Early Voting Has Recent History On His Side
Klaravich Stable's Early Voting will have the chance Saturday at Pimlico to become the third straight horse and seventh this century that did not run in the Kentucky Derby to prevail in the Preakness Stakes.
Typically, the Preakness has been won by horses that ran two weeks earlier in the Derby. That trend has been interrupted in recent years with
Cloud Computing (2017), the filly Swiss Skydiver (2020) and Rombauer (2021) finishing first in the Middle Jewel of the Triple Crown. Swiss Skydiver's win came in the Covid 19-delayed Preakness, which was conducted in October.
Trainer Chad Brown is using the same script that worked for him with Cloud Computing, who was co-owned by Klaravich. Rather than run a lightly raced colt in the huge field of the Derby, he opted to let the second-place finisher in the Wood Memorial (G2) stay home at Belmont Park and get ready for the Preakness. Like Cloud Computing, the Preakness will be the fourth career start for Early Voting, a member of Gun Runner's first crop.
In 2000, Stronach Stable's Red Bullet handled the heavily favored Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus by 3 ¾ lengths.
Bernardini won the 2006 Preakness after Derby winner Barbaro was injured in the first run through the stretch. The Hall of Fame filly Rachel Alexandra jumped from an emphatic victory in the Kentucky Oaks to handle males in the 2009 Preakness.
Early Voting won this first two career starts but was beaten a neck by Mo Donegal in the April 9 Wood. Though Early Voting had enough qualifying points to make it into the Derby field with stablemate Zandon, who ended up third, Brown opted to wait for the Preakness.
“It was not a hard decision,” Brown said. “It made a lot of sense. It's something that we carefully studied. He was under consideration for the Derby right up until the week before the race, but ultimately, we are comfortable with this decision.”
Early Voting worked five furlongs in 1:00.63 Friday at Belmont Park and is scheduled to be shipped to Pimlico on Tuesday.