Mystik Dan

For trainer Kenny McPeek it was an unforgettable weekend. He struck first with Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) in the GI Kentucky Oaks and came back the next day to win the GI Kentucky Derby with Mystik Dan (Goldencents). McPeek became the first trainer since Plain Ben Jones in 1952 to win both the Oaks and Derby the same year. How did he pull it off? What's next for Mystik Dan? Why was he so confident before each race? Those were among the questions our panel asked McPeek when he appeared...

While still officially remaining on the fence when it comes to whether or not he will run his GI Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan (Goldencents) in the May 18 GI Preakness S., trainer Kenny McPeek confirmed that an appearance in the middle jewel of the Triple Crown is a distinct possibility. "Who wouldn't want to?" he replied when asked if he is leaning toward running in the Preakness. "You only get so many of these windows of opportunity. It would give him a chance to prove himself again and maybe...

Average Joe Racing Stables Ltd. and Dan Wells' Mugatu (Blofeld), an also-eligible entrant in the GI Kentucky Derby and most recently fifth in the Apr. 6 GI Toyota Blue Grass S., will make his next start in the May 18 GI Preakness S., trainer Jeff Engler confirmed Tuesday. "He's getting better. He really moved up on the dirt. His numbers proved it. Seize the Grey (Arrogate), who won the [GII] Pat Day Mile, we finished in front of him in the Blue Grass. I heard Seize the Grey is going...

If you're in this business, chances are you're seeking 'Saturday afternoon horses.' In this new series, we will select a stallion from the previous weekend whose runners particularly impressed. We start with the sire of the most coveted prize of all: this year's GI Kentucky Derby winner. Spendthrift Farm has long called Goldencents "Into Mischief's value sire." As a member of the five-time leading sire's first crop, he was conceived on a $12,500 cover and, while quietly plying his trade with solid runners and numbers that put him at or...

Before anything else, first and foremost we need to acknowledge the unfathomable legacy of Darling My Darling (Deputy Minister) as second dam of both colts denied in an agonizing three-way finish to the GI Kentucky Derby. The odds of that coincidence, for all her elite blood and performance, are best be left to an actuary. In the meantime, however, we should salvage the contrasting narratives aptly condensed, in what remains the definitive test of the American Thoroughbred, by her two grandsons. For our collective obsession with first place is such...

Two days after an exciting three-way photo for the win in the GI Kentucky Derby, public speculation continued to simmer about the roughly-run stretch battle between the second- and third-place finishers. It's the second time in five years that the stewards at Churchill Downs are being openly questioned over why they didn't announce an inquiry to let the public know they were actively investigating a potential infraction in America's most important and historic horse race. But despite the mild controversy that is largely playing out online and on social media,...

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas confirmed both Seize the Grey (Arrogate) and Just Steel (Justify) would go on to Baltimore with an eye on the GI Preakness S. after runs this past Saturday at Churchill Downs, the Maryland Jockey Club announced Monday. Seize the Grey won the GII Pat Day Mile S. while Just Steel wound up 17th in the GI Kentucky Derby. "We'll bring both of ours," Lukas confirmed to the Maryland Jockey Club media Monday. "We will be there Monday." Meanwhile, Derby hero Mystik Dan (Goldencents),...

NBC Sports' presentation of Saturday's Kentucky Derby averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 16.7 million viewers, the largest Derby audience since 18.5 million viewers watched Sunday Silence's 1989 victory on ABC, according to figures released by the network Sunday. Viewership peaked at 20.1 million viewers from 7-7:15 p.m. ET, as Mystik Dan edged Sierra Leone and Forever Young in the Kentucky Derby's first three-horse photo finish since 1947. Saturday's peak audience was the largest ever for an NBC Sports presentation of the Kentucky Derby. With 16.7 million viewers, the...

It was back in 2006 and Brian Hernandez, Jr. was mired in 12th place in the jockey standings at Churchill Downs with 14 wins. It wasn't that he had been a failure. He won an Eclipse Award in 2004 as the nation's top apprentice, winning 243 races that year. And before moving to the Kentucky circuit in 2006, he was among the top riders at Evangeline Downs and Delta Downs in his native Louisiana. It's just that Hernandez had larger goals and he was starting to worry they would never...

Asked to sum up his victory with Mystik Dan (Goldencents) in Saturday's GI Kentucky Derby, trainer Ken McPeek succinctly said, "Wow," Sunday morning on the Churchill Downs backside. An 18-1 outsider, Mystik Dan just held on to a nose victory after a rail-skimming trip under Brian Hernandez, Jr. "Brian Hernandez gave him the ride," a joyous but sleep-deprived McPeek said. "Look, he doesn't win the race without the job Brian did." For his part, Hernandez was appreciative of McPeek's faith in him. "I was fortunate to ride for Kenny," said...

LOUISVILLE, KY -- Trainer Ken McPeek told anyone who would listen after Friday's GI Kentucky Oaks victory with Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) that his GI Kentucky Derby aspirant, Mystik Dan (Goldencents), could very well jump up and win, too. It seemed a bit far fetched given the last time a trainer had won the Kentucky Derby and Oaks in the same year was back in 1952 when Ben Jones accomplished the feat with Real Delight and Hill Gail. Defying the odds, and history, the Kentucky horseman completed the double Saturday...

The field for the GI Kentucky Derby, ranked in "likeliest winner" order. 1) FOREVER YOUNG (JPN) (c, Real Steel {Jpn}--Forever Darling, by Congrats). O-Susumu Fujita; B-Northern Racing (Jpn); T-Yoshito Yahagi. Sales History: ¥98,000,000 Ylg '22 JRHAJUL. Lifetime Record: 5-5-0-0, $2,049,451. Last start: WON Mar. 30 G2 UAE Derby. The 5-for-5 Forever Young resonates as the most legitimate threat a foreign-based horse has had to win the Derby since the internationalization of the race over the past several decades. I'd hesitate to compare this colt's presence to the electrifying pre-race aura...