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STEPHEN FOSTER NIGHT THEY SAID IT JUNE 17, 2013 "He ran unbelievable. It was gratifying to get the horse back and to prove that he's as good as I thought he was and show he wasn't a one-year wonder." —trainer Ian Wilkes after Fort Larned ran away with the Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs Saturday night "It means a lot. I took the blame because I didn't do a good job with this horse for the Stephen Foster last time. I had too pretty of a horse. I had a show horse, not a racehorse last year. I knew I was coming in ready this year. The Stephen Foster was one we wanted to win." —Wilkes when asked what it means winning the 2013 Foster after Fort Larned finished last of eight in the 2012 running "Just about, but it was up to Brian. The main thing was to kick him out of the gate and then read the race. If Take Charge Indy desperately wanted to go, then we could have sat behind him and go from there." —Wilkes on whether Fort Larned's front-running pace tactics was planned "We'll run him in the Whitney and try to have him defend his crown. It's always been the end of the year goal to get back to the Breeders' Cup. We'll go the Whitney and then take it one race at a time." —Wilkes laying out stable star's major season goals "That was amazing. We were going down the backside and were cooking right along and the poles were going by pretty fast, but he was always doing it well within himself so I wasn't really worried about it. When we turned for home, I pulled the stick through and he switched leads like the Fort Larned of old." —jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. explaining his ride aboard Fort Larned "It's great because it puts the confidence of the fans back in him and shows his Breeders' Cup Classic win wasn't a fluke. He's a true champion and he showed it again tonight." —Hernandez Jr. describing how it felt for Fort Larned to win after his past two lackluster efforts "No shame in running second to a Breeders' Cup Classic winner. He's about half the size of the rest of the field, but he gives you everything he's got every time." —assistant trainer Phil Bauer, whose charge Golden Ticket finished second in the Stephen Foster "He tried hard. Probably we were second best. That horse (Fort Larned) ran a really good race today. You have to give him a lot of credit. He's a good horse." —Golden Ticket's jockey, Joel Rosario "The winner is a good horse. He's the Breeders' Cup Classic winner, so he's just a winner. He got a little break in the weights today, but I don't think another four pounds was going to matter to him today." —trainer Bill Mott, who saddle Ron the Greek to a third-place Foster finish as the defending champion of the race "That horse (Fort Larned) just got loose on the front end and kept going and Julien said our horse was having trouble getting a hold of it. He was bobbling the whole way. I don't know that he handled the track that well tonight." —conditioner Charles LoPresti after his trainee Successful Dan ran fourth in the Foster "(Fort Larned) ran a huge race. My horse, we got a good spot. He was comfortable during the race, but when it was time to get going, he started bobbling. I don't know if we can use that as an excuse or not. He just got beat, really. He's usually in the trifecta. The winner ran a big race." —Julien Leparoux, Successful Dan's regular rider "It just seems like he's not interested in running. He gets himself too far back. But this is was a quality field and this is a good horse that just won." —assistant trainer Norman Casse on 2011 Foster upsetter Pool Play, who could do no better than fifth Saturday night "He ran his race, but we just couldn't catch them. I don't want to make excuses. He just couldn't get there. —Miguel Mena, who had piloting duties aboard Pool Play "We were never running in hand and we were never going to beat the winner, that's for sure. I thought he had enough time between races, but he ran like he kind of bounced a little bit. Rosie just said she never really had any horse." —horseman Pat Byrne following 9-5 Foster favorite Take Charge Indy's last-of-six effort "It just wasn't my horse's day. The pace was a little fast, but I was sitting three lengths off the leader and didn't have much in hand. He's usually chugging along in the bridle, but he wasn't himself today." —jockey Rosie Napravnik on Take Charge Indy's subpar run "The saying is, 'It's nice when a plan comes together.' We had a plan and it came together the way we thought it would. We thought we would take it to (Royal Delta) right away and she was coming off a layoff. I've said this before that we've never gotten to run her every three or four weeks where she's actually getting race fit. She was finally race fit and was working very well. For a long time she had shown she was our best horse and we got to see it today." —Casse after Funny Proposition upset dual champion Royal Delta in the Fleur de Lis to get Churchill's stakes action underway Saturday night "I would never say that because I have a lot of respect for that mare, especially on this racetrack. But if we were going to get an advantage it was going to be today because she was coming off a layoff and a dull effort in Dubai. It's a very big deal because it puts Funny's name on the map. We beat the best in the country and now we're going to get some recognition." —Casse on whether he believed going into the Fleur de Lis that Funny Proposition could beat Royal Delta "She's a good horse and she's a filly that will take you the whole way. Turning for home, I felt like I had a little bit left and she was able to go on." —Rosario after piloting Funny Proposition to victory "Yes. That's what Norman told me in the paddock. He told me to take the lead and hope we've got something left turning for home. She was able to do it. I was very happy with the trip." —Rosario on his instructions from Casse about sending Funny Proposition to the lead in the Fleur de Lis "She seemed a little bit more pensive in the paddock than normal. Maybe it's just a matter of getting back into action. We'll see." —Mott reflection on Fleur de Lis defending champion Royal Delta's dull run on Saturday "It was her first race back. She shipped to Dubai and came back. I know it worked last year, but sometimes it just takes a little longer. That certainly wasn't her A-race. She'll come back and run big." —jockey Mike Smith, staying confident in regards to Royal Delta's future endeavors "This looks like a Breeders' Cup filly on down the line. We've got several places to go from here. I haven't nailed it down yet. She looks like a good one." —Ken Ramsey, owner of Regret winner Kitten's Dumplings "This makes 23 wins. The old record (for a spring meet) was 21 and we broke it. Jennie Rees (of the Courier-Journal) told me the record was 27 for a 90-something day meet and this is a 30-something (38) day meet. So, we're going to try to break the record for all-time. We've only got to get five more for 28. We're after 'em." —Ramsey on once again leading the owner standings at Churchill; A.J. Foyt III holds the current record for owner wins in a meet with 27 victories during the 93-day spring/summer meet in 1984 "The sky's the limit. We've always had high hopes for her. She's sometimes her own worst enemy. She has a lot of high-strung energy. I'd like to win the Queen Elizabeth (at Keeneland)." —trainer Mike Maker looking forward to Kitten's Dumplings next start "I really like this horse and I really thought he could win today. He's the kind of horse that is just getting better and better. This was a little short for him. I think he wants to further. I'm going to bring him home. He'll be on the summer Derby trail." —conditioner Bob Baffert, via phone, talking up Matt Winner victor Code West "Wow. That's pretty good. I plan on having a string at Churchill Downs next spring." —Baffert when told Code West gave him his 100th win under the Twin Spires "I had a great trip, but, honestly, when (Uncaptured) came to us I thought he had us. It was all the horse. He picked up and did not want to lose. Not a lot of horses pick up and have that kind of determination down the lane. I was very impressed." —Code West's jockey Napravnik on how her mount turned back runner-up Uncaptured to take the Matt Winn "I thought his last three works here were really good. This obviously was a very tough race. We ran against some really nice horses and we proved we're with some of the best in the country. I'm very proud. We got to see the real Uncaptured today. Obviously, he appreciates the dirt surface. We'll go back to the drawing board and we'll have fun with him the rest of the year." —Casse after Uncaptured just missed by a head after a stirring stretch duel with Code West in the Matt Winn "He ran a big race. We had a good trip; we just couldn't get there. We didn't have any trouble and saved ground. We got through turning for home. He ran his race." —Mena speaking of Uncaptured's run Saturday night
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