In our Preakness profiles, we look into each of Saturday’s Preakness contenders.
Who is Dortmund?
The third place finisher in this year’s Kentucky Derby had a perfect record of six wins in six starts before being beaten in his last outing by winner American Pharoah and second place finisher Firing Line. After winning a maiden special weight and a first level allowance, trainer Bob Baffert entered Dortmund in the G1 Los Alamitos Futurity, where bettors sent him off as the favorite and he won the head bob against Firing Lane.
In his first race as a three year old, Dortmund again beat Firing Line by a head in the G3 Robert B. Lewis after Firing Line poked a head in front of him in the stretch. The official race chart described Dortmund’s effort in that race as “fought back, rail, game.” Victories in the G2 San Felipe and the G1 Santa Anita Derby followed, with Dortmund posting triple digit Beyers in each of his three year old races.
What they’re saying about Dortmund
After his victory in the G1 Santa Anita Derby, jockey Martin Garcia said, “. . . he’s still learning. He can play around a bit but when someone comes to him, or I ask him to go, he becomes push-button and he just takes off.” After his third place finish in the Derby, Garcia reported, “He’s a really good horse and he ran like it today. He always comes to run; that’s the kind of horse he is. He got beat today by really good horses. That can happen.” Trainer Bob Baffert said, “Dortmund’s a very fast horse. He goes 22 and change in a high gallop. He’s a big, long striding horse, and he’s not the kind of horse that I want to be taking him back…”
Why he could win
Other than American Pharoah, Dortmund is the only horse in the field to have posted triple digit Beyers in more than two races. He sports the highest Beyer — 106 in the G1 Santa Anita Derby — of any of the Preakness contender and also possesses tactical speed that allows him to win on the front end or from pressing the pace.
Why he could lose
Dortmund’s breeding — Big Brown out of a Tale of the Cat mare — suggests that he may be better suited at races between eight and nine furlongs. Also, American Pharoah beat him by three lengths and Firing Line beat him by two in the Kentucky Derby, and both of those horses return to the Preakness for a rematch.
[su_box title=”DORTMUND FILE” style=”glass”]- Trainer Bob Baffert
- Owner Kaleem Shah LLC
- Jockey Martin Garcia
- Bred in Kentucky by Emilie Gerlinde Fojan
- Breeding Big Brown-Our Josephina, by Tale of the Cat
- Record 7-6-0-1, earnings of $1,489,400
- Career highlights 1st place in the G1 Santa Anita Derby
- Morning line odds 7-2[/su_box]
