[hailrazer]

Originally Posted by Kasept

If Eight Belles goes Saturday instead of Friday, it is Rick Porter and NO ONE ELSE making the decision. Even the consideration of her in the Derby has Porter's ham-handed fingerprints all over it. If Jones were making the call and was forced to run one of the 2 in the Derby, it would be Proud Spell, who is far better suited for the task.

This is from Larry Jones to John Piesen on running Eight Belles a couple of days ago. Could be LJ backing up the owners wishes, but if he genuinely thinks Eight Belles is the best 3 year old running this year, I think you try the Derby and let Proud Spell do the work in the Oaks.

http://www.nationalracemasters.com/a...ingle&hd_id=05


I'm still leaving out hope that Eight Belles will go to the Kentucky Derby.

Trainer Jones, conservative by nature, believes that Eight Belles is the season's best 3-year-old, regardless of gender, but he feels that Eight Belles -- unlike 1988 Derby winner Winning Colors -- does not have sufficient speed to clear the Derby field at the first turn.

"I spoke to D. Wayne the other day," Jones was telling me this morning, "and he told me that Winning Colors was so fast from the gate, and made the lead so easy, that she didn't know if there were boys or girls or whatever behind her.

"On the other hand, Eight Belles doesn't have that kind of gate speed. It takes her a while to get going. And if she would draw 17 or 18, that would really be a problem."

That said, if Eight Belles passes the Derby, she and Proud Spell conceivably could run one-two in the Kentucky Oaks...just as two other Jones' fillies ran one-two in an Oaklawn hundred-grander on Wednesday.