And Ward s uncle, Sherill Ward, who trained the great Forego, earned a place in the sport s all of Fame. And so the man who saddled Saturday s Derby winner is about nothing if not racing tradition. A graduate of the Univ. of Kentucky, Ward managed the famed Calumet Farm and even served on the state s racing commission. He learned how to prepare a horse for the Derby from is grandfather, who had four Derby starters, and from his uncle, who had two Derby starters, and from family friend Woody Stephens, the legendary trainer who had two Derby winners among his 14 starters. And all week, calm in the embrace of tradition, Ward remained immune to the allure of the flashy red giant named Point Given.
Point Given s less experienced stablemate.
And I guess it worked out. It worked out, Chavez said, just as Ward said it would. The race unfolded just as the trainer had scripted it, furlong by furlong, with a hot pace burning up the early leaders and leaving the home stretch and ultimately the roseate blanket waiting for a monarch to assert himself. Along the inside, Songandaprayer shot to the lead immediately, followed closely by Balto Star, with Keats and Millennium Wind also prominent. As the speed began to retreat, Congaree, who had stalked the leaders, pounced.