Page 2 - Frontier Bank

Colorado-connected McCraken OK

after Kentucky Derby, but won't run

in Preakness

Bay colt was in sixth after a mile before finishing eighth at Churchill
By Terry Frei
The Denver Post

POSTED: 05/08/2017 05:58:27 PM MDT | UPDATED: ABOUT 19 HOURS AGO

John Velazquez, right, rides Always Dreaming to victory in the 143rd running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on
Saturday in Louisville, Ky. McCraken, which has Colorado ties, was in sixth after a mile before finishing eighth. McCraken,
though, will not run in the Preakness on May 20. (Matt Slocum / Associated Press)
It's not on to Pimlico for McCraken.

The fourth choice in Kentucky Derby to win wagering at 6.90-1 on Saturday, the 3-year-old

colt with considerable Colorado connections had a tough trip at Churchill Downs in
Louisville, Ky., and finished eighth, 13 1/4 lengths behind the winning favorite, Always
Dreaming.

In the wake of the race, McCraken's owners — the Whitham family — and trainer Ian Wilkes
decided that the colt will bypass the May 20 Preakness Stakes at the Pimlico Race Course in
Baltimore and, most likely, also the June 10 Belmont Stakes.

"Giving him a break should give him a chance to re-charge for a summer campaign," Clay
Whitham, president of Frontier Bank in Lamar, said Monday. "They have to be pushed

pretty hard to peak for the Derby. We wouldn't normally run a horse back on two weeks
rest. We look forward to getting him back to the races this summer."

Under jockey Brian Hernandez Jr., McCraken broke from post position 15, the first slot in
the auxiliary gate in the 1 1/4 mile Derby. According to the official chart, he was jostled at
the start and bumped about a furlong in, then was 12th after a quarter mile, 11th after a half,