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| ♦ »| Native Dancer to Meet Six Classy Rivals in Preakness NATIVE DANCER— The A. G. Vander- bilt colt tries for victory number 13 this afternoon in the Preakness, this being the fourteenth start of his career. Gray Sagamorean Colt Set To Avenge Dark Star Defeat Royal Bay Gem, Correspondent Go Into Pimlicos 00,000 Second Leg of Triple Crown on Edge for Top Performances; Thundershowers in Baltimore Area May Keep Footing Soft By CHARLES HATTON PIMLICO, Baltimore, Md., May 22. — One of the most significant Preaknesses in the long, seventy-seven years history of Baltimores second of the American "Triple Crown" events will be decided tomorrow afternoon, when Native Dancer meets the six stoutest three-year-old rivals that may be mustered against him at a pell-mell mile and three-sixteenths. The popular gray Sagamorean will go to the post an overwhelming favorite, at perhaps 2 to 5, to duplicate his recent galloping conquest of the Withers and avenge himself himself upon upon the the Derbv Derby winner winner Dark Dark himself himself upon upon the the Derbv Derby winner winner Dark Dark ♦Star. If he can bring it off he will have convinced a majority of the public he is the champion, just as he was at two a year ago. If Dark Star repeats, or Royal Bay Gem or Correspondent prevails, the title shall have to await further racing before i« is awarded. And in the unexpected event Jamie K., Ram o War or Tahitian King is returned the winner, it will come as one of the major upsets in Preakness history. These round out the field of seven named yesterday to compete for Marylands great three-year-old classic. Should all of the septet go to the -post, the Preakness will have a gross value of 13,750 and yield the winner a net purse of 5,200, not to mention the Woodlawn Vase, the Black-Eyed Susans and a permanent prestige in the annals of the American turf. Expect Crowd of Over 30,000 Indications today were that this renewal of the Preakness may be decided in "off" going, though the tracks drying properties are remarkable. General manager John D. Jackson is ordering programs for 35,000 and expects the attendance will be upward of 30,000 in any weather, basing his estimate on the unprecedented volume of re- • quests for reserved seats, and the general , uptrend of about 10 per cent in crowds ; here this spring. The record Preakness attendance is the 42,370 who turned out in I 1946 and wagered ,219,120, which is also • a track record at Pimlico. Weather pre-1 dictions are a little grim, with a high 1 humidity and some thundershowers an-; ticipated in this area tomorrow. Native , Dancer and Correspondent have good . "mud marks" and Royal Bay Gem doubt-s less will command more support if the . track is under par, while Dark Stars one i indifferent race was debited against him in [ deep going for the Florida Derby, i This Preakness will be "seen" by perhaps Continued on Page Fire Native Dancer Seeks Preakness Today Over Dark Star, Five Other Opponents Royal BayGemtCor respondent* Ready for Top Performances In 00,000 Pimlico Stake Continued from Page One the largest audience of all its 76 renewals, for it is to be telecast and radiocasted over CBS "live", on a nationwide hookup from 5:30 to 6:00 p. m. EDT 4:30 to 5:00 p. m. CDT , with the band striking up "Maryland My Maryland" to signal the field from the paddock at about 5:45 EDT. The handsome Woodlawn Vase, traditional Preakness trophy, is to be presented the winning owner by Marylands Gov. Theodore Mc-Keldin in the usual pomp, circumstance and hubbub of the winners enclosure. The new Maryland Jockey Club has renovated its antique plant to make the Preakness crowd more comfortable, doubling the capacity of the members club, situating benches on the apron of the stand, extending the tote facilities and preparing to throw open the innerfield if it becomes necessary. Several furlongs of storm fencing were placed in the inner-field this morning to protect the new turf course. There are no mutuel windows behind the vast new tote board this spring. Royal Bay Gem Third Choice Experts in such complex matters expect that Dark Star will be second choice to "The Dancer," at about 5 to 1 to again repel the Sagamorean, who sustained his lone defeat in 13 starts at the Guggenheim colts heels in the Derby. Royal Bay Gem may be the third choice, possibly at "sixes" and Jamie K., is going to have some support to enhance Arcaros Preakness record. There is a 00 fee to pass the entry box in the Preakness this season, but then it is probable the redistribution of the purse helps account for the fact as many as six are to oppose the favorite. Second money has been advanced from 5,000 to 5,000, third from ,500 to 5,000 and fourth from ,750 to ,500. There are no breeders nor trainers prizes, as provided in the conditions of the Kentucky Derby. Three of the Preakness entrants were on the gummy surface for blowouts this morning, Correspondent skipping through the slop a breezing three furlongs in :35% and Dark Star going a handy half-mile in :48%. Clockers are impressed that the latter is at the top of his form. Ram o War breezed three furlongs in 37 seconds. A review of Native Dancers record would be superrogation and sounds a little prodigal, what with 12 successes from 13 starts, including such coveted events as the Hopeful and Belmont Futurity and the Wood Memorial and Withers this spring. Most of those who saw the Derby freely forgive him that one, and for three weeks have been explaining it to one another. To be sure he was bothered, but that was seven furlongs from home, and as someone has remarked, he had no business being back there in the first place. This observer is I inclined to concur in Bill Winfreys opinion he simply was too sluggish that first quarter1 mile. Sharpened for Speed Having been trained for distance coming up to the Derby, Native Dancer since has i been sharpened for speed. It will be astounding if Guerin does not get his mounts mind on running leaving the gate in this 00,000 event, though we dd not expect him to become involved in any suicidal speed duels. "The Dancer" has done beau- J tifully for Winfrey since coming to Pimlico, ; and his very manner suggests he is spoil- . ing for a race. Some horses do not appear to quite handle the Pimlico surface until . they have had a hard work or race over it, but the Sagamorean was perfectly at home I i J ; . . on it breezing six furlongs in 1:11% last Thursday. With earnings of 85,045, the strapping son of Polynesian will hurdle a number of horses to take a place fairly high on the all-time money winning list if he can bring off this Preakness. And if he is a punctual favorite, few will care to oppose him until later in the summer, when the conditions of the three -year-old stakes impose some weight penalties on a champion. Dark Star proved at Louisville that he is no colt for anybodys horse to take liberties with, and trainer Eddie Kayward has expressed his gratification over the progress Harry Guggenheims representative has made at Pimlico. "He is not a particularly robust; colt," that turfman observes, "but he is holding his flesh well and does everything asked of him cheerfully. The Royal Gem n. colts race in the inconclusive Preakness Prep must have benefitted him, as his first start since the Kentucky Derby. Hayward does not train him hard. One Disappointing Race .Dark Star has an abundance of speed and his Derby finish showed him a very genuine colt in a drive. The only really disappointing performance he has given in a career that extends from the three furlongs "baby races" at Hialeah to the Derby came over a deep racing surface at Gulfstream Park. Judging from the "form," he is the favorites most serious rival, indeed is generally considered at the moment to be the only possible disputant of his right to the three-year-old title. Royal Bay Gem apparently is "good" as ever he has been, and he likes the Pimlico racing surface. Further, he is one of the field whose chances hardly would be altered were the track suddenly to become deep and muddy. There is a great deal of early speed in this Preakness and if it is spent unwisely, Royal Bay Gem is the sort to rectify such mistakes. "He likes horses to come back to him," trainer Troutt has observed. It is probable that the Constantin colt will have a following among those who saw the Prep, but that race could be misleading for the reason there was no pace and this enabled him to be much closer at less expenditure of effort early than usually as he is leaving the backstretch. Tahitian King is essentially "a speed horse," and his Wood performance, in which he relinquished the lead to Native Dancer down near the finish after setting the pace under sufferance was probably a true bill. He came back to win the Swift, and trainer Conway seems satisfied his charge is at the top of his form. It is simply a question if the Whi taker colt can stay a mile and three -sixteenths with this field. And it is, incidentally, of much academic interest to breeders that the septet in this Preakness include four colts by only two sires. For Tahitian King is, like Native Dancer, a Polynesian, and both Dark Star and Royal Bay Gem are by the Australian, Royal GeraE Correspondent ran in the Preakness Prep as if he will appreciate the tightening influence of that mile and a sixteenth. Trainer Wally Dunn had granted him a brief respite following the Derby, and he tired in the final yards of last Mondays feature. Probably he will weaken less Continued on fogeJForti-Eijjht __ Dancer1 Seeks Preakness Over Six Rivals Today Gray Sagamorean Colt Set To Avenge Dark Star Defeat Continued from Page Five readily in the Preakness itself. The California-bred son of the English Khaled still has a habit of hesitating instantaneously at the break in his races, but he is sufficiently clever to recover quickly and could be "right there," for a while at least in this engagement. Ram o War and Jamie K. are not vastly different off their recent forms and both these are like Royal Bay Gem, of the stretch running persuasion. It will come as a distinct surprise, one of the most remarkable in Preakness history, if Ram o War should manage to win, though a good many patrons are sure to back Jamie K. because of Eddie Arcaro s presence in the stirrups. The Cincinnatian thought this son of the obscure Crowfoot ran well enough in New York to be a Preakness starter, and he theorizes that with so much sheer speed in the race his mount must be given some sort of chance. There have been larger Preakness fields, few having more entrants of demonstrable class. It is simply that, in the popular opinion, Tahitian King, Dark Star, Royal Bay Gem and Correspondent had the misfortune to get themselves foaled the same year as Native Dancer. The race this week end should show if he is in a class apart.
