American Pharoah wins first race since Triple Crown

American Pharoah’s trainer was equally impressed by his champion.

American Pharoah became just the 12th horse – and the first in 37 years – to win US racing’s coveted Triple Crown of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont.

The Travers on August 29 is one of several races under consideration by owner Ahmed Zayat for the colt’s next start. Today, turning for home, the others were struggling.

“It was pretty easy”, winning jockey Victor Espinoza said after American Pharoah raced second until midway around the far turn before seizing the lead and taking control.

On Sunday, Zayat advised me that he feels compelled to run his beloved horse once more, regardless of the specter of damage. “But it’s once in a lifetime having a Triple Crown victor run in your backyard”.

“We’re just playing it race by race”, Baffert said. Like, all the way down, to zero.

Noted Kentucky breeder William S. Farish’s Casual Smile, who was bred in Great Britain, earned Farish the pick of those three stallions when she won the race for trainer Chad Brown and jocky Abel Castellano. “And it definitely goes through your mind”. Just don’t cut yourself.

“I watched like a fan”, Bafffert said. “I can’t believe I have him”.

“This is a real special one”, said Tom McCann, who lives about 30 miles from Monmouth Park. Let’s get this tissue sample on a slide under a microscope and see what it is. And, the Pacific Classic is against older horses.

“You never see it like this”, said Joe Sylvester of Long Branch, N.J., surveying the throng of well-dressed patrons, young and old. “But that doesn’t come into play”.

We’re onto something here.

Still, he said, “I know when I get home, Del Mar, they’re going to be putting a lot of pressure on me, too, and they’re in my back yard”. “They’re right in my backyard”. “If he’s asked a question, I want him to be able to answer”. Don’t worry about anything. With the barest of efforts, American Pharoah moved to the lead, six furlongs in 1:09 3/5, and went right on by Competitive Edge without effort.

For all the naysayers who think popular runners only bring in horse lovers and not bettors, the track also posted an all-sources handle of $20 million, which is a non-Breeders’ Cup record. If there were a mercy rule in horse racing, the officials would have to call it. The horse has won eight of his nine starts, only losing the very first time he ran, and seven of those victories have come in Grade 1 races.

On a ideal summer day at the Jersey Shore track, racings biggest star delivered an encore performance to remember — a 2 1/4-length victory in the $1.75 million Haskell that was much more dominating than the margin indicates.

Seems like a risky proposition for a horse that captured America’s imagination. The Travers at Saratoga and the Pennsylvania Derby at Parx are the front runners.

Baffert occasionally uses Onion’s upset of Secretariat in the 1973 Whitney as a reference point for Saratoga, and Zayat brought it up again on Sunday.

“It’s extremely rare that I’m speechless”, Zayat said before he started rolling.

We fans are a tough crowd to please. “The horse will tell him”.

“He is simply holding his type, which is fairly unimaginable for a horse that has been by means of what he has been by way of”, Baffert stated.