" ... it's how you finish!"

That age-old, time-honored observation holds sway in golf - i.e., the back nine on Sunday at Augusta National; baseball - i.e., the NY Mets, circa 2007; all sports, and life itself.  It has particular significance in the sport of horse racing, as I and others on here have been pounding home from Day 1 of these pages, yet routinely have found countered and remanded - i.e., War Pass and Indian Blessing - by our young Mavens of the Sport either who didn't believe us, or just didn't get it.

Following Gayego's victory yesterday in the Arkansas Derby, winning rider Mike Smith and winning trainer Paulo Lobo were interviewed apart from each other. Neither had a clue about the other's immediate reaction to Gayego's run.  Here's what each said:

Smith:  "We set some fractions.  He did the dirty work and finished that final quarter well."

Lobo:  "I think he did a lot of things today.  First of all, he tracked a very fast pace for the track and he finished very well, first time on the dirt."

For anyone with an abiding understanding of the game, Smith and Lobo's observations were both poignant and predictable.  Every great rider from the dawn of time and every conditioner of young horses worth his salt knows when it comes to the Kentucky Derby, the only thing that matters is conquering the great unknown: that final, daunting, and completely mysterious extra furlong where champions are crowned, and pretenders are relegated to the small print of history's archives.  In short, that it's all about "how you finish."

FTR, I excerpted Smith and Lobo's quotes from the Daily Racing Form.  Like our young JNs, clearly Mr.'s Crist and Beyer would be better served this time of year to do a bit less writing, and a whole lot more reading, starting with their own publication!

Rave