Depending on who runs, Nyquist could be 3-5 there. Maybe lower. And if all goes well, he will head to grand old Belmont Park with a chance to add his name to the list of immortals who have won the Triple Crown.

(Imagine if the sport gets two Triple Crown winners in two years? Will there be a hue and cry that the Triple Crown has become too easy?)

Nyquist hasn't won the Triple Crown yet, but doesn't it feel like he will? This is a very, very good horse.