Trinniberg Sprints To Upset Breeders' Cup Victory
Trinniberg wins the Breeders' Cup Sprint!
Shivananda Parbhoo (trainer, Trinniberg, 1st) – “When he turned for home, I felt really good. I added blinkers today because I thought in his last few races he had lost confidence, but we never lost our confidence in him. I knew he would be in front at the eighth pole, and that’s why I added the blinkers. This is awesome.”
Willie Martinez (jockey, Trinniberg, 1st) – “You can dream it, you can feel it, but when you taste it, it’s a totally different thing. I never lost confidence in him. He’s been running against the best sprinters all year, I figured if I was first or second turning for home, he was going to be very tough to beat. This means the world to me.”
Mike Hushion (trainer, The Lumber Guy, 2nd) – “I thought he was going to get it done at the eighth pole; that he would reel him (Trinniberg) in from there, but he kept going. Second-best.
John Velazquez (jockey, The Lumber Guy, 2nd) – “We had a good trip, second-best I guess. But he ran very good. I was watching the eventual winner (Trinniberg) and he was going well. I was just hoping I would get to him. I did at the quarter pole, but then he opened up another length on me. I thought ‘wow, it’s going to be tough to beat him,’ and it was.”
Jeff Bonde (trainer, Smiling Tiger, 3rd) – This is certainly a tough race to make a comeback in. I’m very proud of him. He ran great, despite it all. Ramon (Dominuguez) said he got a little tired at the end, but he still ran great.”
Ramon Dominguez (jockey, Smiling Tiger, 3rd) – “I had a great trip and I was in close range. Turning for home, I angled out into the clear but he stayed even. He ran a very good race. He was pretty energetic to get third.”
Mike Smith (jockey, Amazombie, 8th) – “He wasn’t himself today. I don’t know what it was, but something was wrong. I knew around the turn that we were in trouble. He quit running, and it was like he didn’t want to be here.”