Motion 'excited' about bringing Animal Kingdom to Preakness

The eyes of the horse racing world shift from Churchill

Downs to Pimlico Race Course as the Triple Crown players set their sights on

Baltimore for the 136th running of the Preakness S. (G1) on May 21.

Team Valor International's

ANIMAL KINGDOM (Leroidesanimaux [Brz]), winner of Saturday's Kentucky Derby

(G1), was reported by trainer H.

Graham Motion to be doing well on the morning after his 2 3/4-length triumph and

will now likely begin preparing for the second leg of the Triple Crown.

Motion on Sunday morning informed

Pimlico officials, including track president Tom Chuckas, that he is "excited"

about Animal Kingdom's chances in the middle jewel. Chuckas called Motion

shortly after his appearance on NBC's "Today" show to congratulate the

Maryland-based conditioner on his Derby victory with the Team Valor

homebred and to personally invite him to the Preakness.

"We certainly plan to be there," Motion said. "It is going to be

exciting. I feel really good because we are coming to the next leg with a fresh

horse, which is going to be in our favor."

The past 24 hours have been a whirlwind for Animal Kingdom's connections.

After leaving the Kentucky Derby Winner's Party at the Kentucky Derby Museum,

Team Valor CEO and founder Barry Irwin and Motion and their families joined

jockey John Velazquez for Derby evening at the "Night of Silk" party at the Galt

House, a first-year fundraiser for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund.

"I don't know what happened between 6:30 (p.m. [EDT]) and 9 o'clock,"

Motion said. "Somebody said to me it was 9 o'clock and I said, 'What

happened to the last two and a half hours?' It was extraordinary."

On the morning after the biggest victory of his career as

an owner and operator of the Team Valor International syndicate, Irwin relished

Animal Kingdom's accomplishment, but worked to keep the achievement in

perspective.

"I know everybody wants me to say my whole life was

changed, but I feel exactly the same," he said. "My major comment would be I'm just happy

to own a horse this good. That's what means something to me. I'm not doing this just to make a whole lot of money. It is so tough to make

money in the horse business it's not even funny. I'm doing it because it's in my

blood and I love it. It's all I've ever done.

"We've made some history, and I like making history. It

means something to me."

As Saturday's renewal of the Derby approached, Motion was pleased with the progress of Animal Kingdom.

"I had a great feeling about running this horse this

week," the horseman said. "He's done so well and I just thought if he could handle the

switchover of turf form to dirt form -- I didn't know if he was a good enough

horse to do it. But I had really good feeling about running this horse."

Animal Kingdom made a beautiful transition to dirt after

running either on synthetic Polytrack surfaces or grass in his four previous

races. The chestnut colt became the first horse in the 137-year history of the

Derby to win the race in his debut on traditional dirt.

"I think a really good horse, and I think some of the good

horses in the past, some of the best horses were ones who were able to handle

both (grass and dirt)," Motion said. "He appears to be one of those great horses

that can handle both. Maybe he is better on the grass, but he's also a horse

that can handle the dirt. Brilliant horses can do that.

"I have a lot of confidence in this horse. He's the whole

package, I guess, to use a term that's probably overused. He's got a tremendous

disposition and is just a really brilliant horse. He handled everything so well

yesterday. (Jockey) Johnny (Velazquez) said he was so relaxed that it made Johnny relax. He said he'd

never been so relaxed in a race like this before as he was on this horse

yesterday."

Motion said the plan is to ship Animal Kingdom from Louisville,

Kentucky, to the Fair Hill Training Center in Cecil County on Tuesday. The

chestnut colt is scheduled to return to the track at Fair Hill, located about

60 miles from Pimlico, on Wednesday morning. Motion, 46, has not decided when

his star will ship to Pimlico but said it will be "fairly last minute."

The laid-back trainer said the magnitude of the most important

victory of his career was sinking in.

"When you start doing stuff like going on the 'Today' show, it really

hits home," he said. "It hits home that it

really did happen. It is an extraordinary feeling."

A native of England, who moved to the United States with his family at

the age of 16, Motion has been involved in Maryland racing for 26 years. He

worked for Jonathan Sheppard and Bernie Bond before going out on his own in

1993. Motion quickly found success and finished among the top 10 trainers in

Maryland from 1995-2001.

He was based at Laurel Park for the first 10 years of

his career before moving his stable to the Fair Hill Training Center in 2002. He

has Breeders' Cup victories with Better Talk Now and Shared Account (Pleasantly

Perfect) on his

resume. Shared Account is expected to run in the Gallorette S. (G3) on the

Preakness Day undercard.

Animal Kingdom will be Motion's fourth Preakness starter. He

finished third in 2008 with Icabad Crane (Jump Start), and also saddled Bay Eagle (2001,

eighth)

and Equality (2002, 13th) in Maryland's signature race.

The Preakness is expected to feature three of the top four

finishers from Saturday's Run for the Roses, as well as betting favorite DIALED

IN (Mineshaft), trained by Hall of Famer Nick Zito. Kathy Ritvo, trainer of third-place

finisher MUCHO MACHO MAN (Macho Uno) and Dale Romans, conditioner of SHACKLEFORD

(Forestry), who

finished fourth, said they are planning to run in the Preakness.

"We'll have to see him the next couple days, how he's eating, how his legs

are and what his attitude is. He looks good so far," Ritvo said of Mucho

Macho Man. "We're strongly

thinking about it as long as everything is good."

Ritvo loaded her classic-placed charge onto a van bound for Belmont Park,

where she will have a 20-horse division, on Sunday morning after reporting

that the massive colt was feeling fine.

"I just wanted him to run well. This was a 20-horse field. It's only going to

get easier from here, because there are no more 20-horse fields," Ritvo said.

"He kept himself out of trouble and (jockey) Rajiv (Maragh) did a good job. He was

running at the end. I was happy with his training and everything that went with

it."

Shackleford spent part of

Sunday morning walking the shedrow at Barn 4, showing no ill effects from his

pacesetting effort on Saturday.

"He came out of the race fine, but I'm worn out," said Romans, who finished

second in the Preakness last year with First Dude (Stephen Got Even). "He will

go back to the track Wednesday and leave for Baltimore the following Tuesday."

Zito reported that Robert LaPenta's Dialed In came

out of his disappointing eighth-place finish as the 5-2 Derby favorite in good

condition.

"I wasn't too happy. I looked to (son) Alex and said, 'I think we're in

trouble here.' We had a plan all along, and we stuck to the plan," Zito said. "(Jockey) Julien

(Leparoux) did what he was supposed to do. When (track announcer) Mark Johnson

said, 'Dialed In got away bad,' I was surprised, because he's good in the gate

and has been getting away good all the time. So that cost us a couple lengths

there.

"The race unfolded and he was in his normal position -- last.

Like Julien said, they didn't come back. Once they did 13-and-change, that was

tough to do. But he still tried to come on, he came with his run and only got

beat 7 1/2 lengths.

"He came home faster than the winner, which means a lot," Zito

added. "He was just too far back. You can't do it that way."

Zito said the plan was to go on to Pimlico with Dialed In.

"I spoke to Bob (LaPenta) and went over everything," the conditioner

expalined. "He's determined. He's built this

house and it's only half done, so we have to finish the job. He wants to do it,

and it's good enough for me."

Dialed In has an added incentive to show up for the second jewel of the

Triple Crown. With his victory in the Florida Derby (G1) last month, the dark

bay is

eligible for the Preakness 5.5 bonus. Last summer MI Developments Inc. (MID),

the majority owner of the Maryland Jockey Club, announced a pair of historic and

unique bonus programs centered around Pimlico's premier three-year old

races, called the "Preakness 5.5" and "Black-Eyed Susan 2.2."

The late-running

Dialed In also captured the Holy Bull S. (G3) earlier in the Gulfstream Park

meet. In addition to the race purses earned in the qualifying events and the

Preakness, the owner of the winning horse would receive $5 million and his

trainer would get $500,000.

"The $5 million would be good enough to run in the Preakness,"

said Zito, who ranks second to D. Wayne Lukas in history with 20 Preakness

starters. "We love Pimlico and look forward to another shot."

Zito won the Preakness in 1996 with Louis Quatorze, who finished 16th in the

Kentucky Derby.

"I might have made a mistake not going with Ice Box (Pulpit) last year," said Zito,

who bypassed the second leg of the Triple Crown with his 2010 Derby runner-up. "You may say, 'you didn't

make a mistake with Birdstone not going,' but every horse is different. This

horse, knock wood, might benefit from wheeling him right back."

Zito said shipping plans to Baltimore are not

definite.

"I'm just going day by day and make sure we're doing everything right," he

said. "We'll play it by ear, but it's a good possibility we'll stay here to the

end."

Trainer Steve Asmussen, who has lifted the Woodlawn Vase twice

in the last four years with Curlin (2007) and Rachel Alexandra (2009), told

Pimlico racing officials that no decision has been made on Derby runner-up NEHRO

(Mineshaft). However, Asmussen confirmed Preakness plans for ASTROLOGY (A.P.

Indy), who finished

second in the Jerome S. (G2) in his last start and has never been out of the

money in seven career outings.

Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, who has saddled five Preakness

winners, indicated the status of Derby 16th-placer MIDNIGHT INTERLUDE (War

Chant) and

Rebel S. (G2) winner THE FACTOR (War Front) would not be made until next weekend.

Connections from nine other runners, who did not compete in the

Derby, have also expressed interest in the Preakness. The potential new

shooters, in alphabetical order, are Saturday's Federico Tesio S. winner

CONCEALED IDENTITY (Smarty Jones); Arkansas Derby (G1) third DANCE CITY (City

Zip); Florida Derby fourth FLASHPOINT (Pomeroy);

Blue Grass S. (G1) third KING CONGIE (Badge of Silver); Santa Anita Derby (G1)

third MR. COMMONS (Artie Schiller); Wood Memorial (G1) fourth NORMAN ASBJORNSON

(Real Quiet); Lexington S. (G2) runner-up PRIME CUT (Bernstein);

Arkansas Derby 10th-placer SARATOGA RED (Eddington); and dual Grade 2-placed SWAY

AWAY (Afleet Alex).

While stablemate Twice the Appeal (Successful Appeal) was headed west

following his 10th-place Derby finish, trainer Jeff Bonde's other sophomore Sway Away was scheduled

to stay at Churchill for another 10 days before heading to Pimlico and the

Preakness.

"I'm going to stay here with him," assistant trainer Miguel Carranza said. "He'll

train here through next Tuesday, then we've got a flight up to Baltimore."

Sway Away, who had finished fourth in the Arkansas Derby

in his previous start, just missed getting into the Derby lineup when he

wound up 21st on the graded-stakes money list that limited runners for the Run

for the Roses to 20.

The Preakness is limited to 14 starters. Sixteen of the last 19

years have seen double-digit starters.