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Awesome Act, Conveyance drill for Derby
Leparoux, the 2009 Eclipse Award-winning jockey, also gave the workout his stamp of approval. "The work was nice," the 26-year-old native of Senlis, France, said. "He did it very easy. He got over the track very good." Leparoux was aboard Awesome Act when the Kentucky-bred English shipper won the Gotham at Aqueduct in his first start on dirt on March 6. He didn't have a dream trip in the Wood Memorial (G1) after stumbling at the start and throwing a shoe. Although he made a menacing move on the turn into the Aqueduct homestretch, he flattened out to finish third, a result blamed on his inability to settle off a pedestrian early pace. "You never know. In a race you never know what is going to happen when the gates open," Leparoux said. "Obviously, there's going to be a lot of speed, so we'll probably sit behind them." Awesome Act is co-owned by Vinery Stables and Mrs. Susan Roy. Vinery Stables was represented in the 2009 Kentucky Derby by favored Friesan Fire (A.P. Indy), who finished 18th after being squeezed and bumped at the start. "We're not going to be the favorite -- we've got that going for us," Vinery stable manager Tom Ludt said. "He's gotten better and better since he's gotten over here, so we're excited. But one of the things we've learned is that we're going to have a good time and hopefully we get a little racing luck. Last year, we had some unfortunate luck, but that's just racing. We got taken out of the race at the gate last year. We were out of the race when they went by the first time." Awesome Act is scheduled to walk Wednesday morning before schooling in the paddock in the afternoon.
War Emblem, Baffert's Kentucky Derby winner in 2002, was a front runner who was not given much of a chance to win. Sent off at odds of 20-1, War Emblem jumped out to the lead, was kept to a reasonable pace by jockey Victor Espinoza and had more than enough left in the stretch. Conveyance rattled off four straight victories, including the San Rafael S. (G3) at Santa Anita and his dirt debut in Oaklawn's Southwest S. (G3), but suffered his first career loss when second behind Endorsement (Distorted Humor) in the Sunland Derby (G3) on March 28. "He's got natural speed," Baffert said of Conveyance. "He moves like Holy Bull." The resemblance is no coincidence: he is out of the Holy Bull mare Emptythetill. Conveyance will be the first Derby starter for Zabeel Racing International, the nom de course of Sheikh Rashid bin Mohammed al Maktoum, the oldest son of the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum of Dubai. Baffert also trains likely Derby favorite LOOKIN AT LUCKY (Smart Strike). Last year's champion two-year-old walked Tuesday, the morning after he covered five furlongs in a bullet 1:00 4/5. Baffert, who has started 18 horses in the Derby prior to this year, still feels the buzz surrounding America's biggest race. "It's always exciting when you have a horse that has a chance, or you think he has a chance," he said. "We have two nice horses."
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