| Saturday, August 2, 2014 Whitney (G1) Quotes Eric Guillot, trainer of winner Moreno (No. 3): "Turning for home, he's on the lead and I'm hollering, 'Junior! Junior! Did you hear that bell? Do you hear that bell Somebody just got taken to school.'"
"When they crossed the wire, it took me a while to believe it. I saw the :47 3/5. I saw the 1:11 and change and I was feeling pretty confident like the Travers, you know what I mean? It's funny because pace makes the race, inner fractions make the race. The farther they go, the better. The softer fractions, the better he is. He's that kind of horse. He feels and waits on horses behind him. That's the kind of horse he is. He broke a little flat-footed. I was a little concerned. Junior listened. I said, 'At any cost, be two [lengths] in front going into the first turn." What's it mean to win? "It means [so much for] my partner and best friend, Mike [Moreno], who always believed in me from Day One and still does today. I'm getting emotional. For him and I, this is what we do. It's why he goes to work in business. It's why I get up at 4:30 seven days a week. We never doubted each other. Ever. Not one time."
"It was great. How can it not be? It's the Whitney."
Was he in his best form coming in? "You know what, honestly? Since he broke his maiden, he hasn't really done much wrong. When we tried to do something other than what he is, it backfired. Breeders' Cup, he got hurt, so you have to throw that out. Met Mile wasn't his gig - too fast fractions. Everything else, he's been right there.
"It sounds to me like my partner might be buying me a seven-pound steroid lobster at Siro's tonight." Junior Alvarado, winning jockey aboard Moreno (No. 3): "Right before the break he kind of moved a little bit. You don't want to mess too much with him in the gate. We tried to fix that as much as we could. I missed [the break] a little bit, the first step. When I asked him, boom, he was there right away. Eric told me to be two lengths in front. 'Keep it that way. Two lengths in front, two lengths in front. Turning for home, he'll be there for you.'" When did you think you had it won? "As soon as I turned for home. Even before I hit it, switching leads to the right, he took two big jumps. I said, 'I don't think there is a way anyone can pass me.'" Eddie Plesa, trainer of runner-up Itsmyluckyday (No. 4): "I'm disappointed he didn't win. I'm proud of him, the race he ran. He showed he belonged with the very best. If they ran this race six times, there might be three different winners and he's going to be one of them, I believe. I'm proud of him. Needless to say, I'm disappointed he didn't win but the horse ran great and shows where he belongs." Paco Lopez, jockey of runner-up Itsmyluckyday (No. 4): "My horse proved that he's a nice horse. He tried really hard. It was a great race. I'm very proud of my horse. I thought he might have a chance to get there. He never stopped running." Todd Pletcher, trainer of beaten favorite and sixth-place finisher Palace Malice (No. 5): "We got the trip we were hoping for. It wasn't his day. We were in good position, he just didn't fire today." John Velazquez, jockey aboard beaten favorite and sixth-place finisher Palace Malice (No. 5): "I don't know what went wrong. He didn't run at all. He was in perfect position. On the backstretch he was looking around. I was hoping by the half-mile he'd move on, but he never showed any interest. He went through the whole race not paying any attention. He trained great, he warmed up great, he just didn't run today." |
