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* * ANALYSIS OF THE CLAIMS OF SEVEN LEADING CANDIDATES FOR KENTUCKY DERBY HONORS THIS YEAR By Dr. M. M. LEACH M. * "X" The splendid entry list obtained for the Kentucky i Derby must be exceedingly gratifying to the i Churchill Downs executive and to all well wishers • of the turf, and also conclusive proof that the i grand old sport of horse racing was never so i popular in the Commonwealth as it is at the present moment. The flower of the east will try conclusions with I the best of the west, re-enforced by a strong con- i tingent from abroad; in fact, for the first time in its history, there is quite an international flavor to the big race and, now that the entries have lx-en made public, it may not be uninteresting to glance through the performances of some of the best of last years two-year-olds. Twelve months ago it was comparatively an easy i matter to forecast the best three -year -olds of the year, both the blood lines and racing performances of Mr. Whitneys filly Regret suggested her superiority. This time, however, a far more difficult proposition presents itself, for there are at least seven candidates engaged which, at one time or another, showed form at least approaching high class and all of the seven are bred on the approved plan of blending the three great lines of Herod. Matehem and Eclipse. The sepette is made up of Dominant, Thunderer, Bromo, George Smith, Bulse. Gillies and the imported colt Colonel Yennie. Of course, there are others, such as Prince Harry, Big Smoke, Slipshod and Dodge, but unless they improve out of all knowledge, they will always be compelled to play second fiddle to the first named seven. As a rule two-year-old form works out right enough, especially if some attention be paid to blood lines, for it is an established fact that some breeds mature earlier than others, notably the Domino line, whereas horses of Matehem descent come to their best later in life. Condition also will play a prominent part in the decision of the race this year, more so than ever, for our backward Kentucky spring has so far prohibited any strong gallops being indulged in. It would be interesting to know official handi-capper Yosburghs estimate of the merits of the seven colts named above and, despite the result of ; the Futurity, I am inclined to think that Dominant, j j over a mile and a quarter course at least, would be : ■ allotted top weight a few pounds in front of George i Smith and Bulse, which would M asked to concede I a small amount to Thunderer and Bromo, which on I ; their Futurity running cannot be separated. The ■ Whitney pair will probably be asked to give a j small amount to Gillies, and that Colonel Venule I . would be the most leniently treated of the i • j ; sele-t little party. Handicapped, however, to run i over the Derby distance of a mile and a half, I j j should be inclined to place George Smith and Bulse ! ■ j i on the same mark as Dominant and. expect on ac- i I I count of their breeding, to find Gillies and Colonel j i Yei.uie the equal of Thunderer and Bromo. To lead off there is Dominant, for whose racing I debut the Cnited States Hotel Stakes at Saratoga was selected, and his six lengths victory over I.orac and Marse Henry must have been exceedingly gratifying to his connections and proof that the Thompson stable sheltered at least one colt possessed of a fine turn of speed. Dominants weight-carrying ability was still in doubt for he had up only the light impost of 108 pounds when he won his first big race at Saratoga. Both the second and third were also of the light-weight division, but that seasoned campaigner Bulse was asked to shoulder 130 pounds and finished a fast-coming fourth and, had the son of Disguise been quicker to find his feet in the earlier stages of the race, he must have gained a place, but, as subsequent events bear witness, p? could have had but slight chance of defeating Dominant at any such difference in poundage. After a period of ten days inaction Dominant was brought out to take his part in the Saratoga Special, this time carrying the fair racing weight of 122 pounds, and right well did he acquit himself, winning easily from Puss in Boots 119 I ounds, the well-bred Friar Bock filling third place. Sandwiched in between Dominants two outings, came Bills::; Sanford Memorial. Bulse carried his 127 pounds home to victory in true race-horse style, the light-weight Marse Henry second, the Spina -way heroine Jacoba third, the black whirlwind George Smith and Bromo amongst the unplaced ones, but more of this anon. The form displayed by Bulse in the running of the Sanford Memorial elicited much favorable comment and excited any amount of speculation as to which was the better of the pair, he or Dominant, and another meeting between the two, at something like even weights, was eagerly lo ked forward to by racing enthusiasts at the Spa. The public, however, was doomed to disappointment for Bulse, subsequent to his | Memorial victory, developed some leg trouble and was wisely enough put by for the remainder of the racing season. It is to be hoped that a winters | rest may have put him right again, and that fully restored. he may be able to play well his part ia 1 the forthcoming racing, but precedent is against - him. Once these Domino horses develop a weakness, their usefulness as race horses, more times 1 than not. is over and done with. However. Bulse, ■ at his best, must M reckoned as close to the top of the tree amongst the two-year-olds which were seen out last season. Seven days after his Special victory Dominant I was pulled out for the Grand Union Hotel Stakes l in which he was asked to carry no less than 130 I pounds. The race was made memorable by the defeat of the Thompson crack and Puss in Boots. • in receipt of twenty-two pounds, this time proved I tie- winner. The cracks defeat, especially in tii" I light of future events, took some of the gilt off the gingerbread for Dominant, had 1 1 been a real I smasher, weight or no weight, wet or dry, should I certainly have accounted for a filly of the class * of Puss in P.oots. The racing public were treated to one more glimpse of Dominant ere the colt was retired for the year. This came about in the running of the Hopeful Stakes and the son of Delhi, by his stylish victory, when carrying 130 pounds, did much to rehabilitate himself in the eyes of the critics, although, the field, bar Bromo, was made up of members of the second division. Still Dominant could do no more than win and win handsomely, and were it not tm his defeat in the ;rand Cnion Dominant Would now, by all and sundry, be regarded as the champion two-year-old of 1915. As it is. over short courses at all events, I am certain that he would be asked to concede a few pounds to all of his contemporaries. The undefeated Itegrets full brother, Thunderer, 1 was treated to a couple of eye openers towards the latter end of the meeting at the Spa, and bo well i i • i i I i i ; j j : ■ i I I ; ■ I i • j j ! ■ i | | 1 - 1 ■ I l I • I I I I * ■i1 did the son of Jersey Lightning acquit himself, that he was selected as one of the Thompson stables representatives for the Futurity, and most worthily did the handsome chestnut son of Broomstick come through this trying ordeal. As all the world knows Thunderer won in a drive from his stable mate Bromo. leading from start to finish, but was out to the last ounce at the finish to withstand the attentions of the second, from which he was receiving four pounds. Some will have it that Thunderer ran like a non-stayer, but I know that his talented trainer has formed golden opinions of his merits and that Thunderers rather slovenly finish in the Futurity was due to his not having leen quite keyed up for so severe a race, and I expect to see Thunderer, this year, improve over his Futurity effort. The Futurity marked the final appearance of Thunderer for the year, but another chance was afforded Bromo. This came about in the running of the Belmont Park Home-bred Produce Stakes, in which the Thompson candidate had once again to put tip with second place. Bromos race in the Futrity was calculated either to make or break him, but, as a matter of fact, it did neither and Bromo ran about the same horse as he did in the Futurity and was compelled to knock under to the lightly-weighted Gillies, which, up to this time, had failed to graduate from the maiden class. Gillies is one of the best bred ones of the seven and is to be depended upon to improve with age. as do so many of the get of his sire Ogden. Gillies was a starter in the Futurity and in that race showed good speed without ever appearing to hold a winning chance, but racing education had evidently done much for Gillies and he battled out his finish with Bromo in most resolute style and. now that he has opened up a winning account, there is no telling where he will stop and I look for him to make more than average improvement from two to three. Now, then, we come to the most perplexing colt in this most perplexing tale. George Smith, to wit. The Mack whirlwind which swept the Canadian opposition aside as though they had been so much chaff, and his connections would not hear of de feat when he threw down the gauntlet to Bulse and others for the Sanford Memorial at Saratoga. De-; feat and dismay were, however, in store and, at first blush it appeared that the glamour of his seven straight victories was a naught, that pro-; vincial form was as nothing as compared witl; Saratoga rating, and that at one fell swoop all hope of the blacks ever attaining to the highest pinnacle of equine fame was gone forever and Canadas dusky champion doomed to pass the rest of his career in neglected obscurity. Things were not anything like so bad as was at first sup-, p osed. som ■thing, however, was radically wrong, and the colt faced the barrier no more during the season at the Spa and. not until the Havre de Grace meeting came round, did George Smith again appear in public, only to suffer ignominious defeat at the hands of Slipshod and King Neptune. A second attempt also proved unavailing and by this time almost everyone had lost all confidence in George Smiths ability as a race horse. As so frequently happens, in such cases, the colt soon raced himself into form again, and on October 4. over the Laurel course, in the Annapolis Stakes, George Smith regained, as if by magic, his lost speed, .-ind put paid, in no uncertain manner, to the accounts of his erstwhile conquerors, Slipshod and King Neptune. Both King Neptune and Slipshod were then right at the top of their form, but George Smith never gave either of them the ghost of a chance, winning his race from flag fall to finish. George Smith was now running in the well-known colors of the Amsterdam turfman. John Sanford, and. just to show that his Annapolis Stakes victory was no fluke, the colt was pulled out again later along in the meeting and the uncompromising manner in which he smashed up the opposition — Colonel Yennie included — is well nigh conclusive evidence that George Smith, at his best, is the equal if not the superior to any colt which carried silk last year. I do not know that there is any particular justification for including Colonel Yennies name amongst the above juvenile celebrities, except it lie that he is a remarkably well bred colt and I have a sneaking idea that, as yet. we have not seen the best of Mr. Livingstons Englishman. I have it on the best of authority that Colonel Yennie was by no means an easy horse to train and that he never appeared to come to himself until the autumn was well advanced. Climatic change may well account for this and. even though his performance in the Walden Stakes was a highly meritorious one, I fell certain that Colonel Yennie will improve this season over any form he showed as a two-year-old. In the running of the Walden Stakes Colonel Yennie showed form at least approaching high class, any-; way. he who laughs best laughs last, and Colonel Yennie was awarded the last big two-year-old stake race of the eastern season. The Walden Stakes is run over the fall mile distance, a fact which should nit be lost sight of in estimating the chances for improvement and Colonel Yennie evidently stays 1 well. Expert opinion notwithstanding. I am of the opinion that two-year-olds which show their best form in the autumn can be counted on to reproduce that form the following year. Judged on book form alone. Dominant. Bulse and George Smith must be close together and up to one and one-quarter miles I must give a slight prefer- ence for Dominant. Thunderer and Bromo must be bracketed equal, their Futurity finish is the guide, and I suppose Gillies and Colonel Yennie would re- ceive a few pounds from the Whitney pair. The best bred one of the band is undoubtedly George Smith, the blending of the blood lines in his EM i well nigh WUrfectloa. Thunderer and Bulse are kotta bred Eclipse to Herod and Gillies is bred Matel.eni to Herod and all of the rest show pedigrees in wliieh the blending of the blood is strongly in evidence.
