Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-05-06
Needles Comes from Next to Last
To Triumph inDerby Going Away
Fubius Next,
ComeOn Red
Runs Third
BY CHARLES Nj. EGAN
snnrfs Editnr of The star

LOUISVILLE, May She
didn't get q single call from /
the track announcer until tbs
II horses we're in the home
stretch, but Needles came, saw
and conquered at Churchill
Downs this afternoon, just as
Julius Caesar used to do in the
old days-eXcept that Caesar
never got quite so far behind.
In winning the 82d and richest
of all the renewals of the Sl25.-
0O0-added Kentucky Derby, the
Florida -foaled Needles overcame
every possible handicap, incluo-
ing the jinX that has kept all
3-year-olds whose name begins
with IN" out of the winners
circle. Nashua and Native Dancer
were two of the big names who
failed in the past.
But Needles. who is both the
son and grandson of previous
Derby winners, was not to be
denied this warm, sunny after
noon, although he was next to
last with only a half-mile to go
and no better than seventh after
a fast 1864 mile had burned up
most of the front-runners.
Passes Horse After Horse
With Dave Erb, his 33-year-old
hockey, failing away as the field
swung into the homestretch.
Needles went to the outside and
passed horse after horse just as
he had done in the Flamingo
Stakes and the Florida Derby,
both S100.000-added races. From
the time he Started his move in
the stretch there was no doubt
about the winner, although the
orange and blue colors of the
D. and H. Stable were only three
quarters of length ahead OF
Calumet's Fabius at the finish.
Willie Hartack, who elected to
ride Fabius instead of Pintor Lea
after a day of indecision. gave
the son of Citation one of his
best rides. but he couldn't cope
with Needles, who was going
away at the end. Fabius. who
looked like the winner after tax.
ing the lead at the far turn. fin
ished a length and a half ahead
lof the surprising Come On Red,
who wasn't even supposed to run
I in the Derby unless the track
was off. Come On Red. ridden by
!, AL Popara. and coupled with
, three others in the mutuel field
j.. at 90 to l. was another three
quarters of length ahead Of
little Count Chic, the fourth
finisher.
Backed Down to 8 to 5
Although a lot of the experts
were chary about picking Needles
because the Florida colt abhors
workouts and hadn't had a race
over the Churchill Downs track,
the usual Derby crowd Of about
100000" showed no lack of con-
fidence. They backed the son Of
Ponder-Noodle Soup down to 8
to 5 and he paid off in the mu-
fuels at $500, $3.50 and $40.
Fabius. coupled with Pintor Lea.
the fifth f1niSher. returned $3.50
and $3.50 after going off the sec
ond choice at 4 to /. Mrs. Helen
Kellogg's Come On Red. coupled
in the field with. Jean Baptiste,
Invalidate and King o. Swords,
was $3.50 to show.
I Although the track was light
ming fast--two records were
broken during bright afternoon
wnen the temperatures was in
the high 70s-the time for the
Derby was an unsensational
,I2:032s. quite a bit slower than
Swaps, Dark Star and Hill Gail
have turned in in recent years.
The track and Derby record of
2:0l2S was set by Whirlaway in
1941.
Erb Gets a Scare
But that doesn't take any
credit away from Needles. first
Derby starter for the youthful
combination of Jack Dudley and
Bonnie Heath. Erb, who had
finished no better than 10th in
two previous Derby tries, said
Needles gave him scare early
in the race when he let loose OF
the bit for a few strides. When
! the colt grabbed the bit, Erb said
he felt better but he had another
scare when he realized how
much ground had to be made
Continued on PAGE C.g, Col. 4