Champions American Pharoah, Take Charge Brandi among 429 early TC nominees

Champions American Pharoah, Take Charge Brandi among 429

early Triple Crown nominees

Zayat Stables LLC's American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile), the Eclipse Award

winner for champion two-year-old colt of 2014, and Willis D. Horton's Take Charge

Brandi (Giant's Causeway), who mounted a year-end charge to earn the honor of America's 2014

juvenile filly champion, head an accomplished roster of

429

sophomore Thoroughbreds made eligible to compete in the 2015 Triple Crown during the early

nomination phase for the series of three classic races that includes the $2

million Kentucky Derby (G1), $1.5

million Preakness S. (G1) and $1.5 million Belmont S. (G1).

The early nomination total for the 2015 Triple Crown

reflects an increase of 15 nominations -- or 3.6 percent -- from 2014 when 414

three-year-olds were made eligible during the Triple Crown's early nomination phase.

The 414 early nominations in 2014 was a 12.2 percent increase over the 369

horses made eligible during that phase in 2013.

Ten horses were nominated in last year's late nomination

period for a final total of 424. The total was the largest since a record 460

horses were nominated to the Triple Crown in 2008.

The 2015 Triple Crown series opens Saturday, May 2, with the

141st running of the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville,

Kentucky. The 140th Preakness, the 1 3/16-mile second jewel, is set for Saturday, May

16, at Pimlico in Baltimore, Maryland. The 147th running of the Belmont, the 1

1/2-mile final leg, is scheduled for Saturday, June 6, at Belmont

Park in Elmont, New York.

The early nomination period for the 2015 Triple Crown

opened December 20 and closed at 11:59 p.m. (EST) on Saturday,

January 17. Nominations were required to be accompanied by payment of a $600 fee.

A late nomination period for the Triple Crown is underway

and requires payment of a $6,000 for each nominated three-year-old. The late

nomination period runs through Monday, March 23, at 11:59 p.m.

This year's 429 early Triple Crown nominees represent 1.8

percent of the 2012 North American foal crop, which was estimated at 23,500

Thoroughbreds.

Reigning champions American Pharoah and Take Charge Brandi

hail from the stables of two of the most successful stables in Triple Crown

history.

American Pharoah, whose two wins in three races include

Grade 1 triumphs in the Del Mar Futurity and Santa Anita's FrontRunner S., is one

of 15 nominees trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, who has nine Triple Crown

wins on his career résumé. The total includes three victories in the Kentucky

Derby, five Preakness triumphs and one win in the Belmont Stakes. Also among

Baffert's nominees is Kaleem Shah's unbeaten Dortmund (Big Brown), winner of the Los Alamitos Futurity

(G1).

Racing legend D. Wayne Lukas trains Take Charge Brandi, one

of 11 fillies nominated to the 2015 Triple Crown. Lukas trained Winning Colors,

one of only three fillies to win the Kentucky Derby, and is the all-time leading

trainer in Triple Crown victories with 14, the most recent of which being a victory

by Calumet Farm's Oxbow in the 2013 Preakness.

The 79-year-old Hall of Fame

conditioner has won the Kentucky Derby four times, collected six victories in

the Preakness and won the Belmont Stakes four times. Also among Lukas' 2015

Triple Crown nominees is Zayat Sables LLC's Mr. Z (Malibu Moon), runner-up in Keeneland's Breeders' Futurity

S. (G1) and third in the Los Alamitos Futurity.

Other stars among the early nominees to this year's Triple Crown include Texas Red

(Afleet Alex), trained by co-owner Keith Desormeaux and winner of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1);

Carpe Diem (Giant's Causeway), winner of the Breeders' Futurity and

runner-up in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile; Upstart (Flatter), third in the

Breeders' Cup Juvenile and winner of Gulfstream Park's Holy Bull S. (G2) to kick

off his sophomore campaign; Calculator (In Summation), runner-up to American Pharoah in the Del Mar Futurity and

FrontRunner and winner of the Sham S. (G3) at Santa Anita; Daredevil (More Than

Ready), winner of the Champagne S. (G1) at Belmont Park; Competitive Edge (Super

Saver), unbeaten

winner of Saratoga's Hopeful S. (G1); El Kabeir (Scat Daddy), winner of the

Kentucky Jockey Club S. (G2) at Churchill Downs and Aqueduct's Jerome S. (G3);

Imperia (Medaglia d'Oro), runner-up in the Kentucky Jockey Club and winner

of the Pilgrim S. (G3) over Belmont's turf; International Star (Fusaichi

Pegasus), winner of the Grey S. (Can-G3) at Woodbine and Lecomte S. (G3) at Fair

Grounds; and Far Right (Notional), winner of

the Smarty Jones S. at Oaklawn Park and third in the Delta Downs Jackpot (G3).

The leader among trainers in total Triple Crown nominees is

seven-time Eclipse Award winner Todd Pletcher, who made 34 horses eligible for

the series during the early nomination phase. His individual total is down from

2014 when nominating 41 horses during the early period.

The 47-year-old

Pletcher has won three Triple Crown races, a total that includes one Kentucky

Derby victory and a pair of triumphs in the Belmont Stakes. Pletcher's 2015 army

of Triple Crown hopes is headed by the Grade 1-winning trio of Carpe Diem,

Competitive Edge and Daredevil.

Chad Brown nominated 24 horses to rank second to Pletcher.

Others with double-figure early nomination totals include Jerry Hollendorfer

(16), Baffert (15), Lukas (14), Steve Asmussen (13) and Dale Romans (10).

Calumet Farm, a Thoroughbred racing icon which campaigned

Triple Crown winners Citation (1948) and Whirlaway (1941) and is the all-time

leader in victories in the elusive series with 18, is the nomination leader

among owners after making 15 horses eligible for America's spring classics.

Calumet won the Kentucky Derby a record eight times, has won a record eight

renewals of the Preakness and collected its pair of Belmont Stakes wins when

Whirlaway and Citation completed their Triple Crown sweeps. The victory by Oxbow

in the 2013 Preakness was the first Triple Crown victory for Calumet Farm under

the leadership of new owner Brad Kelley, and first for the namesake since

Forward Pass won the 1968 Preakness.

Ten Triple Crown early nominees are owned by Charles Fipke,

the only other owner with a nomination total in double figures. Godolphin Racing

LLC, Michael Tabor and Zayat Stables LLC are next with nine nominees, owned

either individually or in partnership.

Leading breeders are Darley and WinStar Farm LLC, with each

being the breeder of 11 nominees. Stonestreet Stables is next with 10 and Fipke

bred nine early nominees.

The roster of 2015 Triple Crown-eligible horses includes

379 colts, 30 geldings, 11 fillies and nine ridglings. Of the 429 early

nominees, 409 of those were bred in the United States and 323 of that number, or

75 percent, were foaled in Kentucky.

Twenty horses were bred outside of the United States.

Thirteen of those were bred in Canada, with six foaled in Ireland and one in

France.

The Kentucky Derby field has been limited to 20 starters

since 1975 and the horses that enter the starting gate for this year's running

will again be determined by points earned in the 35-race "Road to the Kentucky

Derby" eligibility system, which debuted in 2013. If Derby entries total more

than the maximum field of 20, up to four "also eligible" entrants will be

permitted. If one or more starters is scratched prior to 9 a.m. (EDT) on Friday, May

1, the also-eligible horse or horses with the highest preference in the "Road to

the Kentucky Derby" system will be allowed to replace the scratched horse or

horses in the starting gate.

The field for the Preakness is limited to 14 starters,

while the Belmont Stakes permits a maximum of 16 horses in its starting gate.

Three-year-olds that were not nominated for the Triple

Crown series during either the early or late nomination phases have a final

opportunity to become eligible for the races through the payment of a

supplemental nomination fee. Due at the time of entry for either the Kentucky

Derby, the Preakness or the Belmont Stakes, the supplemental fee process makes a

horse eligible for the remainder of the Triple Crown series. A supplemental

nomination at the time of entry to the Kentucky Derby requires payment of

$200,000. The fee is $150,000 if paid prior to the Preakness or $75,000 at time

of entry to the Belmont Stakes.

Churchill Downs adjusted its entry process in 2014 to

permit horses who are made nominations prior to the Kentucky Derby to be treated

the same as original nominees. If one or more supplemental nominees possess

sufficient "Road to the Kentucky Derby" points to qualify for the Derby field,

they will be allowed to start over original nominees with lesser qualifications.

Under its previous policy, Churchill Downs gave preference to original nominees

to the Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown over supplemental nominees.

A sweep of the three Triple Crown races -- one of the most

difficult feats in all of sports -- has been accomplished on only 11 occasions.

The roster of Triple Crown winners includes Sir Barton (1919), Gallant Fox

(1930), Omaha (1935), War Admiral (1937), Whirlaway (1941), Count Fleet (1943),

Assault (1946), Citation (1948), Secretariat (1973), Seattle Slew (1977) and

Affirmed (1978).

The 36-year gap since the most recent Triple Crown sweep by

Affirmed in 1978 is the longest in the history of the series. The previous

record was the 25-year span between the 1948 Triple Crown earned by Citation and

Secretariat's record-shattering three-race sweep in 1973.

Steve Coburn and Perry Martin's homebred fan favorite California Chrome

(Lucky Pulpit) scored impressive victories in the 2014 Kentucky Derby and

Preakness, but could not end the Triple Crown drought and finished fourth to Tonalist

(Tapit) in the Belmont Stakes. California Chrome was the 52nd

sophomore to win two of the three Triple Crown races.

Despite his setback in

the Belmont, the Art Sherman-trained California-bred was honored as racing's

2014 Horse of the Year and also earned the Eclipse Award for champion

three-year-old.

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