The great trainer Charlie Wittingham once said — when asked if he was going to send some horse to the Kentucky Derby — ” I ain’t going to no Kentucky unless I’m 3/5 to win the Derby!”  Several years later, he sent his first horse to the Kentucky Derby, Ferdinand.  And he won paying $17.60 to win, overcoming the dreadful rail post position.  And to my recollection, he’s the last horse to win from the #1 post position.  HE had a outstanding race horse, he trained him to the minute and on the day in question – Ole’ Charlie had his horse sitting on READY!  This season, for the umpteenth time, Todd Pletcher sent 4 horses to the Kentucky Derby and none of them could run a decent race.  Now don’t get too excited about Danza who did show some life, his number in the race was 73.25, while at the Arkansas Derby he ran 76.0.  In the Ark Derby he ran like a Graded Stakes horse, in the KD he ran like an Allowance horse.  The point is, that Pletcher didn’t have his very excellent horse on ready to win when winning the KD is what his operations seems to be all about.   Here is something to ponder, to achieve the 4 starters in the KD , how many horses, like Constitution this season and Violence last season, does he go through each year that become lost memories and unable racehorses…  D. Wayne Lukas sort of had that style, but unlike Pletcher the horses he put on the track for the KD were fabulous performers.  D. Wayne Lukas horses always performed…

I’ll never forget Charlie and Woody…