'Computing' Returns to N.Y., Familiar Faces Expected for Belmont

Cloud Computing (outside) edges out Classic Empire | Horsephotos

As the dust settled Sunday morning following Klaravich Stables and William Lawrence's Cloud Computing (Maclean's Music)'s victory in the GI Preakness S., trainer Chad Brown reported the winner had arrived safely back at his barn at Belmont Park in fine condition. The colt, who forged past champion Classic Empire (Pioneerof the Nile) to prevail by a head, gave Brown his first Preakness win in his first start in the race.

“We're thrilled with the result,” Brown said, adding that he was very pleased with Cloud Computing's trip beneath jockey Javier Castellano. “The horse looks well and our team here is just so happy with the race yesterday.”

Now back in New York, Cloud Computing could take a crack at the GI Belmont S. at his home track. Brown noted that while the race is a possible next spot for his trainee, he would take a wait-and-see approach in the coming days.

“We haven't ruled it out,” Brown said of the final leg of racing's Triple Crown. “We're just going to evaluate the horse this week and, probably by next weekend, we may have a decision.”

Cloud Computing secured sufficient qualifying points for the May 6 GI Kentucky Derby, but his connections elected to bypass the race and point the lightly raced colt towards the Preakness. That decision proved fruitful Saturday, rewarding a strong partnership between trainer and owners.

“It's really gratifying, for all the hard work everyone puts in here at the barn and to be able to do it for clients like Seth Klarman and Bill Lawrence, who are so loyal, so supportive and so patient,” Brown said. “To be able to reward them for their confidence in us is probably the most gratifying thing about the whole experience for me personally. They do trust us with a lot of horses, a lot of money invested in our stable and a lot of time spent dealing with good news and bad news. It's great to be able to give back to them, especially to Seth–who is from Baltimore. Everything aligned perfectly [Saturday].”

• Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming (Bodemeister), a head-scratching eighth in the Preakness after setting a pressured pace, was also in fine condition Sunday morning, according to trainer Todd Pletcher. The dark bay, who carried a four-race win streak to Pimlico and was sent off as the 6-5 post-time favorite, vanned back to Belmont Park early Sunday morning.

“When I spoke to the ownership after the race yesterday, we all decided that we wouldn't make any decisions until we got him home and evaluated how he's doing,” Pletcher said. “I don't think it's a good idea to make those types of decisions right after a race. We'll process it for a little while…He looks good, bright, alert, sound, healthy, happy. We'll head to Belmont and regroup.”

Pletcher was still struggling to find an obvious explanation for Always Dreaming's poor performance Saturday, but acknowledged that he was concerned with what he was seeing early in the race.

“I didn't love the way he broke,” Pletcher continued. “He broke kind of awkwardly and hit the gate a little bit. Johnny [Velazquez] lost his iron for a second because he brushed the side of the gate and he had to adjust his stirrup a couple times. He said in spite of that, when he was reaching down to grab his stirrup the horse was taking him to where he wanted to be. Coming by the wire the first time I was a little bit concerned. You could see Classic Empire was right on him and he wasn't maybe taking a firm hold of Johnny.”

• John Oxley's Classic Empire, meanwhile, appears to be headed to the Belmont after a valiant runner-up effort in which he put away Always Dreaming and nearly held off a late surge from the winner. The colt was scheduled to van back to trainer Mark Casse's Churchill Downs base Sunday evening.

“He was a better horse yesterday than he was two weeks ago for the Kentucky Derby,” Casse said of Classic Empire. “Julien [Leparoux] rode him perfectly. The only thing, if Always Dreaming had carried him a little farther, I think he probably wins. But he didn't, and so we go on. He tried to re-engage. That horse had some momentum on him–he ran a great race, too.”

Casse said he would look “for the same thing we always look for” when making sure that the Belmont is the correct target for Classic Empire's next race.

• Fern Circle Stable's Senior Investment (Discreetly Mine) followed his win in the GIII Stonestreet Lexington S. with a good third-place finish in Saturday's Preakness. Trainer Ken McPeek said the chestnut will van to Belmont Park to begin preparations for the Belmont S.–a race he won in a 70-1 upset with Sarava (Wild Again) in 2002.

• Hall of Fame conditioner Steve Asmussen said both fourth-place finisher Lookin At Lee (Lookin At Lucky) and ninth-place runner Hence (Street Boss) both emerged from their races in good order. Lookin At Lee, runner-up in the Kentucky Derby, was to van to Asmussen's Belmont Park barn Sunday to prepare for the final leg of the Triple Crown. Hence will return to Kentucky with a yet-to-be-determined target for his next appearance.

• Trainer Antonio Sano said fifth-finishing Gunnevera (Dialed In) will not point to the Belmont and return to South Florida to target 3-year-old races later in the summer. Others from the Preakness under consideration for the Belmont are Multiplier (6th; The Factor) and Conquest Mo Money (7th; Uncle Mo).

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