Preakness Notes: Winchell Hoping For Better Start From Midnight Bourbon Sponsored by:
Midnight Bourbon stretching his legs at Pimlico
Ron Winchell, who campaigns Louisiana Derby (G2) runner-up Midnight Bourbon in the name of his family s Winchell Thoroughbreds, said he s trying to keep his enthusiasm in check about their chances in Saturday s 146th Preakness Stakes (G1) at Pimlico.
“It s hard not to be overly optimistic,” Winchell, the Las Vegas entrepreneur and co-owner of Kentucky Downs as well as an internationally prominent owner and breeder, said by phone. “He s doing great. The Derby didn t seem to take a lot out of him.”
Pedigree fun facts: Medina Spirit Feb 6, 2021 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com
When
Medina Spirit dug in gamely to withstand all comers in the Jan. 30 Robert B. Lewis (G3), he was expressing tenacity reminiscent of grandsire Giant’s Causeway – and a more distant ancestor, Wild Again.
Medina Spirit’s pedigree isn’t fashionable up front, as implied by the bidding in both of his sales appearances. Sold for a paltry $1,000 as a yearling, he brought $35,000 as a two-year-old in training.
That’s because his first-crop sire,
Protonico, wasn’t very commercial. The four-time graded stakes winner scored his marquee victory in the 2015 Alysheba (G2), where he channeled the fighting spirit of his sire Giant’s Causeway, and left Honor Code back in fifth. Protonico earned just shy of $1 million, but didn’t win a Grade 1, although he was runner-up in the 2014 Clark H. (G1) (with Constitution third) and also placed in the 2016 Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) in his final start. In t