Kentucky Derby Winner Arrives in Saratoga
Sovereignty arrives at the Saratoga Race Course, led by his trainer Bill Mott. Image via Mary Eddy/the New York Racing Association (NYRA).
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Sovereignty, the winner of this year’s Kentucky Derby, has officially arrived at the Saratoga Race Course, the New York Racing Association (NYRA) announced last week.
The colt’s arrival came just two days after news that his trainer Bill Mott had decided to skip the Preakness Stakes, thus forgoing a Triple Crown attempt, and aim for the Belmont Stakes instead.
Sovereignty was escorted by Mott off a massive “horse van” that looked more spacious than many New York City apartments.
“He came off the van like a tiger,” Mott told NYRA. “He’s had good energy for a horse that just ran a race like that.”
Mott added that he would see how Sovereignty acts once he settles down and then decide upon an exercise routine.
The Derby winner is no stranger to the Spa City. His first-ever race, the Maiden Special Weight, was in Saratoga on Aug. 24 of last year. Though he finished fourth in his debut outing, he quickly rebounded with a second-place finish the following month at Belmont at The Big A, before winning his next two races at Churchill Downs and Gulfstream Park.
“We feel pretty comfortable here and know our way around here, so that’s a good thing,” Mott said.
At the Kentucky Derby, Sovereignty upset the favorite Journalism on a sloppy track in front of a reported crowd of 147,406 spectators. The race was viewed by an average of 17.7 million viewers, according to NBC, which made it the biggest Kentucky Derby television audience since 1989. The all-sources betting handle of more than $234 million also shattered previous records.
Sovereignty’s rider, Junior Alvarado, was invited to throw out the first pitch of a New York Yankees game against the San Diego Padres in the Bronx on May 7. At the ballgame, Alvarado managed to honor the sport of horse racing by tossing a clean strike across home plate into the waiting mitt of Yankees infielder Oswald Peraza, a fellow Venezuelan native.
Although the Belmont field is not yet set, it’s possible that Saratogians could witness a Sovereignty-Journalism rematch on June 7 during the final leg of the Triple Crown.