The Long Winding Road to the Roses

The Long Winding Road to the Roses This is a long and winding road to Churchill Downs the first Saturday in May, but the Thoroughbred set is atwitter about Breeders' Cup Juvenile champion Stevie Wonderboy, who plans to take his 3-year-old debut Saturday in the $ 150,000 in San Rafael Stakes Santa Anita. N. Juvenile champion has ever gone to the Kentucky Derby. The road to Louisville has struggled with danger, as a golf course, a wrong date of injury missteps on the track. Some people forget that the colts and stallions go through many physical changes between the two and three years, the seasons, is simply the process of aging. Many of the Horsey together, however, argue Wonderboy is still their best hope. 'It is certainly one of them to see, "said John Avello, who supervises the operations Racing Wynn Las Vegas. "Bluegrass Cat and First Samurai are two others." Wonderboy came from behind to knock off favored in the first Samurai juvenile, which is one of its four victories in five trips. "For me it is one of the first three high compaction Juvenile: Stevie Wonderboy, First Samurai and Henny Hughes," said Gordon Jones, a former editor at the grass-Los Angeles Herald Examiner, which is now running seminar ar Sam's Town. "I have not seen anybody out there even close. Nobody, that caught my attention, anyway. "Wonderboy, which is owned by TV impresario Merv Grffin and the name of his father, Stephen Got Even and singer / songwriter Stevie Wonder, is a racing license, when it comes to blood lines. "We have three interesting stories with the Triple Crown races the last three years, and this could be a blockbuster quarter," said Jones. "Funny CIDE was a good story, Smarty Jones was a good story and Afleet Alex was a good story. "When Stevie Wonderboy wins, the media are with all the nuts of horse Hollywood connections. "Stephen Got Even is a son of AP Indy and Summer Squall is the grandfather of animal origin. Wonderboy banks over $ 1 million in his campaign two years and is a favorite for an Eclipse Award in this month. Early winter is the race at Santa Anita in southe Califoia and Gulfstream Park in Florida, with the other tracks in the picture gradually. "All roads to Churchill from Oaklawn Park this year," Jones prognosis. 'With Hurricane Katrina closed the show (in New Orleans), it is better to Oaklawn jockeys, trainers and horses that he has ever had, "said Jones. The San Rafael, one of the first stages of the race for the Roses, will be contested in a mile, two Furlong shorter than the Derby distance of a mile and a quarter.