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Lucarelli's Monba leaps into Kentucky Derby picture
Saturday, April 12, 2008



Monba, ridden by Edgar Prado charges to the finish line to win the Blue Grass Stakes today at Keeneland. Cowboy Cal finished second and Kentucky Bear was third. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Monba, co-owned by Schenectady native Don Lucarelli, leaped into the Kentucky Derby picture this afternoon by scoring an impressive upset victory in the $750,000 Bluegrass Stakes at Keeneland.
Monba, ridden by Edgar Prado and trained by Todd Pletcher, stayed just off the pace, then took the lead in the stretch. The Maria’s Mon colt held off Cowboy Cal — also trained by Pletcher — by a neck. Kentucky Bear, a 27-1 long shot was third.
The $465,000 winner’s share of the purse gives Monba enough earnings to qualify for the 20-horse Derby field on May 3 at Churchill Downs. Stablemate Cowboy Cal also became eligible, giving Pletcher, who is winless in 19 Derby tries, two shots this year.
Pyro, the even-money favorite, finished 10th in the 12-horse field, the largest in 25 years. Winning time for the 1 1/8 miles was 1:49.71.
Monba returned $19.60, $8.60 and $6.60 across the board.
If Monba makes it to the starting gate a Churchill Downs in three weeks, it will mark the third straight year that Lucarelli has had a Derby horse. He had Keyed Entry two years ago and Sam P. last spring. Lucarelli's ownership is through Starlight Stable with Jack and Laurie Wolf. Paul Sayler is also a part-owner of Monba, who was a $200,000 purchase at the 2006 Fasig-Tipton Yearling Sales in Saratoga Springs.

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KENTUCKY DERBY
Will third time be a charm?
Lucarelli is back with a live colt in Monba
BY PHIL JANACK Gazette Sportswriter

    LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As often as he’s been to the Kentucky Derby — and this year makes three in a row — Don Lucarelli doesn’t allow himself the luxury of getting comfortable.
    The Schenectady native didn’t buy his first horses untiil 2004 and didn’t see any of them run until 2005, yet he again finds himself at Churchill Downs for the world’s biggest race.
    A full field of 20 will break from the gate at 6:04 p.m. today for the 134th edition of the Run for the Roses. Television coverage begins at 4 p.m. on NBC (Ch. 13).
    “Could I get used to it? I’d love to get used to it,” Lucarelli, 55, said. “I think I’m spoiled a little bit because for three years since I’ve been in the game, it’s happened.
    “You don’t take anything for granted. You just hope every year with our program that you’re able to come up with those one or two big horses that allow you to be here.”
    This year, it’s Monba, the Maria’s Mon colt Lucarelli owns in partnership with Jack and Laurie Wolf of Starlight Stable and Paul Saylor.
    It is the same trio that brought Keyed Entry to Louisville in 2006. Last year, Lucarelli and the Wolfs were here with Sam P.
    “It’s really neat to have somebody as a partner that shares the same values that you share,” Wolf said. A Louisville native who turns 59 on Sunday, Wolf lives three months a year at the family’s home in Saratoga Springs.
    “He’s always willing to do the best thing for the horse. He understands that. He’s a very level-headed businessman, and he obviously ran a very successful business. He and his family are salt-of-the-earthtype people.
    “I’d like to have one or two more people like that. I’ve had partners that I don’t have as partners anymore. It’s like a bad marriage; you get a divorce and move on. I don’t think there’ll be any divorce between Donnie and I for a long time.”
    It wasn’t until winning the Blue Grass by a neck in a gutsy effort over Todd Pletcher-trained stablemate Cowboy Cal that Monba punched his Derby ticket.
    He will break from post 14 under new rider Ramon Dominguez in a field stretched to the maximum 20 starters for the fourth consecutive year. Monba is listed at 15-1 on the morning line.
    “This year, we kind of thought we may be left out a little bit because we had a late bloomer, and he got hurt in the Fountain of Youth,” Luc arelli said. “Once we got him to the track, we were both comfortable that he’d be able to get into the Derby.
    “This guy fits the bill. He fi ts it from a pedigree standpoint. He seems to be peaking at the right time. He is also the type of horse that is a determined horse. I would say from a lot of different points, he’s definitely a horse that more fi ts this year for us.”
    Monba and Cowboy Cal are the 20th and 21st Derby starters for Pletcher, who is 0-for-19 overall.
    “I think they both have the cred entials to win,” Pletcher said. “Obviously, they have to show up and do it. Both horses are doing very well and, at this stage of the game, that’s what you hope for.”
    Monba is the co-fourth choice on the morning line at 15-1. The 3-1 program favorite is undefeated Big Brown, trying to become the fi rst horse since the filly Regret in 1915 to win the Derby in his fourth career start, and only the second ever to do it from post 20.
    “I’m like everybody else who has a really good horse in the Derby,”said Big Brown’s trainer, Richard Dutrow Jr., who is making his Derby debut. “I’m dreaming of it, and it’s very exciting. I can’t wait to get the game on. We’re ready.”
    Colonel John is one of three California-based horses in the race. He is trained by Eoin Harty, an assistant to Bob Baffert when he won the Derby in 1997 and 98 with Silver Charm and Real Quiet. It will be Colonel John’s first race on a conventional dirt surface.
    “I’ve always had an awful lot of faith in this horse,” Harty said. “I’ve fancied running him in this race for a long time. As of right now, I feel somewhat vindicated. However, he’s still got to go over there, and he’s still got to run in front of an awful lot of people.”
    Pyro, trained by Steve Asmussen, lost his standing as the Derby favorite after a career-worst performance in the Blue Grass, where he was 10th of 12 in his lone Polytrack start.
    Asmussen’s other starter, Z Fortune, is coming off a careerbest effort, running second in the Arkansas Derby. Last year, the Asmussen-trained Curlin ran third in the Derby, going on to be named Horse of the Year.
    “There’s a lot of varying opinions for the Derby this year, as well as every other year,” Asmussen said. “I feel good about how they’re both doing, physically. That being said, we know how much good fortune has to go our way for either one of them to have success. Curlin got beat last year, and he doesn’t get a chance to do it again, and we all know how special he is. It brings to light the circumstances of [today]. It’s their one chance to win the Derby.”
    For the first time since 1999, the Derby field will include a filly, Eight Belles, trained by Larry Jones, whose Hard Spun ran second to Street Sense last year. Only three fillies have ever won, the last being Winning Colors 20 years ago.
    “It’s up to whether she’s got enough talent,” Jones said. “I think we’re just now realizing how talented she really is.”
    Though Lucarelli doesn’t allow himself to think about what it would be like to win the Derby, he finds that his appreciation of the exper ience continues to grow.
    “This is where I want to be every year on the first Saturday in May, with a horse,” he said. “I didn’t know what to expect the first year. The second year, I was still getting a grip on it. Now, you sort of know what the ropes are, and all that. You get the chance to savor some moments here and there.
    “I try to get cautiously optimistic, but I know every time you get optimistic something will happen, so I sort of reserve myself and just wait for the moment to happen. I wish it was happening in the next hour. I’m ready.”

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Lucarelli can’t explain dismal run by Monba
Sunday, May 4, 2008
By Phil Janack (Contact)
Gazette Reporter

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — For the third year in a row, Don Lucarelli left Churchill Downs scratching his head.
Monba, the colt he co-owns with Jack Wolf and Paul Saylor, ran last of 20 in the Kentucky Derby, beaten more than 59 lengths.
“It’s definitely not the effort we wanted to see,” Lucarelli said. “This is really a big letdown.”
Watching from section 316 with dozens of family and friends, Luc arelli, a Schenectady native, had initial concerns for the horse’s health. Ninety minutes later, trainer Todd Pletcher reported that Monba appeared to be physically OK.
“The only thing Todd said was that he didn’t have a very good trip and got jostled around and just sort of lost his composure, I guess,” Luc arelli said. “Naturally, they’ll do all the tests, but there were no visible signs of any injury. I guess we’ll live to fight another day.”
Under Ramon Dominguez, Monba broke cleanly from post 14, the last stall in the main starting gate, and was quickly swallowed up by the field. Aboard for the first time, Dominguez felt the horse never got comfortable in the pack.
“My horse just didn’t run any good,” Dominguez said. “He got in between horses on the backside, he was jumping up and down and didn’t run at all in the last part.
“Actually, going into the first turn, it looked like [Adriano] was being pushed by someone on the outside and [Big Truck] was getting the worst of it. I was behind him, and I chose to circle the field at that point as I was forced to go wide. The second half, I was able to save ground, but it didn’t matter because my horse really wasn’t into it today.”
Monba was coming off a gutsy neck victory in the Grade I Blue Grass April 19 on the Polytrack at Keeneland, his first start since finishing last in the Fountain of Youth, a race where he got squeezed early and suffered a torn hoof that delayed his return.
Lucarelli wondered if Monba might have had trouble breathing during the race, which may have explained his lack of interest.
“I don’t know. It seemed like he lost all his power. Maybe he flipped [his palate],” Lucarelli said. “He had a tongue-tie on. It’s just unfortunate. I really didn’t get a good view the whole race.”
In his previous Derby tries, Luc arelli was last of 20 with Keyed Entry in 2006 and ninth of 20 last year with Sam P., also ridden by Dominguez.
“This is a tough race to win, there’s no doubt about it,” Lucarelli said. “We just don’t have too much luck in it. This horse was bred for it. He had the pedigree to do it. I reallly thought this horse had the stamina and the talent. What the answers are, I don’t know yet.”
Lucarelli gave credit to the winner, who overcame several obstacles including post position and inexperience to be an easy winner.
“That horse is definitely the real deal. He proved it today,” Lucarelli said. “It’s good for racing. It’s good for the sport to have somebody like that who seems to be a real freak.”