After Derby fall, Preakness 8th, Great White gets a vacation
Great White, scratched from the Kentucky Derby and eighth in Saturday's Preakness, will get a break and return in the fall, trainer John Ennis said Monday.
"We're going to give him a little time off because he's so immature and weak still," Ennnis said. "He's not even close to reaching his full strength. So we're going to give him a little time off at the farm and bring him back for the fall. …
"I think as a 4-year-old, he's going to be a lovely big 4-year-old. But he's going to go out and get some grass, get big and strong, and we'll get him back in the fall and then hopefully we'll have a real good horse next year."
Ennis said he was not disappointed with Great White's eighth-place effort in the Preakness. "I thought it was fantastic. … It's a Grade 1, you have to be happy."
Two weeks before the Preakness, Great White reared and flipped as he was about to be loaded into the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby.
But Ennis, who co-owns the Volatile gelding with Three Chimneys Farm, wanted to be very clear that the incident was not because Great White was scared.
"He's not worried about anything," Ennis said. "This horse is not scared of anything. Don't let people tell you he's scared of anything. This horse is scared of nothing. So the gate is not an issue."
And, he said, Great White does not have an attitude problem.
"He just feels good. … He's a very generous, kind horse. He's not trying to misbehave at all. … He's still immature mentally and physically, but he's not a bad boy. If they all could be like him, it'd make your life easier. So much easier."
Ennis had a simple explanation for what happened before the Derby.
"It was 100% the pony rider that knocked him over at Churchill, you know? … What's the first thing you do when a horse rears up? You let go of him. You don't pull against him. If you want to knock him over, you touch the mouth. You pull against him, they'll follow."
And in case there's any doubt about Great White's mental stability, Ennis reiterated, "This horse is not a problem. People get silly and think, oh, he's a crazy horse. He's not even close to a crazy horse. I could show you a crazy horse. He's not even related to a crazy horse."