The Indiana Derby Showdown: Fed Biz vs. Bourbon Courage

The grade II, $500,000 Indiana Derby at Hoosier Park has quickly become one of the biggest prep races for the Breeders’ Cup World Championships.  In the past two years alone, the Indiana Derby has had 3 grade I winners, (Caleb’s Posse, Lookin at Lucky, Shackleford) 2 Preakness winners, (Shackleford, Lookin at Lucky) and a multiple Eclipse Award winner (Lookin at Lucky.) Last year’s edition of the Indiana Derby gave us the exacta (Caleb’s Posse, Shackleford) in the Grade I Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile.  The 2010 Indiana Derby victor Lookin at Lucky took the lead in the stretch of one of the most epic Breeders’ Cup Classics in the history of the event. Lucky eventually faded a tad to finish fourth behind Blame, Zenyatta, and Fly Down.

Since the Indiana Derby earned graded status in 2002 the race has been won by some of the biggest names in the Triple Crown division.

2002- Perfect Drift

2003- Excessive Pleasure

2004- Brass Hat

2005- Don’t Get Mad

2006- Star Dabbler, Cielo Gold (Dead Heat)

2007- Zanjero

2008- Tin Cup Chalice

2009- Misremembered

2010- Lookin at Lucky

2011- Wilburn

The 2012 Indiana Derby will boast another strong field with two of the best 3 year olds left in training. Bob Baffert will yet again have his Indiana Derby gun loaded and ready to fire with Fed Biz. Fed Biz was rumored to be one of the best of Baffert’s two year olds in 2011.  The Giant’s Causeway Colt made his 3 year-old debut in a 1 mile $80,000 Allowance Optional Claiming race where he buried the future grade II Swaps victor and stable-mate Blueskiesnrainbows by some 12 lengths.  Fed Biz would come out of the race with a hind-end problem that took the colt out of training causing him to miss the Triple Crown Series.

Fed Biz returned to the races after nearly 8 months on the shelf to give his fans and backers a hard fought gutsy performance in the 1 Mile El Cajon Stakes at Del Mar. Fed Biz took the lead from the start. He dueled with Richard Mandella’s highly touted colt Jimmy Creed through the early stages of the race. Setting a quick pace on a closing track, Fed Biz and Jimmy Creed battled  gamely through fractions of 23.44 and 46.98, Jimmy Creed put a head in front coming into the stretch before Joe Talamo set down Fed Biz who fought back to put a neck in front at the wire. Fed Biz is royally bred being a son of multiple graded stakes winner and graded stakes sire, Giant’s Causeway. His dam-sire is Wild Again who won the first ever Breeders’ Cup Classic. The further the race the faster Fed Biz is bred to go. Baffert and Talamo will be looking for a huge performance from Fed Biz in his second race off a long lay-off in the Indiana Derby.

Though Bob Baffert has dominated the Indiana Derby with 2 wins in the past 3 years, he might find a 3rd win hard to come buy this year. Baffert’s Colt Fed Biz will have to overcome a huge obstacle in the way of Bourbon Courage.

Bourbon Courage is the star of the Kellyn Gorder barn. The beautiful son of Lion Heart has proved to show just as much heart as his father.  The Lion Heart colt got a late start not making his debut till February of this past year. He proved to be more than worth the wait. In his debut, the Bourbon Lane Stable runner gave his connections a dazzling performance breaking his maiden in style at 6 furlongs in a time of 1:09.28 dismantling the field by 4 lengths, a field that included Cigar Street and Macho Macho.  The Courageous Colt went on to win his second start sprinting at the Fair Grounds, his connections decided to try graded stakes company in the grade III Derby Trial at Churchill. He was wide most of the race and didn’t take to the sloppy Churchill Downs track, he fought on to finish 4^th behind Top Colts Hierro and Paynter.

Bourbon Courage showed signs of relishing the route distance in the grade II West Virginia Derby. The Lion Heart colt fought hard to come up a ½ length short to the aforementioned Macho Macho.  Trainer Kellyn Gorder called on Hoosier Park leading Jock Leandro Goncalves to ride Bourbon Courage in the grade II, $500,000 Super Derby at Louisiana Downs. Much like Bourbon Courage, Goncalves has proven himself as a hard worker who has no fear and a ton of heart, and the combination put on a show in Louisiana. Goncalves took the beautiful grey colt back in the early stages of the race, before making a monsterous move in the blink of an eye at the top of the stretch to draw off and win the 9 furlong Super Derby by 5 lengths. 

The 3 year old division has been extremely depleted over the past few months with the losses of the likes of Paynter, Bodemeister, Hansen, I’ll Have Another, and Union Rags. The Indiana Derby has two of the best left in training and two colts that seem to be peaking at the right time. This is a Super Showdown in the Indiana Corral between Baffert’s Fed Biz and Gorder’s Bourbon Courage. Both of these colts could parlay an Indiana Derby victory to a start in either the Breeders’ Cup Mile or maybe even the Breeders’ Cup Classic, either way the 2012 Indiana Slugfest will be a race you shouldn’t miss!