The 144th Kentucky Derby was contested on a sloppy track on the rainiest Derby Day in recorded history. But Creative Cause’s son, My Boy Jack, put up a spirited effort nonetheless. Sitting in 19th position down the backstretch, Kent Desormeaux asked him for his patented late run with 3 1/2 furlongs to go. No sooner had he accelerated than he lost momentum behind a wall of horses, was shuffled back to last and had to sit under a snug hold until nearing the quarter pole. At that point, Desormeaux swung him widest of all and he rallied resolutely past 14 other rivals to finish 5th. The fractionals show that My Boy Jack was the only Derby entrant to run two consecutive sub-26 second quarter-miles to finish the race. After posting an opening half-mile in 50.03, he ran the fastest final 3/4 mile of the entire field.
Making his 11th lifetime start (the most in this year’s field) and his third start in 6 weeks, My Boy Jack is one of the toughest and most admired three-year-olds in the crop. He will now reportedly get a well-earned break and may regroup for an assault on the Belmont S. on June 9th. There is plenty to look forward to with him.
