Calvin Borel Has Kentucky Derby Appeal
{{monthName}} {{day}}, {{year}} {{hour12}}:{{minuteTwoDigit}}{{dayPeriod}}
Zipse’s Kentucky Derby Daily – Day 10
The long awaited announcement of whom Calvin Borel will ride in the 2011 Kentucky Derby has come. The popular rider, who has ridden three Derby winners in the last four years, has picked up the mount on Twice the Appeal, according to Churchill Downs’ Darren Rogers.
Twice the Who?
Twice the Appeal is the Jeff Bonde trained colt who recently surprised in the rich Sunland Derby, to win at odds of 25-1. Before that, the son of Successful Appeal had only won twice in nine starts, and those wins came in a maiden claiming race, and an allowance event restricted to those who had run for a claiming tag of $40,000 or less. Not exactly glowing credentials, yet still you can’t help but think of the last time Borel was paired with a longshot coming from Sunland.
Will Mine That Bird lightning strike twice in a matter of three years? The odds are astronomical against that happening, but then again who would have ever guessed that the veteran Cajun could have ever done what he has done in recent runnings of the Kentucky Derby.
Taking a moment to review his astonishing success:
2007 – Calvin Borel skimmed the rail to take lukewarm favorite Street Sense from 19th to 1st in the bat of an eye. The juvenile champion goes on to win by 2 ¼ lengths over Hard Spun giving the well liked rider his first Derby winner.
2008 – While hot favorite Big Brown wins the Derby in style, Calvin Borel gets the most out of his mount, as he guides 27-1 longshot Denis of Cork through traffic to pick up 3rd place money after languishing in last for the first six furlongs.
2009 – In one of the most shocking results in Derby history, Calvin Borel rides the rails with huge longshot, Mine That Bird, and goes from last to first before the announcer knew he was. At the wire, Borel and the 50-1 shot were 6 ¾ lengths clear of the rest of the field on the sloppy track.
2010 – Once again taking a shorter route than most, Calvin Borel guided 8-1 chance Super Saver to a 2 ½ length score in a sloppy edition of the run for the roses. His third win in four years, Kentucky Derby Calvin’s exploits on the first Saturday in May become stuff of legend.
2011 – Calvin Borel will take a leg up on another Derby longshot (although I am sure his odds just went down with today’s announcement) in Twice the Appeal … let your imagination fill in the rest.
Read More
This is the 17th and final installment of a weekly feature exclusive to Horse Racing Nation tracking the...
Forever Young earned a sparkling 140 Horse Racing Nation speed figure for his victory in Saturday's Breeders' Cup...
The Fasig-Tipton November Sale, held Monday at the Newtown Paddocks in Lexington, Ky., posted sales of more than...
Owen Almighty , the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Derby winner who most recently placed third in the Perryville...
A decade after Michelle Payne became the first woman win Australia's most famous race, Jamie Melham has etched herself...