Hollendorfer Is Making Another Run at the Derby

Imagine how bad trainer Jerry Hollendorfer’s Kentucky Derby luck might be if he ever ran a horse in the race.

Twice Hollendorfer has shipped horses to Churchill Downs for the Derby, but both times they couldn’t get past the preliminaries. In 1998, Event Of The Year was eight days away from running when he cracked a knee. Two years later, only two days before the Derby, Globalize came away second best in a training incident and was scratched from the race.

But Hollendorfer, winner of more than 3,400 races, is coming back for more. This year the 52-year-old conditioner has four 3-year-olds of various size and ability on the Derby trail and is hoping that one of them actually gets to the starting gate in Kentucky on May 4.

Three of Hollendorfer’s charges--Cappuchino, Yougottawanna and Lawn Mower--are running today at Golden Gate Fields in the $200,000 El Camino Real Derby. The Golden Gate-based trainer is holding back USS Tinosa to run against Southern California’s best in the San Felipe Stakes at Santa Anita a week from Sunday.

Event Of The Year won the El Camino Real in 1998, then added the Jim Beam Stakes at Turfway Park to roll into Churchill Downs undefeated in four starts. A nice story line was developing: Event Of The Year was a son of Seattle Slew, who was the last unbeaten horse--in 1977--to win the Derby.

Event Of The Year would have been the second or third choice, behind favored Indian Charlie, in the betting, but in his final Derby workout the colt came back to the barn with a swollen right knee. Hollendorfer fought back tears when he announced that Event Of The Year wouldn’t be running.

Two years ago, Globalize had survived his final pre-Derby workout. He had drawn the dreaded No. 1 post and was 50-1 on the morning line, but Hollendorfer still thought they had a chance. Globalize ran fourth on his home track, in the El Camino, but on the road leading up to the Derby he flourished, winning the Turfway Park race and running second in the Lexington Stakes at Keeneland.

Then on the Thursday morning of Derby week, out for a gallop at Churchill, Globalize had an incident with his lead pony, who retaliated by kicking the colt in the left hind leg. Five stitches were required to close the wound. Globalize recovered, but he missed the Derby and the Preakness and, in the Triple Crown windup, the Belmont Stakes, he was a factor for the first mile before finishing next to last.

The owners of Globalize--Hollendorfer, the retired stockbroker Howard Litt and George Todaro, a Washington eye surgeon--are also partners in Cappuchino, who’ll run coupled in the betting with Lawn Mower because Hollendorfer also owns a piece of that colt.

In the Golden Gate Derby, at 11/16 miles the same distance as today’s race, Cappuchino battled Danthebluegrassman from the start before losing by a nose to the Bob Baffert-trained colt, who will be favored in the El Camino. Since the Golden Gate Derby, Cappuchino dropped in distance on Feb. 10 and beat his stablemate, Yougottawanna, by 21/2 lengths in the Golden State Mile.

Besides Hollendorfer’s trio and Danthebluegrassman, seven other horses are running in the El Camino. They include Captain Squire, winner of the Turf Paradise Derby and a gelding who could have been claimed twice for $32,000 and once for $62,500 when he began his career.

Russell Baze, who has won both times he has ridden Cappuchino, has the mount again today, and on Sunday he’ll be at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans to ride Publication in the $750,000 Louisiana Derby. Publication, winner of the Arlington-Washington Futurity last fall, ran fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, then in his last start was fifth--nine lengths behind Siphonic--in the Hollywood Futurity on Dec. 15.

Publication and six other horses will be hard-pressed to beat Repent, who became one of the early Kentucky Derby favorites with a stirring stretch run that produced a 21/4-length victory at the Fair Grounds three weeks ago.

That victory notwithstanding, trainer Ken McPeek has bounced veteran Tony D’Amico off his Derby contenders. Jerry Bailey will ride Repent Sunday and Edgar Prado has the call on Harlan’s Holiday, one of the favorites for the Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park a week from today.

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Kent Desormeaux was fined $500 and another jockey, Victor Espinoza, will have to pay $250 in action taken by the Santa Anita stewards after a whip-wielding incident following the Jimmy Kilroe Mile last Saturday.

Desormeaux won the race with Decarchy and Espinoza finished third aboard Designed For Luck. Bobby Frankel, who trains Decarchy, said that his horse was struck three times in the face by Espinoza’s whip during the stretch run.